As our sport continues to grow, many regional fencing events now implement registration caps due to venue capacity limitations. This guide addresses common questions about registration, waitlists, and withdrawals for capped events.

Why Are Events Capped?

While the popularity of fencing continues to grow and the number of competitors increases, venue capacities often remain fixed. Tournament organizers must balance safety, space requirements, referee availability, and time constraints when determining entry limits for each event. Historical performance in past tournaments for specific regions also plays an important role in planning. For example, if a location traditionally has high epee attendance but lower foil participation, organizers will likely set larger caps for epee events and lower ones for foil.

Registration Best Practices

Register Early

The most important thing is to sign up as soon as you know you plan to attend a competition. Don’t delay – popular events can fill up very quickly, especially in larger regions. The earlier you register, the better your chances of securing a spot.

Understanding Waitlists

Most event caps are set as multiples of 7, and there’s a good reason for this. In fencing, we organize fencers into pools of 7 people, and each strip can handle one pool. So the total number of fencers needs to work with this pool structure. (Yes, we know that if the cap is 63 – meaning 9 pools of 7 – this makes it 1 fencer short from an A4 event. It’s not ideal, but that’s just how the math works out sometimes!)

If an event is full when you register, you’ll be placed on a waitlist. Your position on this list matters – being high on the waitlist (positions 1-3) gives you pretty good chances of getting in, especially for large regional events. Plans change, people get sick, and sometimes teachers assign impossibly complicated homework that prevents fencers from attending.

Here’s something interesting: organizers might sometimes promote 7 people at once from the waitlist. This happens when they realize they can add another strip to the event, which means they can add a whole new pool.

One important note: organizers have no way to manipulate the waitlist. Personal connections won’t help get your fencer promoted faster – it’s all handled by software that promotes fencers in the order they signed up. This keeps things fair for everyone.

Being a Good Sport

If you find out you can’t make it to a tournament, please let the organizers know right away. Don’t wait until the last minute – the sooner you withdraw, the sooner they can offer your spot to someone else on the waitlist. Remember, there are other fencers eagerly waiting for a chance to compete. Being considerate of others is part of being a good sport!

How You Might Get In From the Waitlist

Even if you’re waitlisted, don’t lose hope! There are quite a few ways you could still get into the event.

Life happens, and people withdraw from tournaments for all sorts of reasons. Sometimes it’s because of illness or injury, sometimes there’s a sudden family commitment or a schedule conflict. We’ve seen everything from unexpected business trips to challenging school assignments causing withdrawals. And yes, occasionally people do leave the sport altogether (though we hope they come back!). All this make waitlists to be constantly changing in both directions and often fencers being promoted from the waitlists.

Tournament organizers are pretty flexible too. They often review their event caps as the competition approaches. If they notice that one event is undersubscribed while another has a long waitlist, they might adjust things to let more fencers participate. They’re always looking for ways to accommodate as many fencers as possible while keeping the tournament running smoothly.

Sometimes you can even get in on the day of the competition! If you live close to the venue or are already there for another event, it’s worth checking with the bout committee (that’s the registration desk). No-shows happen more often than you might think, and their spots often go to waitlisted fencers who are ready to jump in.

How to Withdraw and Get a Refund

Need to withdraw from an event? Here’s what to do:

First, look up the tournament page and find the organizer’s email address. Send them a message with your fencer’s name, USA Fencing membership number, and which event(s) you’re withdrawing from. Keep it simple and clear.

About refunds: every tournament sets its own deadline for refunds. If you withdraw before this deadline, you’ll typically get your money back. After the deadline, refunds usually aren’t available – that’s just part of the deal. One important thing to remember: always contact the tournament organizer about refunds, not USA Fencing. The organizers handle all the refunds themselves.

Making the Most of Being Waitlisted

If you’re on a waitlist, the best approach is to keep training as if you’re definitely competing. Stay ready! Try to keep your travel plans as flexible as possible, and keep an eye on your email for updates from the organizers.

Don’t be shy about asking the organizers about your chances of getting in based on your waitlist position – they’re there to help! And of course, if your plans change and you decide not to take a spot even if it opens up, let them know right away.

Making Smart Decisions About Waitlists

When you’re trying to decide whether to stick it out on a waitlist, think about a few key things: How much will travel cost you? Are there other competitions you could do instead? How likely are you to get in based on your position on these waitlists? And don’t forget about those refund deadlines – they’re important when making your final decision.

Remember that tournament organizers work hard to accommodate as many fencers as possible while ensuring safe, well-run events. Early registration, clear communication, and understanding of tournament policies will help make your competition experience smoother and more predictable.