sport of fencing

THE SPORT OF

FENCING

The modern sport of fencing has its roots far back in time, to whenever the first man beat another one senseless with a stick. The first ever defensive move was an attempt not to get beaten to a pulp.

As civilisation advanced, people found new and better ways to kill each other, and did so regularly and with great enthusiasm.

In an attempt to stay alive in the 17th and 18th centuries, noblemen attended schools set up to give them a better chance of survival in a duel.

These schools or “salles” taught good blade-work and etiquette, masters became famous, practice rules became established, and people started fencing for the sheer enjoyment and exhilaration of fighting an opponent on equal terms with a blade.

Modern fencing has changed surprisingly little since those days.

Although injuries are now extremely rare, and equipment and rules designed to preserve life rather than take it, the sheer thrill of facing an opponent with a bare blade survives, and nothing gives so great a thrill as to see your point land cleanly and see your opponent’s face......

Electric equipment has been introduced to allow judges to decide on who, what and where hits were made, made more difficult in modern times as neither fencer tends to fall over dead.

Not in our club, anyway.

Well, not often. Honest.

Fencing is like a mixture of martial arts and chess:

Physically, you need to be able to move, attack and defend with good balance and technique. You don’t have to be Superman, however.

In addition, you need to plan your moves with a precision and cunning, to find your opponents weaknesses, and lay traps and make planned attacks to defeat your opponents strategy.

Once you learn the basic moves, it’s an interesting and challenging sport which appeals to people on many levels., and anyone who has ever wanted to be Zorro can have a go and enjoy themselves.....