[4] He tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee in 1999, a few weeks before the World Fencing Championships in Seoul.

Following the World Championships, the USFA attempted to prevent him from qualifying for the 2000 Olympics by threatening to withhold athlete funding which he had previously been granted.

Despite this, Bloom went on to earn enough World Cup qualification to become the nation's number one ranked epee fencer.

[7][8] Bloom won silver medals in both individual and team foil at the 1995 Pan American Games.

[3] While studying full-time at Mount Sinai School of Medicine, Bloom continued to pursue the sport, and won the individual épée U.S. national championship in 1998[9] and 1999.