If it wasn’t for the masked men in white uniforms lunging to hit each other with long, silver blades, the fencing crowd in Paris’ Grand Palais could’ve been mistaken for that at an NFL game. The thunderous roar of the audience was so loud that multiple fencers received penalties because they couldn’t hear the referees' directions during the men’s individual foil competition.

“It was so loud in there that I don’t know who was yelling what,” American Nick Itkin told NBCOlympics.com in an exclusive interview. “You could barely hear yourself think.”

Itkin loved it. It’s what he's been hoping and dreaming of for the sport. And the raucus atmosphere helped fuel him to win the bronze medal in the men’s individual foil in Paris.

His passion may be exactly what fencing needs. As a niche sport that’s long been overlooked by Americans in favor of baseball, basketball, and football, fencing has seen a surge in popularity over the past decade. Itkin hopes to add to its momentum.

“I definitely want to continue to grow the sport as much as possible,” Itkin said. “Fencing’s growing at an insane rate right now and it’s just beautiful for the sport … I could see it changing in front of my very eyes.”

Fencing is concentrated in only a few areas for now. He’s aiming to change that.

“The goal is to just [to] grow the sport and hopefully make it more available in different communities as well. That’s just something that needs to happen … if we want to make it a main sport,” Itkin added.

He acknowledges that finances are a big barrier to fencing.

“That’s just something that we need to figure out. There are some communities and foundations established to help fencers start out fencing,” Itkin explained.

Fellow Team USA fencer Anne Cebula, who competed in the Olympic women’s individual and team epee events in Paris, benefited from one of these programs. She only started fencing at 15 years old, later than many child fencers, because she was able to attend a free after-school fencing club while studying at Brooklyn Technical High School, a public high school in New York.

She later benefitted from New York Athletic Club’s elite athlete program, which covered the expenses for her first year of professional competition. At the end of the year, she ranked high enough for USA Fencing to cover her expenses.

Itkin wants to get involved with programs like the ones that helped get Cebula’s foot in the door. He sees the lead-up to the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics as a prime opportunity to build excitement and to work with foundations to grow the sport in low-income communities.

He also wants to compete at the next Games.

“I have to. It’s in my hometown,” Itkin asserted. He even lives near the UCLA dorms, which are currently planned to be home to the Olympic Village. “It’s going to be crazy … to be able to represent a country, but also the city.”

Before Itkin gets started on his high-reaching goals, he has a few things he wants to do in Paris.

“I want to go see all the other sports. I didn’t get to do that in Tokyo,” Itkin said. “As soon as I’m done [competing], I’ve got tickets to the basketball finals, to skateboarding, to track and field, to beach volleyball. I'm super excited to see all these sports.”

Itkin’s already been on a few side quests. He went to watch Serbia's Novak Djokovic take on Italy’s Lorenzo Musetti in men's singles semifinal and played real-life Fruit Ninja.

Itkin still has a shot at a second medal in Paris when he competes with fellow Americans Gerek Meinhardt, Alexander Massialas, and Miles Chamley-Watson in the men’s team foil event on Aug. 4.

The U.S. has a stacked team roster with all of the members returning to the Paris Olympics with bronze medals under their belt. Watch how they face-off with Egypt when the quarterfinals start at 5:50 a.m. ET (NBCOlympics.com, Peacock).