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The 2021 Holiday Gift Guide for Fencers

The 2021 Holiday Gift Guide for Fencers

by | Nov 26, 2021 |

Hurray for a wonderful holiday season! For the first time in two years, the holiday season is finally back to some kind of normalcy, thanks to the miracle of vaccines, and we are excited to publish our traditional fencing holiday gift guide. This year, we’ve put together our annual holiday gift guide, and it’s as big and broad as we are. It’s hard not to be excited about this year! One thing of note here is that supply chain issues are a real problem in 2021. While most of the gifts we’ve...

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An Appreciation of Community in Fencing

An Appreciation of Community in Fencing

by | Nov 23, 2021 |

They say it takes a village to raise a child. It also takes a community to grow a fencer.  A part of fencing that we don’t talk about nearly enough is the positive community that this sport is brimming with. The people in fencing create an overarching sense of belonging and support, whether they are coaches, the club staff, the referees, the officials, the fencers themselves, or the fencing families.  Despite the rivalries and the intense competitive nature of fencing, the whole of...

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9 Things to Look for in a Fencing Club & Fencing Coach

9 Things to Look for in a Fencing Club & Fencing Coach

by | Nov 17, 2021 |

Man Facing Door with Stop Sign - Forbidden Concept With the recent successes of American fencers on the International scene and the Gold Medal of Lee Keifer, American fencing has experienced a renewed interest in both the sport and appreciation for all the ways it can benefit students and parents alike.  If you’re interested in trying out competitive fencing, or even recreational fencing,  there are a few things to keep in mind before you dive in. Here are nine factors you’ll need to...

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Qualification Update: Fencing Summer Nationals 2022

Qualification Update: Fencing Summer Nationals 2022

by | Nov 13, 2021 |

Fencing season 2021-2022 is roaring along, and we couldn’t be more excited about what this post-pandemic competition season will look like. This will be the first time in three years that USA Fencing has been able to hold its national competition in the regular format!  We were lucky enough to have a national fencing competition last year, but the points were combined from the canceled 2019-2020 season and last season. This year, the competition will stand on its own for the season. ...

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Losing Should Not Feel Like a Sword through the Heart

Losing Should Not Feel Like a Sword through the Heart

by | Nov 6, 2021 |

Depressed Man - Adult Depression Most of us brag about the wins that we achieve, but we ignore the losses that cripple our confidence. It’s a vicious cycle that turns us around and around, pulling us away from the real potential that we possess. It should not destroy a fencer to lose a match, it should boost them.  This is important in fencing of course, but learning to handle loss in an effective way is a translatable skill that we can apply to all parts of our lives. There is always a...

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A Comprehensive Primer on the First Fencing Competition for New Youth Fencer and their Parents

A Comprehensive Primer on the First Fencing Competition for New Youth Fencer and their Parents

by | Nov 3, 2021 |

The first competition for new fencers and new fencing parents can be both thrilling and very challenging. What do I need to bring? How will I manage the schedule? What protocols will impact my day? There are so many different variables that go into a large fencing tournament, and they all have the potential to derail a fencer’s focus and cause stress. It’s good to know that you can minimize all of that with some advice from experienced fencing parents.  Depending on who you are and what...

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Why a Fencer Would Always Survive in a Scary Movie

Why a Fencer Would Always Survive in a Scary Movie

by | Oct 30, 2021 |

Have you ever watched a scary movie and thought, “No, stop! Why are you going for a drive in the middle of nowhere with no gas on Halloween night! The bad guy will definitely get you!” One of the most consistent parts of those chilling films is that people make bad decisions that leave them face to face with the monster or in the clutches of the bad guy.  Do you know who would definitely survive in a scary movie? A fencer. Seriously, there are reasons why fencers would be the ones to make...

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From COVID to Careers – An Interview Alexander Gorbachuk, Coach of the 2020 Olympic Gold Medal Men’s Epee Team Part 3

From COVID to Careers – An Interview Alexander Gorbachuk, Coach of the 2020 Olympic Gold Medal Men’s Epee Team Part 3

by | Oct 27, 2021 | , ,

Taking a team to the highest level of fencing is a task that’s filled with tough decisions, long hours, and much sacrifice on the part of everyone involved. Getting there takes a team effort, and it takes a fencing coach with vision like Alexander Gorbachuk. Originally from Ukraine, Gorbachuk has been the leader of the Japanese men’s epee fencing team for a dozen years now, but he’s always looking forward. Even after his team’s win on the world’s biggest sports stage, he’s got an eye for what...

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Challenged to be Resilient – An Interview with Alexander Gorbachuk, Coach of the 2020 Olympic Gold Medal Men’s Epee Team – Part 2

Challenged to be Resilient – An Interview with Alexander Gorbachuk, Coach of the 2020 Olympic Gold Medal Men’s Epee Team – Part 2

by | Oct 25, 2021 | , ,

Understanding the dynamics of international fencing is fascinating for those of us who work primarily on the youth sports level. It is so incredibly different, from the methods of training to the rigor that is required. The stress of this level of competition takes its toll on everyone, and preparing for that kind of stress sometimes comes in some unusual and controversial ways. Coach of the 2020 Olympic gold medal-winning Japanese men's epee team Alexander Gorbachuk opens up about what it...

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From Big Dreams to Olympic Gold – An Interview with Alexander Gorbachuk, Coach of the 2020 Olympic Gold Medal Men’s Epee Team – Part 1

From Big Dreams to Olympic Gold – An Interview with Alexander Gorbachuk, Coach of the 2020 Olympic Gold Medal Men’s Epee Team – Part 1

by | Oct 23, 2021 | , ,

This is the story of one coach who went down in the history of Japanese fencing and world fencing through perseverance and strength of character. For the world, one moment of Olympic Gold can seem like just one moment. For Alexander Gorbachuk, that one moment is the culmination of decades of hard work and a commitment to giving his athletes the best possible structure. Success in fencing on this level does not come without the application of a persevering mindset. Originally from Ukraine,...

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The Three Kinds of Fencing Opponents You’ll Meet on the Strip

The Three Kinds of Fencing Opponents You’ll Meet on the Strip

by | Oct 19, 2021 |

Though you’ll have a wide variety of experiences with a wide variety of opponents, it’s possible to gain a deeper understanding of those opponents with just a little bit of extra thought and analysis. No matter what level a fencer is, they can always learn something from whatever opponent they meet.  Three kinds of fencing opponents When we look deeper into what our opponents in fencing really are all about, we find that there are three very distinct kinds of fencers that you’ll meet....

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Why Fencing Birthday is Different than Regular Birthdays

Why Fencing Birthday is Different than Regular Birthdays

by | Oct 9, 2021 |

Making sense of fencing age classification is important for all fencers, and it can be a bit of a mind bend initially. The fencing season runs from August to July, so it runs over two years like a school year. There are both minimum ages for fencing and also maximum ages in fencing categories, so fencers can compete in different categories depending on what a fencer choses to do. A youth fencer can fence in both their age category and in the age category directly above them. There are lots of...

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Confidence

Confidence

by | Oct 4, 2021 |

A guest post by Corwin Duncan I was feeling good. I had spent three years working towards this day, two weeks at camp preparing, (and then taken some time away from fencing to clear my head) and just the day before my teammates and I had won the team event. There was no one in the room I couldn’t beat if I fenced my best, and I knew I could win this competition. I knew I could lose it too — I had to be careful, to walk that balance between confidence and overconfidence — but, well, I was...

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How to Convert a Foil Mask for Epee

How to Convert a Foil Mask for Epee

by | Sep 29, 2021 | ,

Fencing equipment is expensive and most of it will last for a long time. On the other hand, if your fencer decides to change weapons, do they need a new mask for their new weapon? Every fencing weapon is different, from scoring, to some elements of the uniform, to the weapon. Though there are some things that are totally interchangeable, like fencing knickers and the fencing jacket, other things like the mask are not exactly the same for each weapon. This is a problem we’ve come across...

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Stop Comparing Yourself to Other Fencers

Stop Comparing Yourself to Other Fencers

by | Sep 21, 2021 | ,

One of the worst things that we all do, and we all do it to some extent, is to compare ourselves to others. It’s easy to do, especially in the world of social media and the constant measurement of value that society places on everything.  It doesn’t matter how good you might be as a fencer, there will always be someone who is better on a given day. Life and fencing are too fluid and changing for us to get trapped in the notion of who is the best, even within the competitive fencing...

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