The Fencing World Championships just started on July 22nd and will run through Sunday the 30th in Milan, Italy. This is a major international fencing event that happens every year as the culmination of the season, except during the Olympics, where the Games serve the same purpose. 

All three weapons and both women and men participate in the competition, in team and individual events. It’s a smorgasbord of world-class fencing, the closest thing to the Olympics outside of the Games themselves, and definitely something fencers want to keep an eye out for. Especially this year, the World Championships are an essential part of the run-up to next year’s Paris Olympiad. 

Let’s delve into the format of the championship, the significance of team events in Olympic qualification, and the software used to manage this incredible and incredibly important competition.

Individual Events – Preliminaries and Eliminations

The individual events are the heart of the championship, spanning the first six days of the tournament. 

During each day of competition, there’s a great mix of gender and weapon. This mix theoretically allows people from countries that don’t have a lot of fencers to participate in several events (for example, the same fencer can participate one day in the Women’s Foil event and another day in the Women’s Sabre event). On one single day, there will be a women’s individual round from one weapon and then a men’s individual from another weapon, and then the same kind of pattern for the team competition. It’s always interchanged. 

Each individual competition at the Fencing World Championship is divided into two phases over two days. The first day consists of the preliminary round, establishing the final top 64 table. Then, a few days later, the competition moves on to the second stage, which is fencing the final table of 64, where the world champion will be determined.

The World Championship’s seeding is based on the official ranking of the FIE (International Fencing Federation). The FIE determines the seeding using rolling points accumulated during the season, considering the fencers’ performance up until the last competition, typically the Zonal Championship (aka the Zonals) in each of the four zones (Africa, Americas, Asia and Oceania, and Europe).

The championship’s individual events span two days. On the first day, the top 16 fencers are exempt from the pool round (based on the official FIE ranking). They do not fence on this day and await the main table of 64, which takes place a couple of days later. What do they do? They rest, work to keep their focus, and watch the competition, cheering for their fencing teammates and watching their potential competitors. Maybe they even do some sightseeing and eat local food, arguably one of the world’s best. Meanwhile, the remaining fencers who are not in the top 16, participate in the pool rounds. These pools consist of seven fencers each, as usual.

After the pools, two things happen. First, the bottom 25% are eliminated. Their individual competition is completed at this point. That’s it. They’re out. Second, the top 16 fencers directly join the exempt top-ranked FIE fencers for the main table of 64, taking the positions of 17-32. Now together they will wait until the other half of the main table, the remaining 32 fencers, are determined via elimination.

Typically, this direct elimination begins with an incomplete table of around 128 fencers (or 256 if the competitive field is very large, such as in men’s epee), and they fence up to the preliminary table of 64, where these 32 fencers emerge as winners of this preliminary round.

At this point, the entire main tableau of 64 fencers is determined:

• 16 top tanked FIE fencers, who were exempt from the preliminary round
• 16 top finishers of the pool
• 32 winners of the preliminary round of direct elimination

Direct Elimination at the World Championships

While direct eliminations is something that American fencers are quite accustomed to in our domestic competition, the format differs slightly between the World Championship and World Cups compared to that in the USA. There are two major differences.

The first one is scheduling. Every fencer knows when and where to report in each round after the entire table of 64 is published. The organizers can plan the entire schedule ahead, including the strips and times, because fencers will finish the entire round of 64 before moving on to the table of 32. Similarly, they 16 only after the round of 32 is completed, and so on. Allocating enough time for each bout and not progressing to the next round until the previous one is done, allows an accurate scheduling of each bout.

Another intriguing aspect of how the table of 64 is fenced is a draw in the top 16 fencers (those who were exempt from the preliminary round). [Side note: I think it was initially designed to prevent any manipulation or fixing of the bouts for the top 16 fencers.]

Here’s how it works: The top two seeds, for example, number one and number two, are subjected to the draw, and the machine can randomly switch their seeding. This means that the fencer who was initially seeded number one may end up being seeded number two, and vice versa. The same process is repeated for seeds three and four, five and six, and so on until seeds fifteen and sixteen.

Based on the draw, these fencers are assigned either as the higher number or the lower number of each pair when they are placed on the tableau of 64. This system ensures that the fencers’ positions on the table are determined impartially. This draw also adds an element of unpredictability, making it more exciting.

For those fencers who advanced directly from the pool rounds to the main table of 64, they are seeded as numbers 17 to 32. The 32 winners of the preliminary direct elimination will be seeded in the positions of 33rd to 64th, based on their performance in the first pool round. 

The finals in the Fencing World Championships

Now for the most exciting aspect of the Fencing World Championship – the finals involving the top four fencers! All four finalists are medaled, and this is definitely where we see the biggest energy. 

There’s a large final strip that the last sessions of competition are fenced on, like what we see at Fencing Summer Nationals, but on a larger scale. The finals are a major event, with a significant broadcast and a large audience in attendance. It’s an unforgettable experience to witness the top four fencers who have reached the semi-finals compete on the final strip in front of a captivated audience.

The finals consist of the first semi-final followed by the second semi-final, and finally, the ultimate showdown of the final match. The top four will receive two Bronze medals, one Silver medal, and the highest honor of course, the Gold medal for the crowned World Champion.

Team Events: The Key to Olympic Qualification

Now, let’s shift our focus to how team competitions differ from individual events. This is critically different from other competitions, and it’s got a big role to play in Paris next year.

The team competition holds immense significance in the Fencing World Championship, and it plays a critical role in determining Olympic qualification. The emphasis on team events is massive in various international competitions, including World Cups, Zonals, and the World Championship. Securing a spot in the Olympic Games is a major goal for countries and their fencers, so doing well in team competitions offers a crucial pathway for qualification.

While individual success is important, the Olympic Games place a special focus on team events, especially in the current season, where Olympic qualification has just begun. Underestimating the importance of team competitions would be a mistake, as they can greatly impact a country’s chances of sending its best fencers to the Olympics.

The team competition also follows the same principle of seeding as individual events, based on the official FIE seeding for countries in each weapon/gender. Each competition typically sees participation from around 25 to 50 teams. The number of teams competing in each event may vary, and here are the numbers for this year: 27 teams in women’s foil, 32 in men’s foil, 37 in women’s epee, 48 in men’s epee, and 34 in men’s sabre, and 30 in women’s sabre. These teams battle it out to secure their position in the Olympic qualification and make their mark on the global fencing stage.

In team competition, there are no pools, just direct elimination. The teams will form the competition table, which varies in size for different disciplines. For example, there will be a table of 32 for women’s foil and 64 for men’s epee. 

It is crucial to note two significant aspects of team competition.

First, in every international event, such as World Cups, Zonals, and the World Championship, team competition serves as the pathway for Olympic qualification. Consequently, teams will fence for every place in the world championship, starting from the table of 16.

The reason behind this approach lies in the world ranking of teams, which determines their eligibility for the Olympics. Securing a higher position in the table of 16 is crucial for qualification. I recommend referring to the relevant post for a more comprehensive understanding of how Olympic qualification works.

Second, in team competitions, there is always a fence-off to determine the third-place finisher. This adds an exciting element to the event and gives viewers a thrilling spectacle. Watching three crucial bouts, including the semi-finals, match for third place, and of course, the final, offers the audience a high level of satisfaction.

Technology and the Fencing World Championship

The Fencing World Championship leverages two different kinds of programs to manage the tournament efficiently. While FencingTimeLive has been a familiar platform for many viewers, European events often use a different tournament management software,  Fencingworldwide.com as their preferred platform. Although some may find the interface less intuitive at first, the capabilities of these platforms ensure that fans can easily follow the action and track the results.

Watch, Learn, and Be Inspired!

The Fencing World Championship is right up there with the Olympics as a captivating event that brings together the best fencers and excited fencing fans. The high-stakes individual events and the team competitions make this tournament nothing less than a spectacle you don’t want to miss. 

With the Olympic qualification at stake, each bout carries enormous significance, culminating in an enthralling showdown that determines the world’s best fencers and the countries they represent. Whether you’re a seasoned fencer, a fencing fan, or a newcomer to the sport, the Fencing World Championship promises excitement, drama, and unforgettable moments that celebrate the art of swordplay.

The Fencing World Championship is broadcast live on the FIE YouTube Channel, and I cannot recommend highly enough that you watch the events live. 

Watch it now! The tournament is live and rolling as we speak!