Times are tough for trans people in general, so make sure to support trans men, trans women, and nonbinary people while fencing!!

The support can mean a lot, especially if you're a coach or ref!

remember that we are normal humans too, no different from you! don't be afraid to step in if you see someone getting harassed!

🏳️‍⚧️🤺

EDIT: TRANS RIGHTS ARE HUMAN RIGHTS!! WE CAN ARGUE OVER ECONOMICS BUT NOT OVER HUMAN RIGHTS!!

This is kind of a rant but when I miss a flèche and I’m up in someone’s face I wish I could just push them man. I don’t think a little shoulder-but should be illegal either.

Kiddo broke a foil blade.It's less expensive to order a new blade and use the existing handle but it's not something we've ever done.Her Dad is somewhat handy.There are YouTube videos on how to replace them. Anything we should be aware of before I order?

I’m a new Epee fencer and modern pentathlete. As silly as it is to need FIE gear (including Epee blades) as a newbie who has only competed in fencing at a local level, modern pentathlon requires FIE so my 350N practice gear isn’t going to cut it.

I know that the cheapest FIE gear is supposed to be hot and uncomfortable. What’s the least expensive FIE gear that’s still adequately comfortable and durable?

I wear asics gel rocket 10s for bouts and footwork (on piste) but my club only has the piste for some time in the year and my gel rockets sole gets worn out. I tried doing bouts in my running shoes i use for the warm up etc but my feet start to hurt.

So now i need shoes which i can do footwork, long distance running, drills and gym in, i can't bear to wear my fencing shoes everywhere.

ps which shoes are these fencers wearing in these reels, they might fit the bill (as they are doing footwork and other exercises in them:) -

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DDWSFaePmfY/?hl=en

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DFaRCmWtuq_/?hl=en

I bought a new grip from Leon Paul and I screwed in the nut (8mm hex nut zer0) without the washers, and now the spanner can't reach in far enough to unscrew. Any help on getting it out is much appreciated.

What is the font type that most vendors are using for stenciling the lame, jacket, and pants? I know the technical rules but this lists size and color but not font.

Looking to understand formula of the Marathon Fleuret as described under "Formula" section here: https://www.marathon-fleuret.com/MarathonfleuretGBR-fra2025.pdf

So if I'm reading this right…

Saturday

• start with a round of pools for everyone
• then remake new pools (not sure if remade from 1st round results or not) and do another round of pools for everyone again
• then take those results to make a DE (with possibility of some fencers not qualifying depending on Tableaux bracket starting size and number of fencers?)
• then fence that DE till a certain number of fencers are eliminated [THIS PART IS MOST CONFUSING TO ME - I am trying to under stand both the women's U17 and U14 which are slightly different]
• then stop for the day (and advance to Sunday if you have made it to top 64)

Sunday

• resume the DE for another round to let's say 32 fencers
• then split off a losers bracket for losers from here on out(repechage for 32 as described here: https://capdiv.usafencing.org/forms/USFA%20Repechage%20Chart.pdf)
• then combine the winners and loser bracket at round of 8 and complete tournament until you have a winner

Im think I've got the Sunday formula down with help of that chart, but totally uncertain about Saturday. if anyone truly and confidently understands how this plays out please do let me know!

Thanks

Hello fencers, I recently bought a new epee, one with a canted french grip from Uhlmann. I have been fencing for 10+ years now with a pistolgrip. I was wondering if you have any tips for fencing french as a newbie. I have a stiff blade, if that makes any difference.

Thank you.

so!!! I have smol hands...

so im pretty bad at holding my sabre

I was just scrolling through YouTube and found zippies! it makes gloves smell nice too!! and barely any residue gets left over

so...

tell me your thoughts!!!

I’ve been using the equipment at my university’s fencing club but I was considering going for private lessons and I’m not sure what I’d be provided. I’m thinking only fencing shoes right now. Is there anything else I need? I know gear + a Sabre would be hella bank and I don’t want to shell out if I don’t have to

Someone in my club asked if they could glove their off-hand so it doesn’t hurt if hit. It turned into a discussion and the coaches didn’t know how to answer.

Coach 1: Doesn’t recommend because it’s weird looking and may be interpreted as disrespectful when it comes down to the post bout handshake.

Coach 2: A gloved off hand is okay but it CANNOT be a fencing glove and it must be tucked underneath sleeve

What does the community think?

Hi all. Long story short, I am a college student who started fencing in college (about a 2 years ago). I have gotten pretty good within my club, but whenever I travel to local tournaments I’ve started consistently placing at about 9-15th place (out of usually 45 or so). I want to get better, but the only club in my area is the one at my school, and all of our coaches mostly only fence epee… a few will come and do foil but clearly don’t want to spend much time with all of us foilists. I feel that I’m starting to stagnate. We have full club practice 2 times a week, and we can’t get more times because that’s when we’re allowed to use our space and communal equipment (but I have my own equipment at home). My question is, what are the best ways you’ve found to practice on your own? Are there drills you’ve found helpful to run that have increased the quality of your fencing overall? Is there any literature or videos or something that you would recommend? I would really appreciate literally any advice, thank you so much ❤️🤺.

Wasn’t a particularly hard hand hit. Came in prepared for this to be a flimsy glove considering all the reviews I’ve read, but damn, this glove is arguably borderline unsafe.

Happy Fencing Friday, an /r/Fencing tradition.

Welcome back to our weekly ask anything megathread where you can feel free to ask whatever is on your mind without fear of being called a moron just for asking. Be sure to check out all the previous megathreads as well as our sidebar FAQ.

My epee started randomly not registering touches unless bent downward completely. It just happened randomly. Is it something I’ll have to rewire my blade to fix, or are there other solutions? I have a video to show what I’m talking about.

Thanks!

I stopped fencing about a year before COVID and have been considering starting up again… my issue is I didn’t leave my club in the best of terms, and in fact would probably never have stopped and would still be competing (prob doing just as poorly but that’s irrelevant it was fun) if it wasn’t for the dispute about payment that led to my leaving those years ago. Anyway I’m thinking of putting all that aside and joining up again, forgiving the organisers for the poor handling and that because there aren’t any other clubs conveniently close to me… I suppose my main question is what kind of training should I do to get back in shape preferably before signing up with the club again? Also most of my gear still fits (although I doubt my lamé would work still given the humidity of the area it was stored in… same with the electrical part of the mask, but I’m not opposed to buying a new one IF the need ever arises and I can afford it)… My foils however…… I’ve never fenced with rusty weapons (mostly near the guard… prob also due to the humidity)… would I need to replace the blades or do you think they’re still usable? Would the rust weaken them and make them snap easier or can they still survive a bit? Thanks in advance and all advice and opinions are welcome !

Like the title says I ordered an extra large mask from prieur and it’s way smaller than the other extra large masks I’ve been using and at this point I don’t know what to do.

This is my partner's weapon but I do all our repairs. It was working fine on the test box at home but when we got to practice my partner wasn't getting a light. They unplugged the body cord to test it on the bell and that produces a light. They plugged it back in and the weapon started working. They were able to use it for 15 to 20 touches before it stopped working. After unplugging and re-plugging in the body cord, the weapon worked for another short period of time.

Now, I'm at home and it's working just fine on the test box even though I haven't done anything to it. Does anyone have any ideas about what could be wrong?

Size 10. Also, how would they compare to nike/kempa?

Hi everyone,

I’m curious to hear from other fencers who have had a C-section: When did you return to fencing? How did you handle lunges and sparring? How long did you wait?

A bit of background about me: I stayed active throughout my pregnancy, doing sports regularly until the 32nd week, including swimming and gym workouts. Before pregnancy, I was very fit, practicing martial arts and running frequently. I started fencing 12 years ago, and I paused it for a few years.

I’m currently 12 weeks postpartum. The C-section went smoothly, and I don’t have any significant issues except for mild diastasis recti, which I’m actively addressing with targeted exercises. I’m already back at the gym, lifting weights and doing various workouts without any problems.

I’d love to hear your experiences and —when did you return to fencing, and how did it go for you?

Thank you in advance!

Edit: i don’t want or need medical advice, I have been to my doctor and PT they both said I could start after approximately 12 weeks. I just wanted to hear about some experiences :)

INTRO I wrote about this in another recent thread (about transporting masks), but if you have not read that thread, here is most of the text again:

This last Monday, I went to a primary school and held fencing lessons for 4 half-classes of students, 2 in 3rd grade (nine years old) and 2 in 5th grade (11 years old)

The half-classes consisted of 16-18 students each, so keeping track of everything was quite something, even with the help of their respective class teachers.

We covered:

• Bare basics of what fencing is

• What the piste is, and the what the lines mean

• How to stand in guard position

• How to do Marché

• How to do Rompé

• Getting dressed with jacket, mask, and glove

• Lunging at a gym rope

• Beat attacks

3-point matches, me and the class teacher reffing one bout each

That was the plan, at least. Given the various issues that caused us to lose time, I had to cut things short here and there.

Since the above was wrote, another teacher, who is the sister of the teacher of the 3rd-graders, has emailed me and she wants me to run a fencing introduction to her 2nd grade class, all 30 of them. I am trying to get extra stuff from surrounding clubs in order to have stuff for everyone. She has also mentioned this to her colleagues, and one of them wants me to come for his 4th-graders the same day. Onwards and upwards!

Now to the actual questions of this thread:

What should be covered in the curriculum of this sort of fencing intruduction?

If you have done fencing introductions for kids this age (8-11) in a PE lesson/school setting, what have you covered?

Do you have any tips on how to limit time delays due to students doing stuff that was not asked of them, and not conducive to the fencing introduction?