We bring you basics of sword fencing - an oldest Olympic game. This document provides you details about basics of fencing sports, how is it helpful in gaining both physical and mental strength as well as helpful in getting sports quota in good colleges. For more information and news you can visit - www.pegasusroyalfencingclub.com

1. Sword Fencing – sport of mind
and body
Fitness for body and mind
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Sunil Kumar – Fencing Coach in Delhi NCR

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Pegasus Royal Fencing Club – Benefits of Sword fencing
Fencing for Fitness –
• Lower body strength, speed and flexibility because of quick footwork you need to develop
• Great hand-eye-footwork coordination
• Agility, Balance, over all flexibility
Mind workout -
• Focus
• Hand-Eye-foot coordination
• Analytical and problem solving skills
• Quick decision making
• Fun with skills and hence a stress reliever exercise
Career and education –
• Lot of national and international universities offer sports quota’s to fencers for higher studies
• You can build your career as Olympic fencer and later as fencing coach or a teacher as intelligent people are
natural fencer

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Pegasus Royal Fencing Club – Go for it Fencer
Exercising for Fitness tends to be very monotonous and boring sometime, as you follow certain routine exercise
that doesn’t help you work out you mind. May be you have solution – Fencing for Fitness .
You exercise for body workout and play chess for mind workout. May be you can workout both body and mind
with Fencing.
Smart people are natural fencer. Sword fencing not only requires you develop completely new set of fun skills
but also strategic intelligence that many of the smart people find only in chess.
Fencing sport is not confined to be sports of youth or elite only, but there are many academies that conduct
group classes at a very reasonable prices and also friendly bouts against your group partners or other academy
to test your progress..
So don’t think its too late or too expensive. Go for fencing for fitness while living that child hood dream of
being a brave, adventurous knight with shining sword in hand.

4. The sport of fencing is an art of strength and strategy, unlike the choreographed bouts
one sees in movies or on live stage show.
In a real bout you don’t swing from a chandelier or hang in the balconies, but two
fencers perform an intense footwork on a six-fee-by40-feet strip.
The movements and steps of two players are so fast that one has to keep a score
through an electric machine called apparatus.
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Pegasus Royal Fencing Club – Sword Fencing

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Three types of weapons are used in fencing in modern fencing -
1. Foil
2. Epee
3. Sabre
Until recently, in history of sports fencing, women
were permitted to compete only in foil for reasons
explained later in the article. USFA and FIE offer
national competitions for epee and sabre.
Post these national competitions in two countries, in
1989, Women’s epee became part of World
Championships. Later in 1996 Olympic Games,
women’s epee was introduced as competition in
second international and even more prestigious
event.
One can play in all three categories but each weapon has its own characteristics and
way of use and player tend to specialize in one of these based on their interest and
ease to handle it. Nedo Nadi is the only person who has won Olympic medal in all
the three disciplines in same Olympic game in 1920
The three weapons differ for the target area.
While Foil and epee are similar in terms of
point-thrust, Sabre is not only a point-thrusting
but also a cutting weapon.
However, all the three weapons required quick
witted strategic fast moves by the player and
hence have to be scored electrically.
Pegasus Royal Fencing Club – Sword Fencing

6. An object in fencing bout, is nothing but “game”.
In modern day fencing in Olympics we have
• Direct elimination play and
• Preliminary pool play format
In direct elimination play one player has to effectively score 15 points, while in
preliminary pool play one has to score five points on opponent play before he or
she scores that number on first player.
Every contact between weapon and opponent players’ body in target area would
earn a point for first player. Direct elimination matches consist of three three-
minute periods.
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Pegasus Royal Fencing Club – Fencing sports

7. Features of foil weapon –
• Flexible rectangular blade
• Approximately 35 inches in length
• It weighs about less than one pound
Target area of foil weapon –
• Player scores point with the tip of the blade.
• The tip must land within the torso of the body
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Target area in detail (valid target area in foil) –
• The valid target is the torso which is essentially from the
shoulders to the groin, front and back.
• It does not include the arms, neck, head and legs
Uniform of a Foil fencer –
• It includes a metallic vest which is also called Lame. It covers the
valid target as explained above. The metallic vest would help
register weapon tip touch on the scoring machine.
Tip of the blade and its networking with uniform -
• A small, spring-loaded tip is attached to the point of the foil weapon. This tip is connected to a wire inside the
blade.
• The fencer wears a body cord inside his uniform which connects the foil to a reel wire, connected to the scoring
machine
Reading the score on machine –
• There are two scoring lights on the machine. One shows a green light when a fencer is hit, and one shows a red
light when her opponent is hit.
• A touch landing outside the valid target area (that which is not covered by the lame) is indicated by a white light.
These “off target” hits do not count in the scoring, but they do stop the fencing action temporarily
Pegasus Royal Fencing Club – Foil Fencing sports

8. The epee, pronounced as “EPP-pay” is actually a descendant of the dueling sword.
Features of foil weapon –
• Like foil it is 35 inches in length
• But it is heavier than foil, weighing approximately 27 ounces
• It has larger guard to protect the hand from a valid hit
• A stiffer blade
Target area of Épée weapon –
• The entire body is valid target area
• Touches are scored only with the point of blade
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Uniform of a Épée fencer –
• It includes a metallic vest which is also called Lame. It covers the valid target as explained above. The
metallic vest would help register weapon tip touch on the scoring machine.
• The blade is wired with a spring loaded tip
• Player needs to press it beyond a pressure of 750 grams to complete the electrical circuit
• The process of pressing the tip to complete the electrical circuit would cause the colored bulb on the
scoring machine to light
• Epee fencer’s uniform does not include a lame or torso jacket because entire body is valid target area
• Also off-target hits do not register on the machine
Pegasus Royal Fencing Club – Epee Fencing Sports

9. If you take it literally sabre is the oldest way of sword dueling. It is modified modern version of past slashing cavalry sword.
• Like epee, Sabre weapon also has hand protection but molded as bell guard.
• A socket for body wire is found underneath the bell guard
• Entire standard weapon is about 41 inches and of maximum weight of 500g.
• It is shorter than foil and epee and lighter than the epee
Target area of Sabre weapon –
• The major difference is that sabre is a thrusting weapon as well as a cutting weapon. Which means you can not only use
tip to score but entire blade can be used to score.
• Target area is from the bend of the hips, both front and back, to the top of the head.
• Notice that Head and body above hips is part of target area. This is what makes it very similar to cavalry rider on a horse.
Blade and its networking with uniform and scoring on machine -
• The fencer’s uniform includes a metallic jacket which is called lame
• This covers the target area to register a valid touch on the scoring machine
• Since head is part of valid target area, the mask is different from foil and epee, with a metallic covering
• Just as in foil, there are two scoring lights on the machine. One shows a green light when a fencer is hit, and one shows a
red light when the opponent has hit. Off-target hits do not register on the machine.
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Pegasus Royal Fencing Club – Sabre Sword Fencing

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Pegasus Royal Fencing Club – Benefits of Sword fencing
Fencing for Fitness –
• Lower body strength, speed and flexibility because of quick footwork you need to develop
• Great hand-eye-footwork coordination
• Agility, Balance, over all flexibility
Mind workout -
• Focus
• Hand-Eye-foot coordination
• Analytical and problem solving skills
• Quick decision making
• Fun with skills and hence a stress reliever exercise
Career and education –
• Lot of national and international universities offer sports quota’s to fencers for higher studies
• You can build your career as Olympic fencer and later as fencing coach or a teacher as intelligent people are
natural fencer