 As No.2 seed she received a bye in the first round.She then disposed 15–11 of Japan's Megumi Harada and beat 15–13 Russia's Lyubov Shutova to reach the semi-finals, where she met experienced, 39-year-old Ildikó Mincza-Nébald of Hungary.After a very balanced bout where no fencer managed to gain more than a two-hit advantage, Brânză struck the decisive hit to win her ticket to the final.