2008 Woodie Awards
Fencing
A Modern Sport?
Geoffrey Meadows
Issue date: 11/7/06 Section: Detour
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Swordplay has a long and ancient tradition reaching as far back as ancient Egypt. From knights in armor to the courts of the renaissance and finally even the famous duels of a mere century ago, swordplay has long been both recreation and serious. Presently, its status is no longer that of settling disputes among aristocrats, but has become the modern sport of fencing.
The sport is often called "physical chess" because of the complex tactical decisions one must make under enormous pressure and time constraints. At the same instant, one must exert the body in the cardiovascular sense and must also be able to critically analyze his/her opponent's defense and attack. There are two main actions in fencing: one is a thrust accompanied with a lunge (attack) and the second is a parry of the former (defense). All other actions are varied forms of the two.
Modern fencing utilizes three weapons: the foil, the epee, and the saber. The rules vary for each weapon but only slightly, so one can start by doing foil and move quite easily into either of the other two weapons. Unfortunately, there are many clubs that focus upon only one of these weapons, making it difficult for people to find the one they like most.
In America, fencing has never really been extremely popular, but there are a significant number of clubs in the country, and many in the East Bay. In recent years America has been doing well internationally with the women's saber team winning many world and Olympic titles. America has generally struggled to keep up with the deep-rooted traditions of the much stronger European fencers though. Italy, France, Germany and Russia generally dominate the podium at all international events.
Locally, fencing is actually quite popular, although it gets virtually no press and most people have never even seen a fencing match. The Bay Area is home to many internationally renowned coaches who are starting to produce international level fencers. There are tournaments organized by the Bay Cup, complete with medals and glory (sort of).
So if you are feeling the urge to poke people with metal sticks while getting physical and mental exercise; or you simply desire to engage in a sport with dignity, fencing is definitely worth checking out.
The sport is often called "physical chess" because of the complex tactical decisions one must make under enormous pressure and time constraints. At the same instant, one must exert the body in the cardiovascular sense and must also be able to critically analyze his/her opponent's defense and attack. There are two main actions in fencing: one is a thrust accompanied with a lunge (attack) and the second is a parry of the former (defense). All other actions are varied forms of the two.
Modern fencing utilizes three weapons: the foil, the epee, and the saber. The rules vary for each weapon but only slightly, so one can start by doing foil and move quite easily into either of the other two weapons. Unfortunately, there are many clubs that focus upon only one of these weapons, making it difficult for people to find the one they like most.
In America, fencing has never really been extremely popular, but there are a significant number of clubs in the country, and many in the East Bay. In recent years America has been doing well internationally with the women's saber team winning many world and Olympic titles. America has generally struggled to keep up with the deep-rooted traditions of the much stronger European fencers though. Italy, France, Germany and Russia generally dominate the podium at all international events.
Locally, fencing is actually quite popular, although it gets virtually no press and most people have never even seen a fencing match. The Bay Area is home to many internationally renowned coaches who are starting to produce international level fencers. There are tournaments organized by the Bay Cup, complete with medals and glory (sort of).
So if you are feeling the urge to poke people with metal sticks while getting physical and mental exercise; or you simply desire to engage in a sport with dignity, fencing is definitely worth checking out.