the_sword_july_2015

THESWORDBritish Fencing MagazineJULY 2015GB FENCERS IN ACTIONAT THE SENIOR EUROPEAN CHAMPSMUST READ PHOTOGRAPHY TIPSFROM SERGE TIMACHEFFTHE ITALIAN CONNECTIONFENCING FLASHMOB 2015WANT TO FIND OUT MORE?CLICK ON ANY LINK OR INSIDE TO SEE MORE

Leeds Open 2015www.theleedsopen.co.uk – with online entry!!!This will be run as a complete six weapon event with those who qualify receivingBFA ranking points – full metal pistes available. The tournament is situated in thestate-of-the-art sports complex; The Edge, at The University of Leeds.Check-in closing time for all weapons is as follows:Saturday 14 th NovemberMen’s Foil – 9:00amWomen’s Foil – 11:00amWomen’s Epee – 12:00 noonSunday 15 th NovemberMen’s Epee – 9:00amMen’s Sabre – 11:00amWomen’s Sabre – 12:00 noonCompetition Format:• There will be an initial round of pools.• Everyone is promoted to the Direct Elimination stage with no cut after the pools.• Prizes for the top four in all weapons, in addition prizes for best cadet and veteran.The entry fee is £22 per weapon and £34 for two weapons (you may only enter ONE weapon per day). The closing date forentries is Monday 9 th November, any entries received after this date will be at the discretion of the organisers, and a late feeof £10 will be applicable.Venue: The Edge, University of Leeds, Leeds, LS2 9JT (Parking, armoury, Allstar equipment suppliers and sports massagetherapists are available over the course of the entire weekend).All fencers must be current members of the BFA, licences will be checked and all competitors should be aware of the BFAguidelines on clothing and equipment (established 1st January, 2006) for this event. Full details available at the BFA website(www.britishfencing.com). Fencers must be over 13 years of age as of 1st January 2015General enquires and on the day emergency number:07920031154/leedsopen@gmail.comEarly Bird promotion! Enter by the 30 th of September2015 and entry for one weapon is only £15 and £30 for twoweapons.Leeds Open 2015 Entry form (please complete in BLOCK capitals)Name:…................................................................................... Tel:……………………….…………........................Email:…………………………………………………………………... Nationality:……………………………………….Age: 13

News in BriefBAKU 2015The British Olympic Association(BOA) has announced the namesof 153 athletes selected torepresent Team GB at thissummer’s inaugural EuropeanGames which includes fencing.50 European nations cometogether for the continent’s firstever major multi-sport eventfrom June 12th – 28th this year.Team GB’s Chef de Mission Mark Englandsaid: “It’s fantastic to be able to announcethe athletes who will be competing for TeamGB at Baku 2015. It’s great opportunity formany of them to test themselves againstEurope’s best, gain crucial multi-sport Gamesexperience or build on their road to Rio 2016.“I’m also delighted to see such a large teamfrom Great Britain heading out to Baku - ourlargest travelling delegation since the Beijing2008 Olympic Games – and I’m sure it’ll bea hugely proud moment for each of them.”Further information available of this eventhere:THE ROAD TO RIO 2016Karim has been in Rio recently preparing theway for fencing at the Rio 2016 Olympics.His reports can be viewed hereand here Nice work Karim.HELEN SMITHHONOUREDCongratulations to Helen Smith of TheAustralian Fencing Federation who has beenawarded the Order of Australia for services tofencing in The Queen’s Birthday Honours.EUROPEAN INDIVIDUAL VETERANSCHAMPIONSHIPSThe European Individual VeteransChampionships was held May 14-17.Congratulations to gold medallistsPete Baron (MS), Georgina Usher (WE),Paul Wedge (MF); silver medallists Jane4TH WORLD CUP GOLD FOR PIERS GILLIVERCongratulations to Piers Gilliver for winningthe gold medal at Men’s Cat A Epee at theWheelchair Fencing World Cup in Pizza, Italy(Final - Gilliver GBR V11 - 6D Noble FRA)Hutchinson (WS), William Osbaldeston (MS);and bronze medallists Sue Benney (WS), JaneClayton (WE). A full set of results is availableon European Veterans Fencing:GB Women’s medallists at the European Individual Veterans ChamponshipsThe British Disabled Fencing AssociationFacebook page:Helen SmithPodium photograph, Piers Gilliver second from the left (Photo Augusto Bizzi)4 THE SWORD JULY 2015

NEWSNewsSECRETARY OF STATE OPENS NEW ELITE TRAINING CENTREThe Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, the Rt. Hon. John Whittingdale MP, formally openedBritish Fencing’s Elite Training Centre on 28th May 2015. After four years of operating from the EnglishInstitute of Sport facility in Lee Valley this move represents the next step towards British Fencing’s goal ofdeveloping World Class fencers in a sustainable programme.British Fencing has worked with its partnerLeon Paul to create dedicated and exclusivefacilities for our World Class Programmefencers to train. The move has been madepossible by investment from Sport Englandand UK Sport. In addition, UK Sport hasincreased its annual World Class Programmegrant to support the additional day-to-daycosts of operating out of this Centre.The grants have allowed a dedicated facility tobe developed for the World Class Programmewhich includes a medical treatmentroom, Strength & Conditioning facilities, aconsultation room, a kitchen and a dryingroom for kit. There is also a hot desk facility forWCP athletes alongside an office for the staff.A new meeting room has being installed withinthe training venue to enable instant athletefeedback during and after training sessions andfor athlete reviews.Secretary of State, the Rt. Hon. JohnWhittingdale MP, said; “It was fantastic tomeet some of our top fencers and see themin action as they prepare for next month’sEuropean Championships. These new facilities,funded by Sport England and UK Sport, aresuperb and a great boost for all at BritishFencing.”Rod Carr, Chair of UK Sport, said; “To achieveworld class performances, athletes and staffneed access to truly world class facilities. Thisnew elite training centre for British Fencingachieves exactly that and will help the wholeprogramme achieve their full potential at thiscritical time on the road to Rio 2016.“This fantastic centre provides a permanentworld class home for British Fencing’s NationalLottery Funded World Class Programme. Iam confident it will also be a centre that will“The success of thisproject is testamentto the strong workingpartnership betweenUK Sport, SportEngland, British Fencingand Leon Paul.”inspire the next generation of athletes in thetalent pathway as they focus on fulfilling theirdreams.“The success of this project is testament tothe strong working partnership between UKSport, Sport England, British Fencing and LeonPaul.”Sport England Chair, Nick Bitel, said;“Providing the right training environment forour athletes so they can be competitive onthe international stage is vital. Thanks to ourstrong partnership with UK Sport to developa network of elite training centres in England,we have been able to create a truly fantasticfacility for our elite and up and coming fencingathletes to thrive.”Marcus Mepstead, British Fencing WorldClass Programme athlete said; “Moving tothis new dedicated centre is very exciting.We’ve been here for a couple of weeks alreadyand everyone is really happy. I am preparing forthe European Championships next week andwe couldn’t ask for better facilities. Our thanksgo to Sport England, UK Sport, Leon Paul andBritish Fencing – and of course the NationalLottery.”Alex Newton, Performance Director said;“We are delighted that we have enteredin to a partnership with Leon Paul and arealready feeling the benefits of moving to adedicated elite fencing venue. I would liketo thank Sport England and UK Sport for thesignificant capital funding they have provided,alongside the increased revenue funding fromUK Sport. As we prepare for the EuropeanChampionships, which start next week, wecould not have a better training environmentin which to prepare our athletes.”Link to opening video:“...As we preparefor the EuropeanChampionships, whichstart next week, wecould not have a bettertraining environmentin which to prepare ourathletes.”(L to R) Chair of Sport England Nick Bitel, British fencer, Natalia Sheppard, CEO of British Fencing,Georgina Usher, Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, John Whittingdale, Chair of UKSport, Rod Carr, and British fencer Marcus Mepstead at Leon Paul Fencing Centre (Photo by ScottHeavey/Getty Images for UK Sport)JULY 2015 THE SWORD 5

BRITISH FENCINGMARKS VE DAYTaster Session laid on for NijmegenCompany – Grenadier GuardsBritish Fencing today marked the seventiethanniversary of VE Day by releasing imagery anda highlights video of a taster session laid on forNijmegen Company – Grenadier Guards earlierthis week.Company Sergeant Major Sam Brooks tooktwelve of his men to the Leon Paul FencingCentre and were treated to a master class inepee fencing provided by Alex Agrenich.The men were put through their paces butquickly picked up both the footwork andbladework required for their mini-competition.World Class Programme athletes Soji Aiyenuroand Curtis Miller along with Talent Programmeathlete Yasmin Campbell provided support andan insight into competing on the internationalstage under the guidance of Head SabreCoach, Pierre Guichot.Speaking about the session, CompanySergeant Major Brooks said; “The guys had agreat time and tried something that I knowthey had never done before. Thanks to BritishFencing for hosting us.”A spokesperson from British Fencing added;“Alex led a fantastic session and reallyencouraged the guys to give it all they had.The Guards were very approachable and satdown with the young fencers who arrived fortheir training session which started shortlyafter the taster session. Our thanks go to LeonPaul for providing us with their facilities, theathletes and the two coaches.”Everyone involved lined up for a minute’ssilence to mark VE Day at the end of thesession with the Guards in full uniform.Imagery of the event can be found on ourFacebook page: and the highlights videois here:8th May 2015‘Everyone involved lined up for a minute’s silence to mark VE Day at the end of the session with the Guards in full uniform’HENDON FENCINGCLUB TWINS WITHBORDEAUXby Caroline WoollardHendon-based fencing club, Salle Paul, hasannounced today that it has agreed to twinwith Bordeaux Etudiants Club (BEC) in France.The principle aim of twinning is to providemutual support in terms of athlete and coachexchange to give fencers and coaches fromeach club the widest possible opportunitiesto compete and train together. This givesboth junior and adult fencers the chance togain international experience through trainingcamps and competitions in London andBordeaux.Commenting on the new agreement, HeadCoach of BEC, Dimitri Audren said: “BEChave had close links with Leon Paul formany years so when Salle Paul Fencing Clubmoved into their fencing centre it provideda great opportunity to look at how to shareour facilities, expertise and coaching supportto benefit fencers from both clubs. We lookforward to welcoming Salle Paul fencers atBEC and will be sending some of our athletesto train at Hendon in July this year”.Salle Paul’s Head Coach, Maciej Wojtkowiakwelcomed the twinning: “It is essential forour young British fencers to gain internationalcompetition experience. Being able to do thisin a “home away from home” will help giveSalle Paul fencers the confidence and skills6 THE SWORD JULY 2015they need to prepare for competing for GB onthe world stage. BEC is a very good twin forSalle Paul having a similar profile and record ofsuccess.”The clubs will help to facilitate home staysand provide advice and assistance on traveland accommodation, between Salle Paul andBordeaux Etudiants Club’s fencers. Fencersand coaches will be supported and helpedwith exchange opportunities and be offereddiscounts for each other’s fencers attendingSparring Spartans (photo Niki Bruckner)training camps organised by the clubs.Salle Paul and BEC will look for opportunitiesto further the enjoyment and development offencers and coaches between the two clubs.1st May 2015Salle Paul Website:Bordeaux Etudiants Club Website:Images on Salle Paul Facebook page:

NEWSWELLINGTON SCHOOL PUPIL QUALIFIES FORTHE COMMONWEALTH CHAMPIONSHIPSJade Clarke, Wellington School’s National Fencing Champion hasbeen selected to represent England in the Commonwealth FencingChampionships in the summer.Jade, who is currently studying for herA-levels, will be part of a team in the U20section in South Africa Championshipsand will join old girl Jess Gundry at theCommonwealth Championships in July.Jess will also be fencing at the WorldChampionships in Uzbekistan and hasbeen selected for the Junior EuropeanChampionships in Slovenia.Fencing supremo Jade has had a superblysuccessful week, having also competed intwo major competitions - the Public SchoolsFencing Championships in London, (whereshe achieved 2nd in Epee and 3rd in Foil), theU23 British Championships (2nd in Foil) -well done Jade!Three Wellington School siblings were alsosuccessful tournament in the Public SchoolsChampionships 2015; Olivia Savage wasthe youngest in her U14 year group and shefinished 6th. Nina Savage; also young in herU16 year group finished 16th in the girls’ foil,and Henry Savage acquitted himself well inthe U20 foil. Wellington School:24 March 2015Jade ClarkeCLEAN SWEEP OFMEDALS FOR TRURO’SYOUNG FENCERSby Ben TrebilcockTruro’s young fencers were in action lastweekend as they aimed for glory in the Under10s British Sabre Championships. Hosted atMoulsford in Oxfordshire, the event featureda tough field of 30 top young fencers fromaround Britain with the Truro Prep School trioof Sam Cox, Lexie Craze and Melissa Jane allcompeting.The event was a great success with Trurotaking gold in all 3 competitions; being theboy’s singles, the girl’s singles and the teamevent.Truro Fencing Club Head Coach Jon Salfieldsaid: ‘This clean sweep is a fantasticachievement by some of our youngest fencers.All three are very hard-working and dedicatedathletes, and I would like to thank the Trurocoaching team for their work.’ Jon continued:‘I am very impressed with the high quality offootwork, technique and tactics displayed bythese young fencers. Truro once again showedits exceptional depth in sabre fencing, and wewill continue to strive for more results of thiscalibre.’In the boy’s event Sam Cox had a slowstart, winning 4 out of his 6 matches in thepreliminary rounds, going into the knock outstages of the competition seeded 7th. At thisstage he found his best form, defeating the10th seed 10-5 and the second seed 10-7 toprogress to the semi-finals. The semi-final sawSam face Sebastian Evans-Reeves of RussellSwords in Wales, and after a close match inwhich the Truro fencer used a wide range ofattacks and strong parries, Sam came out ontop 10-8. In the final he came out victorious,producing his very best fencing to beat MagnusCameron from Mouslford Fencing Club 10-5 toclaim gold.In the girl’s event Lexie Craze started stronglywinning all 6 of her preliminary matches, withMelissa Jane taking 4 wins from 6. The pairboth progressed to the knock-out stages,Melissa proceeding to dominate her nextmatch 10-0 in order to reach the semis. Lexiehad a bye through to the semi-finals where shemet Lucie Lindsay of London’s Cobra Swords,coming out on top 10-6 and progressing tothe gold medal match. Melissa just missed outon making it an all-Truro final, losing out 10-8to the 3rd seed Beth Brierley of Manchester’sMarshall Fencing. In the final Lexie dominatedwith her excellent footwork and strongattacks, taking victory 10-5 and giving Trurothe second championships of the day.There was further success at the end of theday in the team competition with the Truroteam of Lexie, Sam and Melissa proving to beunbeatable, as they romped to victory claimingthe gold medal.The three Truro Prep School students nowlook ahead to future competitions, continuingto train at Truro Fencing Club and at school,putting in at least 3 training sessions a week.8th May 2015JULY 2015 THE SWORD 7

BUPA WESTMINSTER MILEThe BUPA Westminster Mile from the Mallto Buckingham Palace was run recently onSunday 29th May featuring former Olympians.A number of fencers were in their ranks: myself,Hilary and Jim Philbin, Linda (Martin) andGerald McMahon, Ralph Johnson (in full kit +epee!) and Richard Oldcorn.Steve Cram won, Gerald was 3rd so upheldthe honour of the fencers (as an AustralianOlympian – Sydney). With our foam swords, mymask and Ralph we were a very visible group.It was great fun and very sociable with about95 assorted Olympians turning out. This wasthe first in what is expected to become anannual function.Clare HalstedPhoto credits: Virgin Money London Marathon– with special thanks to Penny Dain.Further information about this event isavailable onAbout to start.Ralph Johnson in full kit.Guard of honour for the oldest Olympian.Afterwards, with Steve Cram8 THE SWORD JULY 2015Clare Halsted.

MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIRMessage from the chairAs I write this July Message, we are at the “business end” of the season, with the European Champs followedby the inaugural European Games (in Baku) and then the Worlds, which hectic schedule I cannot reflectin these notes. The world of championships is ever exciting and we have what the Americans used to call“contenders”. But, with Rio coming up next year, the pace and tension for everyone will continue to quicken.We all wish our top fencers well, and the support teams around them.We can mark a key landmark in our progresswith the World Class Programme with thelaunch of British Fencing’s first, proper EliteTraining Centre, in Hendon. This is a BFpartnership with Leon Paul, to which bothorganisations are fully committed. It is good toreport that the official launch was performedformally by the new Secretary of State forCulture, Media and Sport, John WhitingdaleMP, who was accompanied by the Chairs ofSport England and UK Sport, respectively NickBitel and Rod Carr. Some media representativespresent noted quietly that these are the threemost powerful men in British sport - all turningout together for a British Fencing event. So,not an ordinary day! But there is no lookingaround and admiring the view; whilst thesethree gentlemen expressed kind views about BFand our sport, they will expect more and moreprogress and results. They are right to do so,as custodians of the public and Lottery moniesthey provide for fencing and other sports. So,we shall continue to be concerned only with thechallenges ahead, which are at the core of thissummer Message.The challenges for BF in 2015, on the road toour 2024 strategic goals, are all about how wecan grow and develop our sport. Here are someof the challenges and ambitions.We have of course to make sure we meet thetargets agreed with the funding partners, SportEngland (SE) and UK Sport (UKS), to justifyour increased funding and to ensure we arewell placed to maintain our future income. Wemust watch carefully the impact of the newMinisters; and we shall work closely with SE inparticular on its new strategy, for 2017 onward,consultation on which has just been announced.We are seeking a new sponsor, to replace theexcellent Beazley, who are very active for us inthis search process (with contributions like forexample a new video explaining how well ourpartnership with them has worked). We wish toenhance our website and use of social media.We are working hard with the Home Countrieson a revamped membership scheme, designedto give you, the members, the best service andvalue we can. We are keen to take all possiblesteps towards that better value goal; you, themembers, and indeed all our volunteers, are thelifeblood of our sport and the key to our futuredevelopment. One idea that we know manymembers would like to see in place is annualawards for our best clubs, coaches, organisers,volunteers, etc. We have that in our sights but Icannot yet confirm how soon we can get this inplace, given the priorities we have to juggle. Mylist is already long…….I believe we are fortunate, in these challengingtimes, to have an effective Board of Directors.The elected Directors, who of course are alwaysin the majority, make sure we are anchoredfirmly in the sport’s traditions and values. Ourindependent Directors bring that left field visionessential to any governing body these days. BFis also lucky to have strong management andcommitted staff, including a new Developmentteam under Gabby Williams. All together, theBoard and HQ personnel make a hard workingteam with a clear sense of direction andpriorities. Georgina Usher’s leadership, basedsecurely in a fencing upbringing, has made animportant difference to us.As ever, we need your advice and feedback.As ever, we must be closely wired into the bignetwork of fencing knowledge you all represent.As ever - my contact details are below and theHQ details are on the website.David TeasdaleChair, British FencingT: 07803 891623david.teasdale@britishfencing.comJULY 2015 THE SWORD 9

SENIOR EUROPEANCHAMPIONSHIPS REPORT15th June 2015This year’s European Championships inMontreux, Switzerland were held over sevendays.Men’s FoilThe European Championships 2015 began withthe Men’s Foil individual event as seventytwofencers took to the piste. James Davis(V3D3), Laurence Halsted (V3D3), RichardKruse (V4D1) and Marcus Mepstead (V4D2)all progressed through the first round. In theround of 64 Bachmann (GER) beat Halsted12-11 in a priority minute and Chaliankov (BLR)knocked out Mepstead 15-7 but Davis beatSzabados (HUN) 15-12 and Kruse defeatedKawiecki (POL) 15-9. In the round of 32 Davistook out the world number one, Cheremisinov(RUS) 15-12 and Kruse put in an amazingcounter-attacking display to beat Joppich (GER)15-5. Both remaining British fencers made thequarterfinals as Davis beat Macedo (POR) 15-6and Kruse knocked out Ganeev (RUS) 15-11.Neither could go on to claim a medal as Daviswas beaten 15-8 by Garozzo (ITA) and Llavador(ESP) beat Kruse 15-10.Above: James Davis,Below: Richard Kruse.In the first semi-final, Andrea Cassara (ITA)ended Carlos Llavador’s fine day, beating him15-10. In the second Daniele Garozzo madelight work teammate Edoardo Luperi, winning15-6. The final between the two Italians wasover in a flash. Initially, Cassara pulled awayfrom Garozzo to lead 9-5 and seemed to becruising to his fourth individual title. Garozzofought back though and stole a 10-9 leadbefore Cassara found the right distance for hisattacks. He went on to take the title 15-11.10 THE SWORD JULY 2015GB placings: Kruse 6th, Davis 9th, Mepstead34th & Halsted 43rd.Women’s EpeeThe second event of the championships wasthe Women’s Epee individual event whereseventy-seven fencers, including CorinnaLawrence fought to become the EuropeanChampion 2015.Lawrence finished the first round with twovictories from six fights, which was not enoughto make the first round cut. Rosella Fiamingo(ITA) put in a dominant display in the first semifinalbeating Simon Pop (ROM) 15-9. Despitetrailing early on in the second semi-final,Violetta Kolobova (RUS) went on to beat theworld number one, Emese Szasz (HUN) 15-10.In the final Kolobova did not start well, trailing3-0 but she opened the distance half waythrough the first period and dominated the restof the fight. She went on to take the title witha 15-12 victory.GB Individual placings: Lawrence 60th.Women’s SabreDay two of the tournament began with theindividual Women’s Sabre event. There wereno British contenders as a field of fifty-threefought for the title. Charlotte Lembach (FRA)battled hard in the first semi-final againstWorld number six, Rosella Gregorio (ITA) andwent on to win 15-14. Sofya Velikaya (RUS)struggled in the early stages of the secondsemi-final against Olena Voronina (UKR) buteventually eased to a 15-9 victory. The final, arepeat of the gold medal match at the WorldCup on Margarita Island, was a thrilling contest.Lembach started the match in great form beforeVelikaya made better use of the full length ofthe piste. On three occasions the Russian ledbefore Lembach drew level but in the end it wasVelikaya who took the title 15-14.Men’s EpeeThe second event on day two was theindividual Men’s Epee event which saw a fieldof ninety-eight compete for the Europeancrown. No British fencers were involved. Thetwo compelling semi-finals finished 15-14 withGauthier Grumier (FRA) beating Pavel Sukhov(RUS) in the first and home favourite, MaxHeinzer (SUI) taking out Gabor Boczko (HUN)in the second. Heinzer stormed to an earlylead at the beginning of the first period to thedelight of the noisy home crowd but Grumierlengthened the distance and that proved to bethe defining tactical decision. The French fencerwent on to win 15-12.Women’s FoilOn the third day of the event Natalia Sheppardrepresented Great Britain in the Women’s Foilindividual event, forming part of the field offorty-three. Winning two first round fights fromfive was not enough for her to progress into thedirect elimination stage of the competition.Larissa Korobeynikova (RUS) trailed for muchof the first semi-final against thirty-nine yearold Aida Mohanmed (HUN) but won 14-13 ina priority minute. Elisa Di Francisca (ITA) facedteammate Arianna Errigo in the second semifinaland dominated the fight from start tofinish. She went on to fight for gold with a 15-8victory. Di Francisca took control of the finalover Korobeynikova in the early stages, takinga 9-3 lead into the first break. The Russianadopted a more patient approach in the secondperiod and closed to 11-10 down before DiFrancisca sprung back into life. The Italian wonher third successive European title 15-13.Men’s SabreThe last individual event of the championshipssaw a field of fifty-seven compete includingfour fencers from Great Britain. Soji Aiyenuro(V2D4), Alex Crutchett (V3D2), JamesHoneybone (V3D2) and Curtis Miller (V3D3)all did enough to progress through the firstround. In the round of 64 Honeybone beatAiyenuro 15-5 and was the only British fencerto make the 32 as Ocinski (POL) knocked outCrutchett 15-6 and Szabo (GER) beat Miller15-7. Honeybone faced world number two,Alexey Yakimenko (RUS) in the next round. TheRussian was too strong for him and went on towin 15-8.Max Hartung (GER) defeated the reigningWorld Champion Nikolay Kovalev (RUS) 15-11in the first semi-final and the current OlympicChampion, Aron Szilagyi (HUN) beat Yakimenko15-13 in the second. In the first period of thegold medal match, Szilagyi had to take a tenminuteinjury time out after Hartung accidentlystepped on the Hungarian’s foot. When theyreturned to the piste Szilagyi showed no visiblesigns of distress but it was Hartung who tookan 8-6 lead into the break. Solid use of distanceand tactical variety was the key to Szilagyidrawing level at 10-10 before controlling theremainder of the fight. The Olympic Championsealed his first individual European title with a15-11 win.Women’s Team EpeeThe first of the team events included fourteenentries. Italy faced Estonia in the first semi-finaland a strong start from the Estonians meantthat the Italians had to chase late on. Theworld number one team were unable to closethe gap and Estonia progressed 43-31. Swedencontinued their fantastic season by beatingthe world number three team, Russia, in thequarterfinals. They went on to face the reigningchampions, Romania in the second semi-final.Sweden led for much of a very tight match butthe Romanian team showed their experience inthe end, winning 45-42.Italy faced Sweden for the bronze medal and

REPORTSeased to a 45-34 victory. The gold medal matchbetween Estonia and Romania started witha non-scoring period of non-combativity butRomania edged into a 7-4 lead by the end ofthe third leg. The score remained tight duringthe second third of the match with Romanialeading 24-21 going into the crucial final threelegs. Beljajeva and Kirpu of Estonia tried toclose the gap but failed as the Romanians(Branza and then Pop) opened their lead to33-27 going into the final leg. Gherman (ROM)took on Embrich (EST) and with the Estonianhaving to chase a high scoring leg followed.Gherman managed her team’s lead well andthe Romanian’s retained the title with a 45-35victory.Men’s Team FoilBritain’s hopes were high going into this eventas the team formed part of a twelve-strongfield. A comprehensive 45-30 victory overHungary in the round of 16 saw them face Italy– world number three – in the quarterfinal.A dominant start saw Great Britain (Davis,Halsted and Kruse) edge ahead 15-11 afterthree legs. As the team grew in confidence, sodid their lead and they went into the final threelegs 30-19 up. Italy were only able to scoreanother six hits as the British team claimedtheir biggest scalp for the past few seasons,winning 45-25.Great Britain faced Russia in the Men’s Team Foil semifinals.Great Britain faced Russia in the semi-finalsand the Russian team were ready for them.Akhmatkuzin, Cheremisinov and Rigin pulledaway from the start and went on to win 45-30.In the other semi-final, despite struggling in theearly matches France went on to beat Germany45-35.The bronze medal match between Great Britainand Germany was tight after three legs withGermany leading 10-8. Bachmann, Joppich andKroplin dominated the middle three legs and led26-14 going into the seventh. Great Britain wasunable to recover and Germany went on to takethe bronze medal 45-37. France started thegold medal match with the bit between theirteeth as Cadot, Le Pechoux and Mertine eased15-11 ahead. They did not look back and led 30-21 after six legs, going on to win 45-35.Men’s Team EpeeThe nineteen teams competing in this event didnot include one from Great Britain. The teamof the season, France, won the first semi-final43-34 against Ukraine and Estonia came frombehind against the home team, Switzerland,to win the other semi-final 42-41 in a priorityminute. Switzerland didn’t disappoint the homecrowd as they took the bronze medal overUkraine 39-28. The gold medal match was onewaytraffic from the start as France claimed thegold medal that everyone expected them to,winning 45-32 over Estonia.Women’s Team SabreEleven teams took part in this event but didnot include one from Great Britain. The topfour seeds all made the semi-finals whichsaw France beat Italy 45-42 and Russia beatUkraine 45-31. A brave effort from the Italianteam in the bronze medal match saw themcling on to Ukraine in the early stages but theUkrainians pulled away to take the medal 45-30. In the gold medal match Russia were toostrong for France and eased to the title with a45-36 victory.Women’s Team FoilOnly eight teams took part in this event withno British entry. The top four teams made thesemi-final, which saw Russia easily defeatingGermany 45-20 and Italy overcoming France45-36. France pulled away from Germany in thebronze medal match, breaking their confidenceearly and went on to win 45-28. A repeat oflast year’s final meant a gold medal match-upbetween Russia and Italy. A great start fromthe Russians meant that they led 7-1 aftertwo legs but Elisa Di Francisca pulled it backto 11-11 after three. The Italians built on DiFrancisca’s performance and led 37-33 goinginto the anchor leg. On came Korobeynikova forthe Russia and she put in a spectacular displayto draw level at 44-44 with Errigo on the ropes.Somehow the Italian composed herself andretained the title for Italy with a 45-44 victory.Above: Richard Kruze in actionBelow: James Davis in actionMen’s Team SabreGreat Britain was one of the twelve teamstaking part in this event but they lost 45-36in the round of 16. In the placings matchesthey had a bye through the first stage, lost45-34 to Poland but they beat Turkey 45-43 tofinish eleventh. Romania, who beat the worldnumber three team, Russia in the quarterfinals,could not repeat their performance in the firstsemi-final, losing 45-32 to Italy. Germany beatHungary 45-40 in the other semi-final.In the bronze medal match, Romania (Badea,Dolniceanu and Teodosiu) pulled away fromHungary in the first three legs to lead 15-11.Hungary (Gemesi, Szatmari and Szilagyi) stageda comeback over the next three legs and led30-35 going into the final third. They went onto take the bronze medal 45-31. Italy (Curatoli,Montano and Occhiuzzi) faced Germany(Hartung, Szabo and Wagner) for the final goldmedal of the championships and gave everyonethe finale that they desired. An incredibly tightmatch saw Italy lead 15-13 after three legsonly for Germany to overtake them to lead30-29 going into the crucial final three bouts.Szabo extended the German’s lead to 35-32over Occhiuzzi. The Italians brought on theirsubstitute, Berre for the penultimate legs andhe did a great job against Hartung to put theItalians 40-39 up going into the last leg. TheGermans weren’t done as Wagner went upagainst Montano and drew level at 44-44. Abrave parry riposte from Wagner meant that theGermans won their first ever European Men’sTeam Sabre title 45-44.Some of the competitors in Montreux willhead to Baku, Azerbaijan, from the inauguralEuropean Games before the season ends inMoscow with the World Championships.JULY 2015 THE SWORD 11

BEAZLEY BRITISH FENCINGCHAMPIONSHIPS REPORT 2015with photos from f22imagesSixteen year old, Owen Jordanshines in SheffieldThe 2015 Beazley British FencingChampionships were held in Sheffield over theweekend at the English Institute of Sport. Therefollows a brief report from each of the individualevents.Men’s FoilWith forty-nine fencers taking part in thisevent it was no surprise that the countries’ toptwo men’s foilists, James Davis and RichardKruse (both of ZWF) fought off for the nationaltitle. Kruse started the fight by luring Davisinto attacking him so that he could use hisstrong defensive game to build a lead. At 4-1down, Davis began to build his attacks morecarefully and went 6-5 up. Kruse closed thedistance slightly and was able to establish an11-7 lead by the first break. The second periodwas a showcase of world class fencing fromboth Davis and Kruse. With Davis continuing topress Kruse adopted a slightly more aggressiveapproach and went on to take the title 15-12.The bronze medals went to Ben Peggs (ZWF)and Alex Tofalides (Salle Paul).Men’s SabreThe final individual event saw a field of thirtyeightfencers fight for gold. A repeat of thelast gold medal match in this event meantthat Alex Crutchett (The City) and JamesHoneybone (Truro) faced off for gold. Anotherclose final followed but Honeybone had tofight back from 7-5 down to trail by just onehit (7-8) going into the break. A great start tothe second period from Crutchett saw himlead 11-8 but Honeybone started to vary thedistance more effectively and that was enoughto see him retain his title with a 15-13 victory.Rubin Amsalem and Joanthan Webb (both fromCamden) secured the bronze medals.Men’s EpeeThe biggest field of the day – seventy – tookpart in this event and it was a good day forthe younger contingent as Tom Edwards(Redhill & Reigate Epee Club) and Owen Jordan(Touche) fought for gold. A fantastic first periodsaw Edwards attempting to lure Jordan intoattacking him so that he could use a defensivetactic which was countered by Jordan’sexplosive and accurate movement. Jordan led8-7 at the break but neither fencer was ableGold medallists: (top, left to right) MF - Richard Kruse, MS - James Honeybone, ME - Tom Edwards;(bottom, left to right) WF - Ayesha Fihosy, WS -Joanna Hutchison, WE - Hannah Lawrenceto dominate the tactical battle. This intriguingfight continued with the fencers trading hitsand at 10-10, three doubles ensured a tightfinish. A tremendously brave beat attack tookJordan to 14-13 but an equally brave hit to footfrom Edwards saw him draw level. A wellworkedattack into Jordan’s preparation wasthe winning hit for Edwards. Two Haverstockfencers, Greg Allen and Nick Perry went homewith the bronze medals.Women’s FoilA small field of sixteen fencers took part in thisevent with Ayesha Fihosy (Salle Boston) andKatie Smith (Edinburgh Fencing Club) fightingit out for the gold medal. Fihosy started thefight for the title by holding a long distancefrom Smith and picking her up on preparationor with counter actions. As the Boston fencer’slead grew, so did her confidence and she addedattacks to the mix. Fihosy dominated thefight from start to finish and ran away with a15-2 victory. Yvonne Chart (Truro) and NataliaSheppard (unattached) were the bronze medalwinners.Women’s SabreA field of twenty-four fencers took part in thisevent and two familiar names took to the pistefor the gold medal match – Joanna Hutchison(Camden) and Chrystall Nicoll (Leon Paul SabreAcademy). Both fencers were returning fromextended breaks from the sport. A dominantdisplay from the Camden fencer saw her takean 8-0 lead into the break with a combinationof solid long attacks and well-timed parryripostes. Nicholl came out for the secondperiod and immediately began looking for heropponent’s blade to establish the right of way.Despite this proving a successful tactic, thedamage had already been done and Hutchisontook the title with a 15-8. Harriet Dixon (OxfordUniversity) and Sophie Williams (Truro) were thebronze medallists.Women’s EpeeThirty-seven fencers took part in this event andit was Hannah Lawrence (Wingerworth) andAmy Radford (Malvern Hills Sword) who facedeach other in the gold medal match. Lawrencecontrolled the distance in the first period andaccurately picked up hits around her opponent’swrist. By the first break the Wingerworth fencerled 6-3. Radford came out on the attack in thesecond period but Lawrence displayed greatcontrol and picked off the Malvern Hills Swordfencer time after time. With Radford forcedto push, Lawrence was able to continue herpatient game and took the title, 15-6. MaryCohen (Beauvais) and Katrina Smith (Truro)went home with the bronze medals.f22images can be found on their website12 THE SWORD JULY 2015

REPORTSAssorted action photographsJULY 2015 THE SWORD 13

Birmingham InternationalTournament Report 2015by Mike WhitehouseSaturday 4th AprilMEN’S FOIL – (92 entries)The 1st, 2nd & 3rd seeds after the first roundpools, Husayn Rosowsky – Sussex House, KeithCook – Salle Holyrood, and James Brosnan –Salle Paul, all had a smooth passage to the semifinals, here they were joined by Pascal Delany- (Uni. of Birmingham), ranked 12th. It wasremarkable that, neither Brosnan nor Delanyhad a high national ranking, Brosnan was ranked126th and Delany, who, apart from BUCS,hadn’t fenced much while at Uni., didn’t havea ranking at all. The match between Brosnanand Cook was a speedy and close, affair. Afterthe first 3 minutes the score was 11-8 to Cook.Cook completed his victory with a 15 – 10score line. Belying his national (non!) ranking,Delany proved himself a talented and resilientopponent, making Rosowsky work all the way tohis eventual victory of 15 – 11.The final between Rosowsky and Cook was amore protracted match between two opponentswho know each other well. After the first3minutes, Cook held a 6 -3 lead and maintainedthen increased it to the second break when thescore was 11 – 6. He closed the match out bywinning comprehensively 15 – 7.Men’s Foil Final: Cook (left) versus Rosowsky(photos by Martin Turner)14 THE SWORD JULY 2015WOMEN’S FOIL – (45 entries)Of the top four seeds, only Chloe Dickson –Edinburgh FC (2), made it to the semis.In the L8’s, Lisa McKenzie – Edinburgh FC, (1),lost in a close fight 14 -15 to Ruth Clarke –Edinburgh FC, (8), Katie Smith – Edinburgh FC,(4), lost 11 - 15 to Catherine Cook – U/A, (5).Dickson, Clarke and Cook were joined in the L4by Philippa Mullins – Salle Boston, (14), whodefeated Alexandra Fitton – Salle Kiss, (3), 15 –10 in the L16.In the first semi final, Clarke controlled the fightand, at the break led 7 – 1. Cook began her fightback and at the second break had reduced thedeficit to 9 - 11. In the last part of the match,Cook completed her fight back and won a closefight 15 – 14. In the second semi final, the fightwas initially close, Dickson leading 7 – 3 after 6minutes, Dickson then dominated the remainderof the fight and, at the end, had a commandingvictory at 15 – 7.The final, between Dickson & Cook, wasrefereed by Paul Abrahams. Dickson, followingher dominant form in her first round pool andD/E’s, duly completed her victory march bydefeating Cook 15 – 9.Women’s’ Foil Final: Dickson (left) versus Cook(photo by Martin Turner)MEN’S SABRE – (54 entries)For the second time this weekend, 3 outof the four top seeds failed to reach thesemi finals. Michael Clarke – Truro (1)went out in the last 16 to John Simmonds– Rivington Park (9), Jacob Gander-Compton – Brentwood (2), went out toBryn Saunders – Truro (7), and Marc Oates– Camden FC(4), went out to Michael Bales– University of Nottingham (13), !5 – 5. Thesabre semi finals were: Tom Mottershead –Romily (9) v Stephen Rocks – Shetland (5)Morgan Vondee – City (3) v Bryn Saunders–Truro (7).In the first semi, Mottershead reachedthe breakpoint just ahead 8 – 6. He thentook control of the fight winning 15 – 9. Inhis semi final, Saunders nosed ahead andreached the break 8 – 5 up. He maintaineda lead to the end to win 15 – 12.The Final between Mottershead &Saunders was refereed by Stuart Watson.Mottershead showed his superiority at theend, by winning convincingly 15 – 8. TheFinals awards were presented by the DeputyLord Mayor of Birmingham Councilor MikeEddy.Sunday 5th AprilMEN’S EPEE – (79 entries)None of the top 4 seeds made it to thesemis. Chris Taylor – Liverpool (1) lost inthe L8 to Taran Nichols – Redhill & Reigate(17) 15 - 12, James Taylor - Cardiff Fencing(2) lost in th L8 to Tom Edwards – Redhill& Reigate (10) 15 – 12. Benjamin Schneider- Abingdon (3), lost in the L16 to MadelainPopescu – Romania, (14) 15 – 13. JasonScrimshaw– Redhill & Reigate (4) Lost inthe L8 to Thomas Toolis Pentathlon GB(13) 15 – 12. The semi finals were: MathewCooper – Wingerworth (8), v Tomas Kazik– Sutton Coldfield /Romania (5) MarcBurkhalter – Oxford University (11) v TomEdwards – Redhill & Reigate (10)In the first semi final, after a close opening3 minutes, the score was 4 – 3 to Cooper.Kazik then took control of the fight, andemerged the winner 14 – 8 on time. In thesecond semi, Edwards finished a tight firstperiod 4 – 2 up. Edwards proceeded topull away from Burkhalter in the second 3minutes to lead 10 – 3 at the break. Fromthis point he won the fight, comfortably15 – 5.The final between Edwards & Kazik, was,refereed by Duncan Rowlands. Edwards hadcontrol of the fight from the start, 13 – 6up at the break, he closed the fight outagainst Kazik, to win 15 – 7.

REPORTSWOMEN’S EPEE – (60 entries)Of the top four seeds, three went out beforethe semis. Samantha Hughes – Reading,(2), went out in the L16 to a resurgent RosieDavies – University Of Birmingham (34) 15– 7. Jennifer Mcgeever – Pentathlon Ireland(3) lost, in a very close match, in the L8 toFrancesca Summers – Redhill & Reigate (19),15 – 14 Jayne Crook – Wingerworth (4) alsolost in the L8, on time to Jessica Gundry –Truro (13) 11 – 10.In the first semi final, Kate French –Pentathlon GB (1) fenced Hannah Lawrence– Wingerworth (5). A fast and close scoringmatch was 9 -8 to Lawrence at the first break,Lawrence then gradually drew away to win15 – 10. In the second semi between FreyjaPrentice – Pentathlon GB (6) and KatrinaSmith – Truro (10), a close battle saw Smith1 hit ahead after 6 minutes, 7 – 6. She thenincreased her momentum and took the fight15 – 9.The Final between Lawrence and Smith wasa very close affair, 5 all after 3 minutes, 14 allafter 6, Smith then made the final hit to win.WOMEN’S SABRE – (38 entries)It was good to see an increase in numbers forthe women’s sabre, (34 last year), let’s hopethe popularity of the weapon continues intothe future. Once again this weekend, thetop four seeds went out of the competitionbefore the semi finals. Both Emma Potter –Stourbridge (1) and Leticia Steer – City (2)went out in the L16, Potter to Alexandra Davis– Millfield School (16) 15 – 12, and Steer toBridget Pleasant – Camden (15) 15 – 10.The first Semi Final was between Chloe Lopez-Colclough - Aberdeen City (8) and SzabinMatyas - Salle Dublin (via Hungary) (5). A closecontest ensued, eventually won by Matyas 15– 12. The second semi final was not as closeas the first, Michelle Guarino – Aberdeen City(7) was in control of the fight against EmilyRuaux – Rivington Park (6), and came out thewinner 15 – 7.The close Final between Matyas & Guarino,was refereed by Stuart Watson. Matyas,(drawing on her previous training as a memberof the Hungarian Junior squad some yearsbefore), was able to maintain control to winthe final 15 – 11.45 th WELSH OPEN 7/8 Nov 2015The Welsh Institute of Sport,Cathedral Road, Cardiff. CF11 9SWIN CONCLUSIONAll the Finals awards were presented to thewinners by Prof. Graham Ayliffe, President ofBirmingham Fencing Club and former winnerof the Epee. It was good to see again a highnumber of fencers entering from Scotland,for both men’s and women’s foil, & men’sand women’s sabre. The Scottish contingentalways make it an interesting and, (for them),successful competition.Apologies to John Rees for splitting hiswomen’s epee fencers over three halls,(exercise is good for you, John), hopefully,next year we will be in the New Universityof Birmingham Sports Complex, one hall fitsin everyone..... luxury. Finally, thanks to allthe referees, and fencers who refereed for uswhen their fencing was done, also the helpersand armourers from the West Midlands andbeyond, without their help competitions likeours would be difficult to sustain.Event DetailsSat 7 thNovemberLatest ReportTimeSun 8 thNovemberLatest ReportTimeMen’s Foil 9.45 Men’s Epee 9.45Women’s Epee 11.45 Women’s Foil 11.45Women’s Sabre 1.30 Men’s Sabre 1.30Entry Fee:Early Bird entry fee (for entries received & paidbefore 31 st August):• £15 one weapon, £25 two weaponsStandard Entry Fee:• £25 one weapon, £40 two weaponsPayment received after the closing date will beliable to a £10 late payment admin fee.Closing Date f or entries 31 st Oct 2015.Late entries accepted at organiser’s discretionCheques payable toPostal EntriesOnline EntriesCurrent BFA membershipArmouryOrganiser Contact:Welsh FencingWelsh Open Entries,c/o 43 Heol Miskin,Pontyclun, RCT,CF72 9AJwww.welshfencing.orgWill be required and checkedWill be present but not guaranteed for personalweaponsMark Ridsdale07530 226 532Entry FormWeapon(s) Foil Epee SabreGender Male FemaleNameClubBFA Licence NumberContact details(eg phone/email)Cadet/Vet? Cadet VetEntry Fee(Non-refundable)I accept that the organisers cannot be held responsible for any accident,loss or damage sustained at the tournament.Signature:(Parent or guardian if under 18)DateLast update: 13 April 2015JULY 2015 THE SWORD 15

Hertfordshire Junior CountyChampionship ReportBy James DickerBiggest Ever Junior County ChampionshipHertfordshire has a thriving fencing community with over 1000 fencersof all ages, from 17 clubs across the ten boroughs.On Saturday 25th April 2015 at HertfordshireSports Village in Hatfield, HertfordshireFencing Association hosted its biggest everJunior County Championship with 131 fencerscompeting in Foil and Sabre events over 13categories.Over the past few years it has been the goalof Hertfordshire Fencing Association to runlarge-scale county championships and givefencers of all abilities a chance at competinglocally in a top quality event.Thanks to recent developments within thecounty and Eastern Region with refereedevelopment, the association were able topull together a team of 20 referees for theday, led by the regional assessor Mike Ellis,who all put in a very long days work to ensurethe day finished well ahead of schedule (2hours in fact!).In the Under 20’s Foil, it was a double victoryfor Paul Davis Fencing Academy (PDFA),where Owen Grosvenor beat James Joy fromFencer’s Club London 15 – 9 in the Men’s,while Natasha Rajan beat fellow PDFA fencerAlexa Marroquin 15 – 9 in the Women’s event.There was further success for PDFA in theUnder 16 Boy’s Foil, where Luke Barbourbeat Rufus Carruthers from Fencers ClubLondon 15 – 8. While in the Under 16 GirlsFoil, Jasmine Porter from Three Rivers YoungBlades (TRYB) beat Gemma Caruana 15 – 5.In one of the larger categories of the day,Kishan Sisodiya won the Under 14 Boy’s Foiltitle after beating Sean Lindfield from FencersClub London 15 – 7. There was a similar TRYBv Fencer’s Club show down in the Under 14Girls with TRYB’s Amanda Mond beating LilyBird 15 – 9.Rafael Rhys Pollitt from Fencer’s Club Londonbeat PDFA fencer Alexander Culkin 10 – 2in the Under 12 Boys, while over in thegirls’ Henriette Hadalin from Salle Hadalin– Stevenage FC beat PDFA fencer AmeliaMiddleton 10 – 1 to pick up the Girls title.In the biggest category of the day, PDFAfencer Samuel Flury beat Salle Hadalin fencerFinley Warren 8 – 6 in the Under 10 Boy’scategory. While in the girls’ event, IsabelleJohnson from TRYB beat Salle Hadalin fencerHelga Hadalin 8 – 5.Finally it was the time of the Saburers, withJames Hall from TRYB picking up the Over13’s Boys title for the second year runningbeating, Michael Atree from PDFA 10 – 2 inthe final to retain the title. Over in the girl’sevent, Anna Dunham from PDFA beat NorthLondon Sabre’s Zahra Khan 10 – 9.In the Under 12 Boys Sabre it was a PDFA vPDFA final, with Ryan Cororan taking homethe championship beating Thomas Raut 10– 9. There was then another all PDFA final inthe Girls event with Gabriella Karouzis beatingEmily Parry 10 – 8.The event was everything we hoped it wouldbe, and proved to be a fantastic warm-up forthe British Youth Championship the followingweekend, with five of the competitors walkingaway with national medal placing’s, with thebiggest success being Henriette Hadalin fromSalle Hadalin picking up the U12 British Girl’sFoil title to add to her county championship.We would like to thank all the competitors,parents, coaches, referees and crewthat made this the best championship inHertfordshire’s history, and we look forwardto making 2016 even better!For more information visit our website ator email us at info@hertsfencing.co.uk.U16 Foil Boys and GirlsU14 Foil Boys and Girls16 THE SWORD JULY 2015U12 Foil Boys and Girls

REPORTSU10 Foil Boys and GirlsU20 Foil Men’s and Women’sO13 Sabre Boys and GirlsU10 Girls Foil Winning HitU12 Sabre Boys and GirlsJULY 2015 THE SWORD 17

MASTER’S AND REVENUREPORTSCOMPETITIONS REPORT 2015by Lynda CookThe Master’s de Fleuret is a competition started by the Melun club 7 years ago with the backing of the FIEand the fencers are invited according to the previous seasons results/ranking. The first Master’s competitionattracted a crowd of 350 spectators, it has now grown in reputation and this year saw 1000 spectators (200 ofthem pupils from the local primary schools)!The Challenge Ernest Revenu is a French domestic Open - this year was the 46th - and is named in memory ofErnest Revenu the first maitre d’arme of the Melun club. It is always the highest attended French Senior Men’scompetition each season, and over the last 7 years when we have held the Masters competition at the sametime, has attracted more “foreign” fencers - the last 2 years both the Russian and British teams have competed.MASTER’S DE FLEURETFriday 3 April, 2015Initially, two pools were drawn live: Pool A -Erwann Le Pechoux, Alexander Choupenitch,Peter Joppich and Alexey Cheremisinov, andPool B - Enzo Lefort, Race Imboden, James-Andrew Davis and Jianfei Ma. The top 2 ofeach pool qualifying for the semi final matches– 2 matches of 5 touches, with a one touchsudden death of one match each. In thesemifinal Race Imboden beat Peter Joppich,5-3, 5-4; Jianfei Ma v Alexey Cheremisinovwas won by Ma 3-4, 5-1, with a sudden deathtouch. The final was a great match to watchwith both fencers really determined to win.With the end of the first phase Imboden wasleading 10-9 and encouraging the audienceto cheer. Finally, after both fencers markingtouch for touch, it was Imboden who won15-14!Final ranking : 1st Race Imboden (USA), 2ndJianfei Ma CHN), 3rd Alexey Cheremisinov(RUS), 3rd Peter Joppich (GER), 5th EnzoLefort (FRA), 6th Alexander Choupenitch(CZE), 7th Erwann Le Pechoux (FRA) and 8thJames-Andrew Davis (GBR).CHALLENGE REVENUSaturday and Sunday 4-5 April,2015Here, four GB fencers started the competitionin the second round of pools on Saturdayafternoon, due to their FIE rankings: Ben Peggswith 4V2D, Amol Rattan with 5V1D, MarcusMepstead with 6V0D and Alex Tofalides with6V0D. All qualified for the next round onSunday morning, when they were joined byJames-Andrew Davis and Richard Kruse for thefinal round of pools. Amol Rattan had 2V4D,James, Marcus, Ben and Alex all had 5V1D andRichard had 6V0D.In the DE last 128: Amol Rattan lost toAymeric Mourrain 10-15, James beat RemiDeligne 15-4, Marcus beat Alexis Obrecht15-3, Ben beat Jeremy Keryhuel 15-10, Alexbeat Keivan Javanshir 15-11 and Richard beatLoic Chaply 15-4. In the last 64 : James lostto Ghislain Perrier (BRA) 12-15, Marcus lost toJianfei Ma (CHI) 12-14, Ben lost to MohamedAyoub Ferjani 14-15, Alex lost to Robin Veran11-15 and Richard beat Jonathan Barth 15-7.Richard then went on to beat Jordan Moine15-9 in the last 32, Vincent Simon 15-12 inthe last 16, Alexey Cheremisinov (RUS) 15-13in the last 8, then Baptiste Mourrain 15-6 inthe semi. In the final he was against TimurArslanov (RUS) and again it was a touch fortouch match until finally Richard pulled aheadand won 15-12.Final overall rankings were Amol Rattan 91,James-Andrew Davis 43, Marcus Mepstead 41,Ben Peggs 39, Alex Tofalides 38 and Richard1st – well done Richard!Master’s(Upper Photo) Top (left to right) - James Davis(GBR), Enzo Lefort (FRA), Peter Joppich (GER),Race Imboden (USA), Alexsey Cheremisinov(RUS) Seated - Alexander Choupenitch (CZE),Jianfei Ma (CHN), Erwann Le Pechoux (FRA)(Lower Photo) In order of final ranking (left toright)Revenu(Left to right) Ghislain Perrier (BRA), Aleksey Cheremisinov (RUS), Dmitry Rigin (RUS), Erwann LePechoux (FRA), Baptiste Mourrain (FRA), Enzo Lefort (FRA), Timour Arslanov (RUS) and Richard Kruse(GBR) + a photo of Richard the champ.18 THE SWORD JULY 2015

MEDICAL AND SCIENCEANTI-DOPING EDUCATIONby Dr Clare HalstedThe ‘Clean Sport/Play True’ MinefieldLet me first introduce you to NUF, our notional unethical fencer, who is in the national squad of a top fencingnation and desperate to overtake team mates in the Olympic qualifying race.NUF is vaguely aware that, as fencing is sucha complex sport, involving speed, agility,accuracy, coordination, stamina, mentaltoughness and complex tactical ability,no drug has yet been developed that willdefinitely enhance performance in the meleeof a fencing competition. Disadvantagescounteract benefits so medals are wonthrough hard work and expert coaching.And yet NUF has a feeling that somethingcould help; who cares about any risk to healthor the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA)concept of upholding the ‘spirit of sport’ –whatever that is, if the reward is success, butwhat?“Hey this is complicated stuff” realisesNUF, “how is a top class athlete without ascience degree supposed to work out how tocheat by doping?” Some help is needed andNUF happens to have a close friend who isa pharmacist. Several innocent chats lateron the subject of protein powders, vitamins,minerals and other supplements, supposedlyuseful for athletes from a variety of sports,and NUF has a much better understandingof most of the available and ‘less-available’substances.Anabolic steroids seem attractive at firstglance – increased strength to wield theweapon? - then the thought of bulky, heaviermuscles and acne – perhaps not. (Must lookgood whipping the mask off after that medalwinning hit!) Gene doping sounds intriguingbut too expensive and not sophisticatedenough yet to produce the perfect fencer;hormones and the like are unlikely to makea difference; increasing the red blood cellcount with that EPO stuff helps in theTour de France but however long a fencingcompetition lasts it doesn’t demand that typeof incredible stamina.“A stimulant though – to keep me hypedup when flagging in the later stages after anearly start and no time or inclination to eat?That’s it and my pharmacist friend will comein useful again”.Has NUF checked the WADA List ofProhibited Substances and Methods? Whoknows?Meanwhile squad mate NEF (notional ethicalfencer) had recently been diagnosed withtype 1 diabetes after feeling very unwell.Now stabilised on insulin and determined tokeep up training and competing she checkson (thanks to her recent anti-dopingeducation session) and discovers that insulinis on THE LIST. Not sure what to do sheconfides in her coach after her next lessonand (thanks to his recent distance learningmodule) he tells her about Therapeutic UseExemptions - TUEs.Off she goes to her doctor to obtain thenecessary medical information, sends off herTUE form to be scrutinised by the relevantTUE committee and promptly receives formalapproval to use insulin.Phew – now to concentrate on building backfitness so to the dietician for advice aboutsupplements (not stimulants, she knowsthose are banned during competitions). Whichones are approved by WADA as safe to use?What none? None at all! Why, when thereare so many available and gyms push themso hard? Her clued up dietician explains that,despite what is written on the tin, in somestudies about 20% of supplements werefound to be contaminated with prohibitedsubstances so unless every batch is analysedthere is no way of knowing what may belurking within. Even vitamin tablets could berisky!However, there is a reliable (UK) laboratorythat analyses a wide range of supplementsand lists the ‘clean’ ones publicly - formanufacturers. BUT if you do use one fromthe list remember - only that specific batch issafe and - keep a small sample back if testingis a possibility. Much better to have the right,balanced diet for the demands of the sport(though in China be wary of the meat).NEF’s coach also remembers to warn herabout checking any medication obtaineddirectly at a pharmacy, although many aresafe to use such as paracetamol, ibuprofen oranti-histamines for allergies. She luckily findsout that a decongestant cold remedy shewas about to try contains pseudoephedrine,which is prohibited in competition (if abovea certain level in a urine specimen) - so notworth risking!Six months later and NUF has made the teamon trial as the 4th fencer. Thanks mainly tothe efforts of the other 3, bronze in the firstteam world cup is theirs, the teams haveshaken hands and the doping control officer(DCO) is approaching. NUF is shocked to bethe selected fencer and protests “but I wasn’tfencing in that match”. The DCO explainsthat any one of the 4 team members can bechosen randomly for testing and off they goto the doping control station. 2 hours later,having finally completed the somewhatdaunting procedure of providing a satisfactoryurine sample under observation, a panickyNUF gets back to the hotel for a sleeplessnight.The dreaded letter arrives soon after, detailingan Adverse Analytical Finding – a levelof a stimulant drug above the permittedthreshold. To cut a sad story short, the formalinvestigation reveals that NUF had taken 2tablets of a prescription-only drug on theday of the event, and despite protestationsof ignorance that this was prohibited, wasfound guilty of a doping offence as no TUEwas in place (and no justification for oneeither). The rest of the team lost their bronzemedals, their world cup points for that eventand their tempers. NUF is still trying to appealthe 4 year ban (increased from 2 years for afirst offence in the revised 2015 WADA code).[NB: this article describes entirelyhypothetical situations but 47 athletes arecurrently sanctioned for doping offences inthe UK]British Fencing’s Anti-Doping Officer - andalways happy to answer queries.Dr Clare HalstedSome other useful linkswww.ukad.org.ukwww.ukad.org.uk/athletes/100percentmewww.ukad.org.uk/coaches/coach-cleanwww.britishfencing.com/governance/medical-anti-doping/JULY 2015 THE SWORD 19

MEDICAL AND SCIENCEBecoming Mentally Toughby Jon Rhodes, Chartered PsychologistEveryone wants to be mentally tough, in exams, job interviews, and in this focus, sport. When working withcoaches, some often inform me that certain children are naturally mentally tough, that they have a gift towithstand huge amounts of pressure, whilst others are regarded as mentally weak.Researchers (Jones, et al., 2002) have definedmental toughness as; having a natural ordeveloped psychological edge that enables youto, generally, cope better than your opponentswith the many demands (competition,training, lifestyle) that sport places on aperformer and, specifically, be more consistentand better than your opponents in remainingdetermined, focused, confident, and in controlof pressure.I must immediately point out (and goingagainst - half of - the definition) that mentaltoughness is a completely trained attribution.No child is born mentally tough, but willdevelop the traits that contribute towardstheir level of toughness as time goes on.Therefore, everyone is mentally tough, but thelevel of toughness in certain circumstanceschanges depending on experience.Considering people who like to debategenetics playing a vital role, it can contributetowards an accelerated learning process,meaning that some children may seemadvanced for their age. But again, this is alldependent on having the right experience.So, what is the right experience and if mentaltoughness can be trained, how is it achieved?In answering the question there are twoimportant areas that build a mentally toughathlete; mindset, and mental skills.The mindset research has been driven byCarol Dweck since 2012; with her workfocusing on a learning paradigm identified asgrowth and fixed mindsets. A fixed mindsetis identified by a belief that attributions, suchas intelligence or personality, are static andcannot be changed. Furthermore, when a taskbecomes difficult the individual will give upeasily, takes the easier option, sees effort asfruitless, ignores criticism and is threatenedby others success. This leads to individualsplateauing early and not maximizing potential.The flip side is the growth mindset, wherebythe individual looks forward to a challenge, ispersistent when faced with obstacles, learnsfrom criticism and others success, and as aresult increases their effort, enabling potentialto be reached. The individuals’ mindset is keyin developing talent, and creating a mentallytough athlete.From a young age there are several keyinfluencers that develop a belief structurefor children, such as parents, family, peers,teachers, coaches and the media. A wrongreinforced message creates a wrong belief,which can stick with the athlete for aconsiderable time. Mindset is ultimately the20 THE SWORD JULY 2015way individuals perceive failure. Does theindividual learn from failure, consequentlyenhancing effort, or does the failure preventfuture behavior, thus inhibiting effort? Dweckhas found that mentally tough individuals arefocused on goal completion rather than theperformance result, and exhibit higher growthmindset attributions. Essentially, goals mustbe challenging but realistically achievable forthe athlete to see progress, seeing failure as astepping-stone to success.Mental Skills are the interventions, orcoping strategies, that the individual has tomanage emotions and perceptions. Initially,goal setting is the most fundamental wayof increasing motivation and managing thetask at hand. Mental skills such as imagery,motivational cues, self-talk, and meditationare becoming increasingly used in fencingwith elite athletes. However, the specificmethodological protocols for using mentalskills (to have significant impact) in fencingneeds rigorous testing (and review) and mustinitially be administered by a psychologist.Goal setting on the other hand can becompleted weekly by the coach, which coversareas of technical, tactical, physical andpsychological development.In a recent study at Plymouth University withathletes from Truro Fencing Club, findingsrevealed that there was a linear progressionbetween tactical and psychologicaldevelopment. Therefore, athletes believedthat by “controlling distance” and “predictingopponent attacks”; psychological attributionssuch as confidence, controlling pressure andmental toughness increased. Not surprisingly,knowing what to do and when to do it impactsmental toughness as it focuses on the goaland immediate task, not the result.Becoming mentally tough can be acceleratedthrough a series of ways outside of goalsetting and I thought it beneficial to mentiontwo manageable ways for coaches toimplement alongside goals. Firstly, in everysport I have worked in, be it fencing, tennis,judo, rugby or football, a key is to have astructured mentoring programme wherecadets learn from juniors, and juniors learnfrom seniors (and seniors learn from vets!).Role models play an important part in theway beliefs are structured, how we learnfrom others’ experience, and evolve the clubculture. Secondly, use the power of “yet”.Numerous times I have heard a coach informthe student that they do “not have good/correct distance”. The student hears this as astatic skill and minimal effort is applied. If thestudent hears “you do not have good/correctdistance, yet”, the skill is now based arounddynamic learning, which is improved throughthe application of effort.Finally, goals can be a mixture of physicaldevelopments such as agility, and tacticalareas such as the use of feints. Importantly,the athlete needs to have a tangible goalto measure progress otherwise there is noclear way of ascertaining goal completion.Measuring agility (for example) is simple,as circuits are timed before and after anintervention to establish if the training hashad an impact. A straightforward way tomeasure functional mental toughness is to listthe components of mental toughness, such asconfidence in attack/defense, determinationto complete goals, focus within hits, andcontrolling emotions when under pressure. Theathlete rates each component out of 10 beforethe intervention (where 1 = do not agree and10 = completely agree) and again a week afterthe intervention. The difference in scoreswould reveal if the coaching experience hasbeen successful and the athletes belief in theirindividual ability. Furthermore, there should bean observable difference within the fencer.As coaches it is our job to solve problems,innovate and challenge our athletes.Ultimately, it is the coach and parentswho drive the passion and mindset of thestudent and although it is often a tricky andarduous job, it is vital in nurturing resilience,confidence and mental toughness in athleteswho could be our future Olympians.If you would like to find out more about SportPsychology or the research at Truro FencingClub please email jonathan.rhodes@plymouth.ac.uk.References:Dweck, C. S. (2012). Mindset: how you canfulfill your potential. Ballintine, NY:USA.Jones, G., Hanton, S., & Connaughton, D.(2002). What is this thing called mentaltoughness? An investigation of elitesport performers. Journal of Applied SportPsychology, 14, 205–218.

TECHNICALFencing Through the ViewfinderA Photography Primer for a Fast Sportby Serge TimacheffFencing photography uniquely provides athletes, coaches, officials, and fans the ability to take as much timeas they want to examine a very fast sport. While video can show movement and bout interplay, photography offencing stops a moment in time in ways that can be very revealing.As the official FIE photographer, I haveshot every senior and junior/cadet worldchampionship as well as all Olympic Gamesand many grand prix events since 2003, withmore than two million images of fencing inmy archive. It also represents millions of milesof travel and thousands of hours sitting oncold, hard fencing floors, often waiting for aninterminable women’s foil event to come toan all-too-often predictable end (Italy againstItaly? Again? Really?). During this last decadeplusof not-as-glamorous-as-it-soundsfencing photography, I’m often asked how totake good fencing images, and I’d like to sharesome of my thoughts with you.Please note this article is written more forpeople who are using “digital single-lensreflex,” or “dSLR” cameras. Shooting fencingwith a camera phone or point-and-shootcamera are a separate discussion.Shoot with a Digital SLRI’m not shy about this statement: In the ageof phone cameras and small pocket cameraswith lots of megapixels, the quality of yourcamera and lens still make a huge difference.Fencing is not very compatible with camerasmade for snapshots taken either outdoors(with lots of light) or using a flash (which isn’tallowed in our sport). For fencing, where theaction is fast, the light is low, and being ableto control your camera because you can’tcontrol anything else, you need a camera thatresponds quickly and has accessible features.Even a more entry-level dSLR, such as a CanonRebel, is far superior in how you are able tocontrol functions. Plus, forget about the cutelittle presets on your camera, and learn to takephotos with semi-automatic and, ultimately,totally manual settings.While some non-dSLR cameras tout manualcapabilities, often the functions are buried toodeep or are not quickly accessible to whereyou can make changes on-the-fly in fencing.For example, the ability to rapidly change anexposure from a high-speed setting capturingstop-action shots of white uniforms on thepiste, to a lower-speed setting optimized fora fencer’s face when she wins and screamsvictory, simply cannot be accomplished fastenoughon some cameras because the controlsare hard-to-reach. For most dSLRs, you can doit without even looking at the controls if youknow your camera well.Understand the Exposure Triangle.Today’s cameras have three primary settingsthat will affect your images: shutter speed,aperture, and ISO. These three factors areconstantly playing against each other,meaning when you raise one you may have todiminish another—and you need to understandthe tradeoff for what kind of photo you want.First, what are these three settings?Shutter speed is how fast your cameraallows light in to capture an image. It’s greatfor producing stop-action images of fencing,where the blade is caught in mid-motionor moving fencers are frozen in time. Youshould be using at least a 1/500 secondshutter speed to shoot fencing, and at least1/125 or 1/250 second to take images ofnon- or slow-moving objects (like medalistsposing for a picture).Aperture, or your f/Stop setting, representshow much space is opened in your lens tolet light in. Why does it matter? Becausethis is what determines depth-of-field. Thisis how much of your visual field is in focus.If you’re shooting fencers with shallowdepth-of-field (e.g., an f/Stop of f5.6 orless), meaning a wide opening, then onlypart of your “scene” will be in focus. This hasdramatic effects by highlighting somethingyou want people to see in the image but itcan be difficult to manage when fencers aremoving as they may quickly go in-and-outof focus depending on how fast your rig’sautofocus may be. A deep depth-of-fieldsetting (e.g., f/8 or higher) will make more ofthe overall image in focus – which is goodfor shooting a picture of three teams offencers standing on a podium after gettingmedals, for example.Moving fencers frozen in time at the Athens OlympicsISO is the measurement of how sensitiveyour image sensor (which converts lightinto a digital image) is to light. A lowerISO number is less sensitive; for example,you’d likely use ISO 100 for shooting inbright sunlight. For fencing, a high ISOsetting means you’ll be able to capturelower-light images in a darkened or poorlylit fencing venue. Better-quality, semi-proor professional cameras have very high ISOcapabilities (some more than ISO 200,000,whereas consumer cameras are far lesssensitive). Higher ISO means a “noisier”image, looking “grainy” with light anomaliesmore visible. However, today’s camerascan easily shoot at ISO 3200 or higherwithout too much or any significant visibledegradation in quality. Typical settingsfor most fencing halls might be anywherebetween ISO 1600 and ISO 6400.JULY 2015 THE SWORD 21

Learning to shoot fencing where you are incontrol of the camera means managing thesethree factors – shutter speed, aperture, andISO – and knowing when one should be higherand another should be lower. If you’re shootinga saber match with reasonably good light, forexample, you might be set at ISO 3200, 1/800shutter speed, and f/3.5.Your Camera and Lens Matter.Buy the best-quality digital SLR (meaning mostlikely Canon or Nikon) you can afford, built themost recently, so that it has the best-qualityand highest-ISO image sensor and fastestframe-per-second rate. Then buy the bestquality“fast” lens you can afford that’s suitablefor how far you’ll be from the fencers. If you’restanding just beside the piste, you don’t needa telephoto lens (e.g., 70-200mm) but rathersomething in the 24-70mm range. A “fast” lensmeans a lens where the aperture remains thesame at all focal lengths—meaning if you zoomin, less light enters the camera and your shotswill be underexposed. A fast lens will have adesignation on the outside of it like “f/2.8”or f/3.5” as opposed to a slower lens that willshow a range, such as “f/3.5-f/5.6” (which isless desirable, but also less expensive).Focus, Focus, Focus.The ability to focus on a subject gets toughwhen they’re moving across a piste. Higherendcameras have the ability to track a subjectat very high speed, but that’s not alwayspossible depending on your camera gear.Plus, pro photographers “cheat” by changingtheir camera settings to what’s called “backfocusing” – meaning changing the button youuse to snap the shot. This allows them to usea semi-automatic focus and keep it locked-in,instead of refocusing each time they take aphoto. To optimize your ability to get imagesin-focus, follow these tips:Position yourself about 30 to 45 degreesfrom the center line of the piste, to the leftor right of the referee and a bit behind him.If you’re following a specific fencer, youshould be on the opposing side from wherethey are fencing. If they are left-handed,you may want to be on their weapon side,if possible, as you’ll get more of the bladein the shot and, consequently, get a more“complete” shot of a touch when it occurs.If you are in this 30-45 position, you havethe optimal amount of the visual field ofthe piste in focus, and you will not need toadjust your focus as much as if you werefarther to one side.We Don’t Need No Stinkin’ WhiteBalanceYour dSLR will have a way to adjust thewhite balance to a specific setting or colortemperature (measured in degrees Kelvin)or to be set automatically. Most sports hallshave those awful sodium-vapor lights or,even worse, fluorescent lighting. Some newvenues are using LED lights, which are muchbetter. The former type of lighting causesmillisecond variations in light, meaning thecolor temperature is changing rapidly. As aresult, whether you’re shooting on a fixed colortemperature or on automatic, either way it’sanybody’s guess what the color temperature isgoing to be from moment-to-moment. If yourcamera shoots 10 frames a second, you mightget 10 different shades of white – cream, blue,white, yellow, etc. – in one second of shooting.As a result, I don’t recommend even worryingabout this setting, and for anything that lookstruly out-of-whack, you can fix it later whenyou’re editing.Don’t Be Afraid to Shoot Tight.While it’s good to get all of the fencing actionin one image, sometimes you want to givesome dramatic effect, and shooting “tight”helps this. Try and get close-ups of faces,hands on grips, blade interaction, and thelike—but don’t do only those. Experiment withshooting on a random spot where you thinkfencers will pass by and hold a tight shot on it– then wait and see if they pass through yourspot and shoot!Tell a Story.I’m primarily a photography documentarian,meaning I spend each day documenting theentire event. Even if it’s just one fencer, try totell a story with your shots – for example, fromthe salute, to the first engagement, to theargument with the referee, to the frustrationof falling behind, to the victory of winning, andthen the celebration and finally the medals.This can be done in a sequence of five to tenphotos, which tell a quick visual tale of whathappened.Use your camera’s ability to change wherethe focal point is located. The default oncameras is to focus on the center of theviewfinder; however, if you focus therewhile aiming at two fencers, you’ll likelybe focusing on the audience on the farside and not the athletes. Instead, learnhow to adjust your camera’s focal settingsto focus on the fencer to the oppositeside from where you are shooting. Focuson something more geometric, like theweapon or the mask, as it will be easier foryour camera to “catch” the subject. While Iemphasize shooting using manual exposuresettings, I do not suggest shooting usingmanual focus—it’s nearly impossible to keepfocusing manually on moving fencers.Focus on something… like the weapon or the mask, as it will be easier for your camera to “catch” thesubject. (Pozdniakov (RUS) v Montano (ITA)-Bronze-Beijing)22 THE SWORD JULY 2015

Try and get close-ups of faces.Don’t Use a Flash.If you’re on the field of play or beside the piste,you aren’t allowed to use a flash in any venue(do you really want that angry Russian coachblaming you for his fencer missing that finaltouch?). If you’re in the tribunes, your flashhas no effect. All those little twinkling flashesthat look so nice in stadiums or big venues?They’re only serving to illuminate the gent’shead in front of the shooter. Light falls-off soquickly that flashes are really only effective atvery close range, so save them for the medalceremony.Hold Your Camera Correctly.You hold a dSLR still camera differently thana video camera. You use your right hand tocontrol the shutter release and adjust otherexposure functions. Your left hand cups thelens underneath, with your thumb to the left.This is the way it was designed to be held,and further stabilizes your camera so youcan get images that are more in-focus. If thelight is really low, and if your camera is olderand doesn’t have the ISO capabilities of thenewer ones, consider using a monopod to helpstabilize your shots.Be Creative with Your Angles.When I began shooting fencing, I tried toshoot what no one had before. One of thesefirst shots involved climbing up into a catwalkat a grand prix in Algiers, Algeria and shootingdown on the top of the fencers (a littleharrowing in an African venue with nothingmore than some rebar holding me up). Findinteresting angles for shooting your fencingsubject can produce some very rewardingimages. Stand at the end of the piste for a fewshots, hold your camera high in the air whilezoomed to the most wide setting, lie down onthe ground, and in general look for innovativeways in which you can view the same-oldsport. This will help round-out your fencingTell a story. (Flessel L (FRA) v Shutova L (RUS)-prelim-2008 Beijing World Champs)“story” and inevitably find some interesting andfun shots.Post-Production.The best photos are created at the momentthey’re shot, not on the computer. That said,working with your images after you take themis an important step and can be fun but alsotime-consuming. Choosing photos is a toughjob, and deciding if they need some touch-upsuch as cropping or level adjustment is animportant part of finalizing your story. Usingapplications such as Lightroom, ACDSee Pro,and Photo Mechanic can do a lot to optimizeimages, fix minor problems, batch-processlarge numbers of images, manipulate imagesizes to ready them for print or screen, andgenerally get your images set for publicviewing.This is a very involved topic, however, and bestsuited for a future article…Be creative with your angles. (BeijingOlympicGames)JULY 2015 THE SWORD 23

Fencing Flashmob 2015A Worldwide EventAlessandro Noto, Social Media andMarketing Manager at FederazioneItaliana Scherma, talks to EdRogers.I managed to contact Alessandro on aSunday morning in Vicenza at the EuropeanChampionship under 23, where he wasworking; the sound of fencing could be heardloudly in the background. I began by askinghim how the Fencing Flashmob idea cameabout.The first Fencing Flashmob was originallyheld in 2011, to launch the Senior WorldChampionships in Catania. Alessandro noticedthe videos being uploaded on You Tube andbecoming increasingly popular, so after 3years (in the summer of 2014) he created theevent on Facebook and Twitter through theofficial pages of the Italian Fencing Federationand began inviting friends from around theworld to participate. The idea was very simple,to discover new ways of communicatingusing social media to spread interest infencing around the world, by getting nationalorganisations to promote fencing in Septemberwhen the season begins. Whilst there washuge coverage in the Italian media, by usingthe web they managed to reach about onemillion people in a period of 24 hours, suchis the power of social media: 28 differentcountries from 5 continents and almost 200cities participated throughout the world – aconsiderable achievement.Alessandro raised his voice as someone scoreda hit raucously in the background; this is hismessage for the fencers in Britain:‘I hope that many of the British fencers willjoin in with us on Sunday September 6th 2015,any time during the day. One of the principalideas behind the Fencing Flashmob is to showfencing adjacent to attractive landmarks andlocations all around the world. In the UK youhave some beautiful cities and monuments.This is good from a marketing standpointbecause local authorities will see that we arenot just promoting fencing, but the cities aswell, which is good public relations. In Italy,fencing organisations often have these kindsof relationships with local government. Thesevideos are then viewed around the world,which demonstrates the link between fencingmarketing and tourist marketing. Pleasejoin us and experience this exhilarating andextraordinary global event.’“I hope that many of theBritish fencers will joinin with us on SundaySeptember 6th 2015”After the great success last year, the ItalianFencing Federation (FIS) is again launching#Fencingmob to all affiliated fencing clubs inItaly and all national fencing federations andtheir clubs around the world, inviting you tocreate a Flashmob with fencing as its theme.A summary of the very enjoyable videos from2014 follows using these links:Part OnePart Two#Fencingmob is characteristically organisedin locations that identifies the city where itis taking place: for example, the Coliseum inRome, Piccadilly Circus in London, the EiffelTower in Paris, Times Square in New York City,etc. These being public spaces it is stronglyrecommended that organisers apply for allthe necessary permissions from the relevantauthorities, well in advance, and pay due regardto any safety procedures that are deemednecessary. Local organisers are responsiblefor photographing and videoing their ownFlashmob events.Hilary Philbin, President of British Fencing,said: “This is a great idea, and we support it.It’s an entertaining and fun way to promotefencing, and to demonstrate to a wideaudience around the world that fencing is anexciting and accessible sport”.PHOTOS: All photos should be sent to theemail address: fencingmob@gmail.com andposted by the organizers on Facebook, Twitterand Instagram indicating the name of thecity and using the hashtag #Fencingmob(e.g., London #Fencingmob). All photos willbe published in real time on the social mediaof the Italian Fencing Federation (Facebook,Twitter, Instagram).VIDEOS: Video of the Flashmob shall be posteddirectly on YouTube within 3 hours of theevent’s conclusion with the title #FencingmobPLUS the name of the city, state, country (forexample, #Fencingmob Edinburgh, Midlothian,UK). All participating organizers are kindlyrequested to follow this procedure. Within 48hours we will publish one or more summaryvideos of all #Fencingmob that took placearound the world that day.For more information or any questionsregarding this event, please contact:alessandro.noto@federscherma.it.“It’s an entertainingand fun way topromote fencing”24 THE SWORD JULY 2015

INTERVIEWRome, May 28, 2015TO ALL NATIONAL FENCING FEDERATIONDear friends,after the great success of past year edition, the Italian Fencing Federation (FIS) is launching again#Fencingmob, involving all affiliated fencing clubs in Italy and all National Fencing Federations and their clubsaround the world.The aim is to promote our sport in the time of the year when the new competition season starts and this eventbecomes an essential tool to recruit new members.I am hereby asking to you to evaluate the possibility to inform your Federation’s affiliated clubs that onSunday, September 6, 2015, (any time of the day) all fencing clubs in Italy and around the world are invited tojoin by creating a flashmob based on fencing as a theme, as it happened last year, when 178 cities in theworld joined the initiative.Hereunder you will find all the information by our Social Media department that you may transmit, together withthe invitation to join the initiative, to your affiliated people and clubs.#Fencingmob shall be organized at a characteristic location that identifies the city where it takes place (eg infront of the Colosseum in Rome, Piccadilly Circus in London, the Eiffel Tower in Paris, Times Square in NewYork City, the Leaning Tower in Pisa, etc.).We recommend to apply for permissions in advance, being the places public and to notify in advance thecompetent authorities with all event’s details (venue, time, number of participants, etc.).It is the responsibility of the local organizers to photograph and video their flashmob.PHOTOS: All photos shall be sent IN REAL TIME to the email address: fencingmob@gmail.com and postedby the organizers on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram indicating the name of the city and using the hashtag#Fencingmob (eg, Roma #Fencingmob). All photos will be published in real time on the social media of theItalian Fencing Federation (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram).VIDEO: Video of the flashmob shall be posted directly on YouTube within 3 hours of the event’s conclusionwith the title #Fencingmob + the name of the city, state, country (for example, #Fencingmob New York, NY,USA). All participating organizers are kindly requested to follow this procedure. Within 48 hours we will publishone or more summary videos of all #Fencingmob that took place around the world that day.For further information or any question contact the Social Media and Marketing Manager of Italian FencingFederation at: alessandro.noto@federscherma.itI thank you for your attention.Best regards,Giorgio ScarsoJULY 2015 THE SWORD 25

SENIOR INTERNATIONALROUND UPby our Special CorrespondentWe’ve reached the business end of the 2014/15season now with the finale set to be a goodone at the World Championships in Moscow.Here is a final round up of the action at the lastWorld Cups and Grand Prix events in each ofthe six weapon categories.Men’s EpeeThe second Grand Prix on this circuit tookplace in Budapest and it was Estonian fencer,Nikolai Novosjolov who took the title beatingIvan Trevejo (FRA) in the final. BenjaminSteffen (SUI) and Pavel Petra (CZE) secured thebronze medals.It was back to winning ways for the Frenchteam at the Paris World Cup as AlexanderBlaszyk stormed to the gold medal and becamehis countries fifth different winner on thecircuit this season. Gabor Boczko (HUN),Igor Tourchine (RUS) and Paolo Pizzo joinedhim on the podium. France completed a goldmedal double by winning the team event fromGermany and then Russia. Britain’s JamesDavis finished just outside the medals in fifthplace.An incredible sixth different French winnerwas crowned at the Rio Grand Prix asYannick Borel beat Max Heinzer (SUI) in thefinal. Christopher Kneip (GER) and RadoslawZawrotniak (POL) settled for the bronzemedals.Gauthier Grummier (FRA) will head into theEuropean Championships as the world numberone but he is being caught by Enrico Garozzo(ITA) who has overtaken Ulrich Robeiri (FRA)in the ranking list. Heinzer (SUI), Jung (KOR)and Park (KOR) are not too far behind and thenthere’s a 20-point cushion to Pizzo (ITA) inseventh place. France led the team rankingsfrom Korea, Switzerland, Russia and Ukraine.Women’s EpeeSince my last report there have been threemore events on this circuit too, starting withthe Budapest Grand Prix. Shin A. Lam (KOR)took the title there beating Ana Branza (ROU)in the final. The Russians took home both ofthe bronze medals with Tatyana Andryushinaand Tatiana Logunova appearing on thepodium.These fencers then moved on to the World Cupin Johannesburg as another two Russians madethe podium. Yujie Sun (CHN) beat VioletaKolobova (RUS) in the final as Olga Kochneva(RUS) shared the bronze medal position withInjeong Choi (KOR). In the team event Chinabeat Romania to gold as France piped Italy tothe bronze medal.The final major circuit event in this categorywas the Grand Prix in next year’s Olympichost city, Rio de Janiero. Francesca Boscarelli(ITA) surprised a few people in taking the goldmedal, beating another unpredicted finalist,Coraline Vitalis (FRA). Kelley Hurley (USA)and Yiwen Sun (CHN) were the beaten semifinalists.Emese Szasz (HUN) continues to lead theworld rankings with a 19-point gap betweenher and second-placed Ana Branza (ROU).There are then only 31 points separating therest of the top ten – Kirpu (EST), Lam (KOR),Fiamingo (ITA), Shemyakina (UKR), Yujie Sun(CHN), Heidemann (GER), Choi (KOR) andCandassamy (FRA).Men’s FoilThe men’s foil circuit continued since the lastreport with a Grand Prix in Havana. DmitryRigin (RUS) took the title, beating AlexMassialas (USA) in the final. Daniele Garozzo(ITA) and Race Imboden (USA) were the bronzemedallists.Rigin was at it again at the following WorldCup in St. Petersburg, where he beat AndreaCassara (ITA) in the gold medal match. DanieleGarozzo (ITA) made it back-to-back bronzemedals there and was joined on the third stepof the podium by Vincent Simon (FRA). Russiabeat China to the team gold with Italy beatingFrance for third place.The final “major” of the season was theShanghai Grand Prix. 2013 World Champion,Miles Chamley-Watson (USA) won theevent, beating Alexander Choupenitch (CZE)in the final. Erwan Le Pechoux (FRA) andDmitry Zherebchenko (RUS) were the bronzemedallists.Despite not making it further than the roundof 32 since the first Grand Prix of the season,reigning World Champion Alexey Cheremisinov(RUS) sits at the top of the world rankings,27 points clear of Imboden (USA). Rigin’s lateJames Davis in action at the Paris World Cup (photo: Augusto Bizzi)26 THE SWORD JULY 2015

ROUND UPseason performances have moved him up tothird with James Davis (GBR) in fourth. Just15 points separates the following four fencers– Jianfei Ma (CHN), Massialas (USA), Cassara(ITA) and Choupenitch (CZE).Women’s FoilElisa Di Francisca (ITA) began what was to bea stunning end to the season with a victoryat the Grand Prix in Havana. She beat InnaDeriglazova (RUS) in the final with Hee SookJeon (KOR) and Ysaora Thibus (FRA) joiningthem on the podium in bronze medal position.Di Francisca went on to win the followingevent – the World Cup in Tauberbischofsheim– beating team mate and World number one,Arianna Errigo in the final. Valentina Vezzalimade it a hat-trick of medals for the Italianteam with the bronze which she shared withInna Deriglazova (RUS). Despite near totaldominance in the individual event the Italian’slost to Russia in the team final as Korea beatGermany to bronze.The conclusion of this circuit was the GrandPrix in Shanghai and Di Francisca securedher third successive gold medal beatingDeriglazova in the final. Ines Boubakri (TUN)and Alice Volpi (ITA) ended their campaignswith bronze medals.Errigo still leads the World ranking but nowonly by one point from Elisa Di Francisca.There is then a big gap – 76 points – down tothird placed Lee Kiefer (USA) with Boubakri,Vezzali, Deriglazova and Batini not muchfurther behind. Russia lead the team rankingsby twelve points from Italy and then there isover 100 point separating them from the USAand Korea in joint fourth.Men’s SabreThis circuit continued with a Grand Prix inSeoul which Nicolas Limbach (GER) wonbeating Nicolas Rousset (FRA) in the final.Daryl Homer (USA) and Kamil Imbragimov(RUS) secured the bronze medals.World number one, Bongil Gu (KOR) wonthe following event – the Madrid WorldCup – with Ibragimov finishing second. MaxHartung (GER) and Tiberiu Dolniceanu (ROU)went home with the bronze medals. Hungarytook the team title beating Italy in the final.Germany beat China to the bronze medal.The final “major” of the season was theMoscow Grand Prix which Dolniceanu won,beating Matyas Szabo (GER) in the gold medalmatch. Tamas Desci (HUN) and Aron Szilagyi(HUN) were the bronze medallists.Gu (KOR) is 71 points clear at the top of theWorld ranking with Alexey Yakimenko (RUS) insecond. Just twenty points separate him fromDolniceanu, Kim (KOR), Ibragimov and Szilagyi.Germany continues to lead the team rankingsover Korea, Italy, Russia and Hungary.Women’s SabreThe Seoul Grand Prix was the sixth event onthis circuit and Olga Kharlan (UKR) securedthe title with victory over Ibtihaj Muhammad(USA). Sofya Velikaya (RUS) continued herstrong comeback with a bronze medal and shewas joined on the third step of the podium byMariel Zagunis (USA).Velikaya went on to win the next event – theBeijing World Cup – beating Aleksandra Socha(POL) in the final. Kharlan and Zagunis werethe bronze medallists. France won the teamevent beating Ukraine in the final as the USAbeat Russia to the bronze medal.The Moscow Grand Prix was the finalevent in all categories ahead of the WorldChampionships and the event was won by OlgaKharlan who beat Yana Egorian (RUS) and twoother Russians finished in the bronze medalplaces – Velikaya and Ekaterina Dyachenko.Kharlan goes into the zonal and WorldChampionships nearly 100 points up on MarielZagunis with Velikaya a further twenty-fourpoints behind. Dyanchenko, Egorian, Gregorio,Wozniak, Socha, Vougiouka and Kim are afurther 40-plus points behind the leadingthree. The USA lead the team rankingsfollowed by France, Russia, Ukraine, Italy andKorea.Those selected to represent their countryat the World Championships will head toMoscow in July. With more points on offerthere than at any other ranking event andOlympic qualification well under way we willhave a better idea of who we will see in Rionext year at the end of the season. There willno doubt be a couple of surprises to look outfor not least of which are who will make upthe French Men’s Epee squad and both Italianfoil squads. Will Robeiri even get a chanceto defend his World title and will the Italiansplump for selected promising younger foilistsover experienced multiple medal winners? Wewill have to wait and see.Karim BashirT: 07855 252546media@britishfencing.comJULY 2015 THE SWORD 27

By Beatrice FannonROUND UPWHITCHURCH FENCING CLUB’SFIRST INTRA-CLUB CHAMPIONSHIPSWhitchurch Fencing Club heldits first intra-club championshipon Tuesday 28th April, which hasbeen introduced to coincide withits first-year anniversary in its newpremises at Rhiwbina MemorialHall, Cardiff, and the decision torebrand the club as an ‘épée-onlyclub’.The Whitchurch Club Championship is theClub’s latest attempt to improve its serviceto members and consequently make theclub more successful. So far, the club hasimproved coaching provision with the adventof Lyndon Martin as Senior Coach, brought inlower subscription rates, introduced BAFaccreditedProficiency Awards, and launcheda Welsh-closed, Intermediate competition(The Whitchurch Shield). An indicator of thesuccess of such initiatives is that the club hasmore than tripled its membership.Club Secretary Michael Clemitson said:“Although we are a small club, we have animportant function to play in the competitioncalendar in Wales. We are now seeking toimprove our own competitive spirit within theclub itself.”The Whitchurch Club Championship has beenintroduced in order to enable club membersto compete in a friendly atmosphere, but withall the trappings of a normal competition,including Fencing Time, FIE scoring sets andreferees.Steve Poyser, one of the club’s recentlyqualified coaches, commented: “Thecompetition enables social fencers to haveexperience of the application of the rules ofthe game. When you are fencing at club level,the rules are not always adhered to and thiscan give a distorted view of the game. It iseasy to forget that, more often than not, itis through competing that fencers learn therules. Not knowing the rules, however, can initself be a barrier to entering competitions.”The competition was run as a pool unique,fenced to 5 hits/3 minutes, owing to thenumber of entrants and time constraints. Apool unique has the added benefit of ensuringthat fencers remained occupied throughoutthe competition, and that the winner came asmore of a surprise at the end.The Club has purchased a modern, abstractfencing trophy to distinguish it from the cupand shield that it awards at its two WelshClosed competitions, The O’Sullivan Cup(one-hit épée) and the Whitchurch Shield(Intermediate épée). The winner is allowed tokeep the trophy for a year. There were alsomedals and prizes for the top three positions,as well as a prize for the highest-placedbeginner.The competition was well attended by clubmembers, and even included fencers who hadrecently completed a beginners’ course. Thecompetition was a closely fought contest,in which everyone won at least one bout.There were many 4-5 results, which, had theyfallen out differently, would have significantlyaltered the final placements. Krystof Gibbonwas the clear winner with 9 wins. AdrianStoneman and Rupert Nute both scored 7wins, but Adrian just beat Rupert to secondplace with a higher indicator.Tom Bennett, who was awarded a prize forbeing the ‘highest-placed beginner’, sharedhis impressions of his first competition: “Theevening was a fantastic way to experience acompetition environment for the first time,with the added benefit of being in the verysociable environment of a club that meetsevery week. Everyone has been tremendouslywelcoming and patient with the beginners,and really I look forward to my fencing everyweek. The competition night was a greatmaster class too, thanks to being up againstso many experienced fencers in one evening.”Lyndon Martin, the Club’s Senior Coach, iskeen for club members to start competing asearly as possible: “Competing is an integralpart of the sport, but it is often the case thatthere is not much enthusiasm for enteringcompetitions, which is both disappointing forcompetition organisers and bad for the sport ingeneral. Initiatives such as this are importantways of trying to introduce a competitive edgeto the club night. It takes some of the anxietyout of competing, and hopefully will encouragemore club fencers to take the plunge on thecompetition circuit.”Full details and results are available on theClub’s website:“The evening wasa fantastic way toexperience a competitionenvironment for the firsttime, with the addedbenefit of being in thevery sociable environmentof a club that meetsevery week... ”Photograph of the winners (from left to right):Adrian Stoneman (2nd place), Krystof Gibbon (1stplace), Rupert Nute (3rd), Tom Bennett (highestplacedbeginner).Group shot (from left to right): Steve Down, Kristof Gibbon, Jake Tucker, Tom Bennett, Mike Tucker,Chris Tatham, Joe Stoate, Rupert Nute, Liz Gulliver, Adrian Stoneman, and Steve Poyser.28 THE SWORD JULY 2015

REVIEWSREVIEWSCUT & THRUSTSwords remain a powerful symbolof authority and continue to exert afascination long after they have ceasedto have any practical use as weapons.And their mystique has brushed off onfencing which, despite the reality, retainsa glamorous and slightly dangerous image.In Cut & Thrust*, the military historianand fencing coach Martin Dougherty haswritten a clear and well informed guide tothe development of western swordplay.Its chapters impart just the right amountof information without becoming boggeddown in unnecessary detail. They coverthe basic principles of swordsmanship,Roman swords with particular attention tothe gladius, weapons of the early MiddleAges, the medieval longsword, then therapier, smallsword, broadsword and othercutting weapons, finishing with an outlineof fencing in the modern era. Fifty-onesmall colour photographs show re-enactorsdemonstrating specific moves with variousweapons.Overall, an excellent introduction to thedifferent types of sword used in Europeover the past 2000 years, let down onlyby a poorly researched section on theorigins of foil in which the author repeatsthe myth that the foil was developed as atraining weapon for the smallsword. Sincebuttoned smallsword blades were availablefor practice, the reason for the introductionSidney Sabre VideosSydney Sabre was founded in December2011 by a small group of fencers, clubadministrators and friends to create thefirst dedicated training facility for sabre inAustralia. From time-to-time they produceinteresting sabre videos on YouTube. Acouple of recent examples follow which arewell worth viewing:Sabre Refereeing 2015 (a littleunder 7 minutes)This is an update on sabre refereeing for the2015 season, the main premise being that,at its heart, sabre refereeing is an exercisein pattern recognition. What follows areexamples of typical challenge calls for variousattacks:1. Simultaneous Attacks.2. Attack/Counter Attack.3. Preparation: Attack.4. Attack no/ Attack.5. Compound Attack.of a new sporting weapon with artificialconventions remains to this day a matter ofdebate. The book also has a curious cover,with an illustration of two WWI foilists inmilitary uniform bedecked with medals; whatthat has to do with the history of swords isunclear.Malcolm Fare* Cut & Thrust – European Swords andSwordsmanship, Martin J Dougherty,Amberley Publishing, £17.99.The basic principles outlined are:1. Make calls based on your initialinterpretation.2. Make them fast.3. Don’t over think.Their training suggestions:1. Watch current FIE tournaments.2. Referee to the pattern you see there.3. Video and review your own calls.You can find the video here:If you enjoy watching these, you might alsolike:Nicholas Limbach: Epic SabreCompilation (a little over 3minutes)You can find the video here:If any of our readers wish to write reviewsof these, or similar video clips, then pleaseforward your contributions to the Editor.JULY 2015 THE SWORD 29

EMAIL TO THE EDITOREmail tothe EditorDear British Fencing,Thank you very much for the latest The Sword. My son John-Paul loves receiving it. However, as avid a fencer as he is, he is bored by themagazine at the moment. It only seems to mention those fencers of Cadet Level and above. It would be nice if there were some mentionof the younger fencers, i.e. anything under 13. That way, the younger generation, of which many are enthusiastic and dedicated fencers,would be more apt to pick it up. They would then be able to follow their role models, see what is in store for them, learn, etc. I have lookedat American Fencing Magazine, and they often mention younger fencers. They don’t give those many pages, but they are mentioned. Theyare asked to write articles, “postcards,”etc.I realise your time is limited, but I am sure if a request for articles from coaches, parents, or fencers went out, you might get a paragraphor two!Many thanks again.Yours sincerely,Merrill ShawResponse from British Fencing:Dear Merrill,I am delighted to hear that your son loves receiving The Sword and that he is an avid fencer. Sorry if the magazine bores him a bitat the moment. One of the problems we have in producing The Sword is that we are largely constrained by the contributions we receivefor publication. If we had a regular supply of ‘under 13’ type articles and photographs, I expect that there would be no problem in includingthem in the mix. Perhaps your son would like to start things off by send us a short piece for publication; telling us where he fences, theschool he attends, why he likes fencing, etc. Photographs would be helpful.I would also like to take this opportunity to request articles and photographs generally from coaches, parents and young fencers,with particular relevance for the ‘under 13’ age group.Hope this helps.Kind regards,Ed Rogers (Editor).I Love Fencingby John-Paul Shaw (Age 11)In 2008 I started fencing because it was oneof the most popular extras at my school,Saint Ronan’s. As I used to play withknights, I also wanted to see and feel whatfighting with a sword was like, but not withblood and guts. Our coach, Alex Brentnall(MX), made it fun because we didn’t have totake it too seriously and we got to whackpeople with foam sabres.Two years later I started using metal swordsand I started to put more effort in. My coachnow was Phil Shepherd-Foster (MX) and Ialso went to the weekly MX fencing club.www.mxfencing.org.ukI started to compete in 2012. When I firstwalked through the doors I still rememberwondering what my competitors would belike. Some I knew from the club, but manyI didn’t. It was a huge thrill and since thenI have competed in Leon Pauls around thecountry. I also fence for my school, SaintRonan’s, Tongswood Fencing, against otherschools in the area. One of the best parts ofcompeting locally and at the LPJS is meetingmy friends from various clubs all overBritain. I have fun seeing them all again, butthe competition starts when I go onto thepiste.Recently I have started to go to Europe,to the Challenge Wratislavia, supportedby Megan Beddoe (MX), to experiencewhat sparring is like at an internationallevel. What an incredible event! As I amhalf American I also went to train at theManhattan Fencing Club in New York. Ithink it is interesting to see the differentstyles of fencing from around the world. Ilove fencing because it is fun and can beadventure!Sam Cox, Truro Fencing, (left) and John-PaulShaw, MX - friends and competitors.30 THE SWORD JULY 2015

OBITUARIESObituariesSharikov in action against Lee (USA). (Photo:Timacheff)SERGEI SHARIKOV(1974-2015)It is with great sadness that British Fencinghas received the following letter from theEuropean Fencing Confederation (7 June 2015):Dear Member Federations,Last night we got sad news after the first twofinals here in Montreux. Sergei Sharikov, onlya few days before he could celebrate his 41stbirthday, died in a car accident in Moscow.The three times Olympian in Atlanta, Sydneyand Athens, two time Olympic champion, oneof the best sabre fencers in the world andlately with young Russian fencers at EuropeanChampionships, who started himself at the ageof 12 with fencing, has a brilliant record in thesport of fencing.In 1994 he won his first gold medal as junior inMexico City. With the Russian team he took thegold medal at the senior world championships2001 in Nimes, 2002 in Lisbon and 2003 inHavana. European results completed his medaltally with a gold medal in Madeira and silverin Moscow. Also with his team he won gold inBARRY FLOOD(1935-2015)North East Region England Fencing would liketo pass on their sincerest condolences to thefamily of Barry Flood, who died on Wednesday.Barry was instrumental in the developmentof fencing in the North East by establishingan élite training centre based at DurhamUniversity and bringing in Olympic head coachLaszlo Jakab from Hungary in 1996. Salle2001 in Koblenz, 2002 in Moscow, and 2004 inCopenhagen.Besides these outstanding results he alsoparticipated at the Universiade and theMaccabiah Games where other medalsfollowed.We lost too early a great fencer and respectedpersonality.The European Fencing Confederation sendsits deepest sympathy and condolences to hisfamily and to the Fencing Federation of Russia.Frantisek Janda, PresidentJames Williams, who knew him, commentsas follows:‘Well the world of fencing has lost a true great.Sergei Sharikov or Charikov as he was knownto me was a true giant of his generation. I hadthe pleasure, well some would call it that! tocross swords with him on many occasions.Probably the most notable being at theAtlanta Olympics in 1996 where he took theindividual silver. It is no secret that our matchwas probably one of the most controversialof those games. Independent observers evennow suggest I was harshly judged. Had therebeen video replay the result may have beenquite different, but we will never know. Thething was I never held the result of that fightagainst Sergei. We both knew these things canhappen in sport. We were both professionalathletes doing our jobs and on that day he didhis. In later years we used to joke about theresult when we saw each other. The last timebeing at the 2013 World Championships inBudapest, when we chatted about the “goodold days”.Jakab was a powerhouse of sabre fencing inthe late 90’s and 2000’s with National sabrechampions in individual or teams for over 6years!He co-ordinated the FIE Coup de NordSatellite competitions as well as the sabreselection circuit U20 event at Gateshead.The thing is most people who did not knowhim may have thought him to be reserved andaloof. Those of us fortunate enough to beable to spend time socialising with him saw adifferent Sharikov. Put him on the piste witha sword in his hand and a mission to do andhe would be devastating. His ability to defendwith distance was legendary. Had he not beenin the same cohort of Russian sabre athletessuch as the great Kirienko and Pozdiankov hewould have won many more titles, I am sure ofthat. Off the piste in the locker room howeverhe was kind, thoughtful and very funny.My final reflections perhaps sum up thequality of the man. We had both just beenknocked out in the last 16 of the 2002 WorldChampionships in Lisbon, Portugal. I waswhingeing about some decision or the other(lost to Luigi Tarantino who took bronze).Sergei just smiled at me and said “James,today was not your day or mine. We mustwork harder and it will be ours next time”.Simple words, straight to the point. He wassharing his fencing philosophy, which onlydawned on me some time later. The learningwe get from losing, can, if taken and used inthe right way, spur us to bigger and betterthings!People often use the cliché “gone before theirtime” when talking about people who aretaken at a young age. In this case at the ageof 40, with so much more to give to our sport,I say Sergei Sharikov has gone before his timeand will be missed by all who knew him.’British Fencing also wishes to send it deepestcondolences to his family and to the FencingFederation of Russia.Our thoughts are with his wife Lorna and sonDominic. (Posted 12 June 2015)British Fencing also wishes to express itssincerest condolences to Barry’s family. He wasa well-known character to those in the fencingcommunity, especially in North East of England.JULY 2015 THE SWORD 31

RESULTSYOUTH DOMESTICBRITISH U23 SABRE CHAMPIONSHIPS, 8 MARCHMEN’S1. BOTELER, Harry TRURO2. VAN HOFFELEN, Raphael CAMDEN3. GANDER-COMPTON, Jacob BRENTWOOD3. SAUNDERS, Brynmor TRUROWOMEN’S1. SOSNOWSKA, Izabela PHOENIX FENCING CLUB2. CORBY, Jessica SALLE OSSIAN3. CARSON, Victoria PDFA3. HALLIWELL, Chloe SHAKESPEARES SWORDSBRITISH U23 EPEE CHAMPIONSHIPS, 14-15 MARCHMEN’S1. WORMAN, Craig MILLFIELD2. PECK, Harry BRIXTON3. FREWIN, James REDHILL & REIGATE3. STEED, Oliver SKIPTONWOMEN’S1. GUNDRY, Jessica TRURO2. TURLEY, Alix HEREFORD3. BRADLEY, Ellen MILLFIELD3. RADFORD, Amy MALVERNBRITISH U23 FOIL CHAMPIONSHIPS, 14-15 MARCHMEN’S1. BROSNAN, James SALLE PAUL2. SCHLINDWEIN, Alex CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY3. BATES, Ben BATH SWORD3. MINOTT, Kamal NEWHAM SWORDSWOMEN’S1. DICKSON, Chloe EDINBURGH FENCING CLUB2. CLARKE, Jade EXETER CITY FENCING CLUB3. BEARDMORE, Kate FIGHTING FIT FENCING3. CAMPBELL, Alice NEWHAM SWORDSBSC U20 EPEE 21-22 MARCHBOYS1. DICKINSON, MATTHEW Lazlos2. MORRIS, GEORGE Stockport3. STEED, OLIVER Skipton3. HOFFMAN, TOM DingwallGIRLS1. GUNDRY, JESSICA Truro2. TURLEY, ALIX Hereford3. BRADLEY, ELLEN Milfield3. PHILBIN, CAITLIN Carnoustie High SchoolELITE EPEE JUNIOR SERIES, SURREY, 28 MARCHUNDER 11 BOYS1. Farnsworth, Muhammed DREAM2. Brooke, Alec KNIGH3. Taiwo-Williams, Louis 5 BOR3. Trotzig-Ruddick, Noah LONDOUNDER 11 GIRLS1. Shahenshah, Carlotta KNIGH2. Loo, Eleanor KNIGH3. Potter, Crinan CHELS3. Golden, Eve TEAMUNDER 13 BOYS1. Foulsham, Jacob R&REC2. May, Toby TEAM3. Vlieghe, Sevan KNIGH3. Ashforth, Myles CADSUNDER 13 GIRLS1. Lever, Rachael OPS E2. Taylor, Eleanor OPS E3. Kalimtgis, Sophia KNIGH3. Herrling, Messina KNIGHUNDER 16 BOYS1. Roach, Tarriq WHITG2. Paul, Dominic STOCK3. East, Will KRFC3. Begley-Jones, Murray ST GEUNDER 16 GIRLS1. Sheffield, Laura BRIXT2. Powell, Alexandra3. Haynes, Georgia HARRO3. Robertson, Havana CHELSNI JUNIOR FOIL SERIES ROUND 5, 28 MARCHU10 MIXED1. TURKIEWICZ, Szymon FLO2. CHEKHOUSKI, Daniel LISBURN GLADIATORS3. COCHRANE, Ruby FLO3. MAGEE, Jessica PEMBROKEU12 GIRLS1. VAUGHAN, Anna SULLIVAN UPPER2. WILLIAMS, Katie Rose HUNTERHOUSE3. LEE, Dasha PEMBROKEU12 BOYS1. SOSA SMATRAL, Claudio PEMBROKE2. O’CONNELL, Zak PEMBROKE3. MORIARTY-SMYJames PEMBROKE4. RITCHIE, Thomas GROSVENORU14 GIRLS1. VELMA, Emilia PEMBROKE2. SHAW, Sarah HUNTERHOUSE3. MCPHERSON, Phoebe SULLIVAN UPPER3. STANLEY, Zoe HUNTERHOUSEU14 BOYS1. COCKBURN, Robbie GROSVENOR2. MCMULLAN, Finn BELFAST3. LUNEY, Rowan RBAI3. RYAN, Joshua PEMBROKEU16 GIRLS1. MAGINN, Emily SULLIVAN UPPER2. O’NEILL, Iona SULLIVAN UPPER3. REID, Ella SULLIVAN UPPER3. SMYTH, Rachel SULLIVAN UPPERU16 BOYS1. WALLACE, Luke GROSVENOR2. GIRVIN, William GROSVENOR3. DUFFIN-MURRA, Aneurin GROSVENOR3. SLOAN, Benjamin RBAIBRITISH YOUTH CHAMPIONSHIPS U10 EPEE, 12 APRILBOYS1. Brooke, Alec KNI2. Kew, Liam R&R3. Ramsey, Galeh TRU3. Jameson, Orlando KNIGIRLS1. Loo, Eleanor KNI2. Miles, Martha PLY3. O’Neill, Grace DAC3. Grigg, Beatrice PACKBRITISH YOUTH CHAMPIONSHIPS U10 SABRE, 26 APRILBOYS1. COX, Samuel TRURO2. CAMERON, Magnus MOULSFORD3. CRABTREE, Oliver SHAKEPEARE’S SWORDS3. EVANS-REEVES, Sebastian RUSSELLGIRLS1. CRAZE, Lexie TRURO2. BRIERLEY, Beth MARSHALL3. JANE, Melissa TRURO3. LINDSAY, Lucie COBRANI JUNIOR FOIL SERIES ROUND 6, 26 APRILU10 MIXED1. TURKIEWICZ, Szymon FLO2. COCHRANE, Ruby FLO3. CHEKHOUSKI, Daniel Lisburn Gladiators4. MAGEE, Jessica PembrokeU12 GIRLS1. VAUGHAN, Anna Sullivan Upper2. LEE, Dasha Pembroke3. WILLIAMS, Katie Rose Hunter HouseU12 BOYS1. O’CONNELL, Zak Pembroke2. SOSA SMATRAL, Claudio Pembroke3. RITCHIE, Thomas Grosvenor3. SANVITO, Matteo PembrokeU14 GIRLS1. Velma, Emelia Pembroke2. McGinnity, Orla Grosvenor3. Kavanagh-Dic, Lucy Lisburn Gladiators3. McPhearson, Phoebe Sullivan UpperU14 BOYS1. COCKBURN, Robbie Grosvenor2. SIGURDSSON, Daniel Grosvenor3. CONNERY, Jonathan Grosvenor3. MCMULLAN, Finn BelfastU16 GIRLS1. Reid, Ella Sullivan Upper2. O’Neill, Iona Sullivan Upper3. Smyth, Rachel Sullivan UpperU16 BOYS1. Verdon, Paul Grosvenor2. Duffin-Murray, Aneurin RBAI3. Girvin, William Grosvenor3. Wallace, Luke GrosvenorBritish Youth Championships, 2-4 MayU12 BOYS EPEE1. GRIMSHAW, Nicholas NORTH WEST2. BERRY, Tobias LONDON3. HARPER, Justin SOUTH EAST3. HOLCROFT, Oliver WEST MIDLANDSU12 GIRLS EPEE1. KRZYZANIAK, Patrycja LONDON2. KALIMTGIS, Sophia LONDON3. BLACK, Abagael SOUTH WEST3. HADALIN, Henriette Solange EASTERNU14 BOYS EPEE1. ANDREWS, Benjamin SOUTH WEST2. ROACH, Tarriq LONDON3. FITTON, Rowan GUERNSEY3. MASON, Luke SOUTH WESTU14 GIRLS EPEE1. HENDERSON-ROE, Maia EASTERN2. GRANVILLE, Bronwen SOUTH WEST3. LOUIS, Avery LONDON3. OIEN, Jacqueline LONDONU16 BOYS EPEE1. DICKINSON, Matthew NORTH EAST2. RUSSELL, James Euan SOUTHERN3. BELOT, Antoine LONDON3. HELLINGS, Josh SOUTH WESTU16 GIRLS EPEE1. SIMMS-LYMN, Tia SOUTH WEST2. SHEFFIELD, Laura LONDON3. DE BOISGELIN, Douce LONDON3. HARDIE, Heloise SOUTHERNU18 BOYS EPEE1. JORDAN, Owen EAST MIDLANDS2. DOBIE, Nick SOUTHERN3. ODGERS, James SOUTH EAST3. SCHNEIDER, Benjamin SOUTHERNU18 GIRLS EPEE1. LAWSON, Danielle WEST MIDLANDS2. HIDE, Victoria NORTH EAST3. BRYSON, Kerenza SOUTH WEST3. SHEEHAN, Zoe SOUTHERNU12 BOYS FOIL1. STRANGE, Oliver LONDON2. DANIEL, Dylan EASTERN3. KLOSS, James WALES3. RHYS POLLITT, RafaelU12 GIRLS FOIL1. HADALIN, Henriette Solange EASTERN2. KENISTON-COOPER, Isabella SOUTH WEST3. HYDE, Bronwen NORTH WEST3. QUELCH, Abigail SOUTHERN32 THE SWORD JULY 2015

RESULTSU14 BOYS FOIL1. GILL, Alessandro LONDON2. GAUTAM, Brij LONDON3. COCKBURN, Robbie NORTHERN IRELAND3. SUHA, Adam NORTH WESTU14 GIRLS FOIL1. HOME, Amy NORTH WEST2. LUKAITE, Emilija EASTERN3. GRANVILLE, Bronwen SOUTH WEST3. NEWTON-HUGHES, Phoebe NORTH WESTU16 BOYS FOIL1. PALLIER, Sebastian EASTERN2. ASHBY, Douggie LONDON3. JONES, Alexander NORTH WEST3. SACCHI-WILSON, Sebastian SOUTHERNU16 GIRLS FOIL1. GILL, Isabella LONDON2. CAMPBELL, Alice EASTERN3. CAMPBELL, Yasmin SOUTHERN3. PORTER, Jasmine EASTERNU18 BOYS FOIL1. DOHERTY, Nathan YORKSHIRE2. BATES, Ben SOUTH WEST3. MINNOTT, Kamal EASTERN3. NICHOLAS, Kameron SOUTHERNU18 GIRLS FOIL1. PERETTI, Costanza SOUTH WEST2. BEARDMORE, Kate SOUTHERN3. BRUNNSTORM, Ebba SOUTHERN3. DMOCHOWSKA, Isabella SOUTHERNU12 BOYS SABRE1. BEDFORD, Louis WEST MIDLANDS2. SALE, Cormac NORTH WEST3. ALDGATE, Daniel NORTH WEST3. MCLELLAN, Rory SCOTLAND CENTRALU12 GIRLS SABRE1. JENKINS, Gracie WALES2. LIU, Zara NORTH WEST3. BAYRAMOVA, Varvara EAST MIDLANDS3. BRIERLEY, Elle NORTH WESTU14 BOYS SABRE1. HAYNES, Luke SOUTH WEST2. ALVARES-PERES, Mark SCOTLAND CENTRAL3. BOORNE, Samuel SOUTH WEST3. DUNN, Gabriel NORTH WESTU14 GIRLS SABRE1. FASHOKUN, Maia SOUTH WEST2. YANG, Lumeng LONDON3. O’REILLY, Hannah SOUTH EAST3. WOOD, Molly SOUTH WESTU16 BOYS SABRE1. HOLDSWORTH, Bertie SOUTH WEST2. POCKNELL, Joe WEST MIDLANDS3. HALLIWELL, Barnaby WEST MIDLANDS3. HAMILTON, Zachary WEST MIDLANDSU16 GIRLS SABRE1. POTTER, Sophia WEST MIDLANDS2. MOFFAT, Lizzie WEST MIDLANDS3. BRAY, Jenna SOUTH WEST3. HASLEGRAVE, Phoebe WEST MIDLANDSU18 BOYS SABRE1. WATT, Caspian WEST MIDLANDS2. DACEY, Simon SOUTH EAST3. WALWYN, Nathanael JERSEY3. WILSON, Benjamin WEST MIDLANDSU18 GIRLS SABRE1. GLADDISH, Laura SOUTH EAST2. HALLIWELL, Chloe WEST MIDLANDS3. BLACK, Gabrielle LONDON3. DAVIS, Alexandra SOUTH WESTBRITISH YOUTH CHAMPIONSHIPS U10 FOIL, 17 MAYBOYS1. KISS, Dominic NORTH WEST2. ELIS, Eurig EASTERN3. COOK, Jamie SCOTLAND3. DE ROBERT HAUTQUERE, Francois SOUTH EASTGIRLS1. STUTCHBURY, Carolina SOUTH EAST2. SAMPSON, Verity WEST MIDLANDS3. QUILLOT, Camille LONDON3. TSANG, Sophie LONDONSENIOR DOMESTICLEON PAUL WOMEN’S FOIL OPEN, 7 MARCH1. COOK, Catherine N/A2. DICKSON, Chloe EDINBURGH FENCING CLUB3. BEARDMORE, Kate FIGHTING FIT FENCING3. SCHOFIELD, Jennifer THE UNIVERSITY OFMANCHESTERINVICTA OPEN, 21-22 MARCHMEN’S EPEE1. GROVER, Elliott HAVERSTOCK2. ROCKS, Christopher SHETLAND3. GARDNER, Aaron CRAWLEY3. NICHOLLS, Taran REDHILL & REIGATEWOMEN’S EPEE1. HENSON, Julie NORFOLK2. HULL, Nicola DREAM3. BALINT, Anna ST ANDREWS UNI3. JARROLD, Heather COLCHESTERMEN’S FOIL1. OSTACCHINI, Glen SALLE BOSTON2. BROSNAN, James SALLE PAUL3. ANTHEUNIS, Eli DE HALLEBARDIERS3. BARWELL, Peter ZFWWOMEN’S FOIL1. SEGALL, Grace OXFORD UNIVERSITY2. LEWANDOWSKA, Magdalena COLCHESTER3. COATES, Tracey HUNTINGDONSHIRE3. CSERNY, Erika CENTRAL LONDON FENCINGCLUBMEN’S SABRE1. OAKES, Mark CAMDEN2. GANDER-COMPTON, Jacob BRENTWOOD SCHOOL FENCINGCLUB3. DONALD, Simon BOSTON3. THORLEY, Christian CITYWOMEN’S SABRE1. CARSON, Victoria2. WRIGHT, Lucy SEACOURT3. ELYS, Laycy CRAWLEY3. VIKEN, KaterinaLIVERPOOL OPEN, 21-22 MARCHMEN’S EPEE1. ATANASOV, Atanas Liverpool Fencing Club2. BARKER, Christopher Stockport3. SHEPHERD, Billy Skipton Fencing Club3. TAYLOR, Chris Liverpool Fencing ClubWOMEN’S EPEE1. AKERS, Eleanor Glasgow West End2. DVURENCENSKA, Ksenia Liverpool University3. MARSTON, Holly Romiley3. JUHASZ, Vera U/aMEN’S FOIL1. CORLETT, Thomas Salle Kiss2. PHILLIPS-LANGLEY, Thomas Northwich3. GREENHALGH, Sam Leeds University3. SHEPHERD, Benjamin Bristol FcWOMEN’S FOIL1. HOME, Amy Salle Kiss2. NEWTON-HUGHES, Phoebe Marshall3. JONES, Rachel Salle Kiss3. MARTINEZ-LAMBERT, Ava Leeds UniMEN’S SABRE1. MITCHELL-GOUGH, Warick Wrekin Sword2. COLEMAN, Alex Leeds Uni3. JACOB, Michael Birmingham Fencing Club3. AU, Jordan Leeds UniWOMEN’S SABRE1. LABORDE, India Leeds Uni2. GRANT, Adrianne Liverpool University3. OAKES, Charlotte Wrekin Sword3. OSBORNE, Sarah Lancaster Uni2ND BRITISH SABRE OPEN, 28 MARCHMEN1. SLANKARD, Kirk CITY2. MARSHALL, Stuart MARSHALL FENCING3. GANDER-COMPTON, Jacob BRENTWOOD3. VAN HOFFELEN, Raphael CAMDENWOMEN1. HUTCHISON, Jo CAMDEN2. DIXON, Harriet OXFORD UNIVERSITY3. NG, Liz LEON PAUL SABRE ACADEMY3. ROBINSON, Zoe CAMDENELITE EPEE MEN’S SPRING OPEN, 29 MARCH1. Nichols, Harrison R&REC2. Henderson, Matt LPE3. Hay, Chris EXETE3. Bombrini, Andrea HAVERABERDEEN OPEN, 28-29 MARCHMEN’S EPEE1. FIRTH, Jamie ABERCFC2. TANNOCK, Neill ABERCFC3. ARBELET, Alexandre SALLH3. BARTOSZEK, Artur UNIVOAWOMEN’S EPEE1. GRANT, Fiona ABERCFC2. KNOWLES, Katie ABERCFC3. AKERET, Sabina ABERCFC3. HORN, Tara ABERCFCMEN’S FOIL1. COOK, Keith SALLH2. FITZGERALD, Jamie U/A3. BROUGHTON, Charlie SALLH3. JOHNSTON, Alastair SALLHWOMEN’S FOIL1. DICKSON, Chloe EDINFC2. LANZA, Marianna UNIVOSAFC3. CAMPBELL, Chloe UNIVOSFC3. SHEK, Summer DUNDCFCMEN’S SABRE1. WILLIAMSON, Andrew EDINFC2. MCLELLAN, Sam SALLO3. LLEWELLYN, Ethan SALLO3. COOK, Keith SALLHWOMEN’S SABRE1. CORBY, Jessica SALLO2. SANCROFT, Jennifer SALLR3. GUARINO, Michelle ABERCFC3. DAYKIN, Kate SALLOBELFAST OPEN, 28-29 MARCHMEN’S EPEE1. BURNSIDE, David FOYLE FENCING2. BURNSIDE, Jonathan FOYLE FENCING3. KULKA, Dawid PEMBROKE3. SLATER, Philip LISBURN GLADIATORSWOMEN’S EPEE1. HALDANE, Fiona GROSVENOR2. MCCARTHY, Sally PENTATHLON IRELAND3. JOHNSTON, Kerrie PLYMOUTH FC3. SLATER, Charlotte LISBURN GLADIATORSMEN’S FOIL1. BROWN, Stephen QUB2. SLATER, Philip LISBURN GLADIATORS3. BURNSIDE, Jonathan FOYLE FENCING3. HOULDSWORTH, Alistair BELFAST FENCINGJULY 2015 THE SWORD 33

RESULTSWOMEN’S FOIL1. BEATTIE, Keziah BELFAST FENCING2. TAYLOR, Lucy GROSVENOR3. MAGINN, Emily SULLIVAN3. SLATER, Charlotte LISBURN GLADIATORSMEN’S SABRE1. NICHOLL, James FOYLE FENCING2. CONNOLLY, David FOYLE FENCING3. MURRAY, Brian FOYLE FENCING3. SLATER, Laurence LISBURN GLADIATORSWOMEN’S SABRE1. BALL, Mary NA2. TAYLOR, Beth GROSVENOR3. MARSHALL, Kathryn FOYLE FENCING3. MONTGOMERY-SHIELDS, Deanna LISBURN GLADIATORSGLASGOW OPEN, 11-12 APRILMEN’S EPEE1. HOFFMANN, Tom DINGWALL FENCING CLUB2. LAUCHLAN, Mark WALLACE FA3. GORDON, Adam SALLE HOLYROOD3. HIGH, Rory UNIVERSITY OF ABERDEENWOMEN’S EPEE1. BALINT, Anna ST ANDREWS UNIVERSITYFENCING CLUB2. DE SAINTE CROIX, Mhairi DUNDEE UNIVERSITY3. BISSETT, Christiana BELLAHOUSTON FC3. GIFFORD, Mhairi SHETLAND FCMEN’S FOIL1. LEGKOVSKY, Mark EDINBURGH UNIVERSITY2. ARBELET, Alexandre SALLE HOLYROOD3. BROUGHTON, Charlie SALLE HOLYROOD3. OJEDA, Moises UNIVERSITY OF GLASGOWWOMEN’S FOIL1. DE SAINTE CROIX, Mhairi WALLACE FA2. LANZA, Marianna ST ANDREWS UNIVERSITYFENCING CLUB3. DICKSON, Chloe EDINBURGH FC3. MCLAUGHLIN, Mhairi SALLE HOLYROODMEN’S SABRE1. ALVARES-PERES, Mark SALLE OSSIAN2. MANSON, Ross WALLACE FA3. LLEWELLYN, Ethan SALLE OSSIAN3. POTTER, James UNIVERSITY OF LEICESTERWOMEN’S SABRE1. CORBY, Jessica SALLE OSSIAN2. DAYKIN, Kate SALLE OSSIAN3. CARSON, Victoria SALLE OSSIAN3. RUDENOKA, Kristina UNIVERSITY OF ABERDEENBRIGHTON OPEN, 11-12 APRILMEN’S EPEE1. BEDANI- SALLE GADASKI, Vittorio2. WEEDON- ARMY, Max3. MILLER- EASTBOURNE, William3. RUSSELL-SURREY SWORDS, JamesWOMEN’S EPEE1. ONIYE, Marg HAVERSTOCK2. HULL, Nicola DREAM FENCING CLUB3. BEADLE, Charlotte CHICHESTER3. SNELLIN, Holly GRAVESHAMMEN’S FOIL1. BROSNAN, James SALLE PAUL2. PRICE, William SAXONS3. DEAMER, Luke CRAWLEY SWORD3. KASTNER, Phillip CYRANOWOMEN’S FOIL1. FAIRMAN, Charlotte CLUB ESCRIME WINCHESTER2. HYMAN, Amy SALLE BOSTON3. CSERNY, Erika CENTRAL LONDON FENCINGCLUB3. MIKHALEVA, Oxana SAXONMEN’S SABRE1. WIDE, Dan UNIVERSITY OF SURREY2. REES-GILDEA, Fergus UNIVERSITY OF SUSSEX3. HARRIS, Stuart MX FENCING3. LUCAS, David SWINDONWOMEN’S SABRE1. VIKEN, Katrine CITY2. ELYS, Laycy PEGASUS ESCRINE3. FAYE, Laura CRAWLEY SWORD3. HOOPER, Chloe ROYAL HOLLOWAYUHLMANN TROPHY, 25-26 APRILMEN’S EPEE1. CAFARO, Jack2. BULLWARD, Alistair3. CHRISTIE, Edward3. COOPER, MatthewWOMEN’S EPEE1. LANDAHL, Donna2. DUXON, Emma3. HEAPS, Jasmine3. PARTRIDGE, AilsaMEN’S FOIL1. WISNIEWSKI, Rafal TOUCHE TOWCESTER2. POWELL, Matthew BIRMINGHAM3. CORLETT, Tom SALLE KISS3. LENNON, Christopher CARDIFF UNIVERSITYWOMEN’S FOIL1. NEWTON-HUGHES, Phoebe BUCCANEERS/MARSHALL2. REGNART-BUTLER, Eleanor WREXHAM3. LEWIS, Hilary ASHTON SALLE JONES3. SCHOFIELD, Jennifer UNIVERSITY OF MANCHESTERMEN’S SABRE1. MARSHALL, Stuart2. EDWARDS, James3. COOPER, Sam3. MOISEJEVS, IljaWOMEN’S SABRE1. RUFF, Alison LEEDS2. EE, Madeline LEEDS UNIVERSITY FENCINGCLUB3. O’ DONOVAN, Aisling STRATFORD FENCING3. STRIHA, Alina LEEDS UNIVERSITY FENCINGCLUBHAMPSHIRE OPEN, 9-10 MAYMEN’S EPEE1. Schneider, Benjamin Abingdon2. Maynard, Calum Egham3. Dobie, Nick Swindon3. Sallons, Alexander Sussex UniWOMEN’S EPEE1. Hillier, Verity Reading FC2. Thouless, Helen Streatham3. Morris, Jenny Portsmouth & Southsea3. Carter, Rachel WimbledonMEN’S FOIL1. De Lange, Kieran Salle Oxon2. Jolley, Isaac Chichester FC3. Page, James Newham Sword3. Valetti, Luca SaxonWOMEN’S FOIL1. Barlow, Nikki Army2. Cserny, Erika Central London3. Dell’Aquila, Lorenza Cobham3. Black, Mirren CobhamMEN’S SABRE1. Czinkota, Zsolt Wellington Sword2. Pope, Steve Camden3. Nickel, Joe Camden3. Williams, Nick Portsmouth uniWOMEN’S SABRE1. Wright, Luce Seacourt2. Narey, Michelle Bath Sword3. Russen, Tracy Stowmarket3. Faye, Laura Crawley SwordLIVERPOOL UNIVERSITY OPEN, 9-10 MAYMEN’S EPEE1. Taylor, Chris Liverpool Fencing Club2. Heaps, Chris Lancashire Sword3. Paul, Dominic Stockport3. Winter, Andrew EdinburghWOMEN’S EPEE1. Heaps, Jasmine Lancashire Sword2. Juhasz, Vera Unattached (or unknown)3. Dvurecenska, Ksenia Liverpool University3. Landahl, Donna Four of ClubsMEN’S FOIL1. Wisniewski, Rafal AZS AWF Poznan2. Phillips Langley, Thomas Northwich3. Powell, Matt Birmingham3. Shephard, Ben Leicester UniversityWOMEN’S FOIL1. Archer, Kati West Lancashire2. Fogl, Claudia Birmingham3. Griffiths, Jenna Radcliffe Sword Club3. Brown, Abigail Northampton Fencing ClubMEN’S SABRE1. Edwards, James Marshall2. Thornley, Andrew Marshall3. Turner, Craig Leicester University3. Tully, Jacob MarshallWOMEN’S SABRE1. Haslegrave, Pheobe Wrekin Sword2. Dunn, Olivia Marshall3. Garland, Angela Leicester University3. Grant, Adrianne Liverpool UniversityBIRMINGHAM INTERNATIONALMEN EPEE1. EDWARDS, Tom REDHILL & REIGATE2. KAZIK, Tomas SUTTON COLDFIELD F3. BURKHALTER, Marc OXFORD UNIVERSITY3. COOPER, Matthew WINGERWORTHWOMEN’S EPEE1. SMITH, Katrina TRURO2. LAWRENCE, Hannah WINGERWORTH FC3. FRENCH, Kate PENTATHLON GB3. PRENTICE, Freyja PENTATHLON GBMEN’S FOIL1. COOK, Keith SALLE HOLYROOD2, ROSOWSK, Husayn SUSSEX HOUSE3. BROSNAN, James SALLE PAUL3. DELANY, Pascal UNIVERSITY OF BIRMWOMEN’S FOIL1. DICKSON, Chloe EDINBURGH FC2. COOK, Catherine u/a 13. CLARKE, Ruth EDINBURGH FC3. MULLINS, Philippa SALLE BOSTONMEN’S SABRE1. MOTTERSHEAD, Tom ROMILY2. SAUNDERS, Brynmor TRURO3. ROCKS, Stephen SHETLAND FC3. VONDEE, Morgan CITY FCWOMEN’S SABRE1. MATYAS, Szabina Judit SALLE DUBLIN2. GUARINO, Michelle ABERDEEN CITY3. LOPEZ-COLCLOUGH, Chloe ABERDEEN CITY3. RUAUX, Emily RIVINGTON PARKSENIOR INTERNATIONALCOLE CUP SATELLITE WOMEN’S SABRE, 25 APRIL1. KEMPE, Katherine GBR2. GRENCH, Eileen PAN3. HRAMOVA, Olga A. BUL3. LEE, Ann Huimin SINCOLE CUP SATELLITE WOMEN’S EPEE, 26 APRIL1. SHIMOOKAWA, Ayaka JPN2. CHANG, Caitlin JAM3. HUGAS-MALLORQUI, Maria GER3. SMITH, Katrina GBRCOLE CUP SATELLITE MEN’S SABRE, 25 APRIL1. ANSTETT, Vincent FRA2. HONEYBONE, James GBR3. CRUTCHETT, Alexander GBR3. GANDER COMPTON, Jacob GBR34 THE SWORD JULY 2015

RESULTSVETERANS DOMESTICBVF CHAMPIONSHIPS, 6-8 MARCHMEN’S EPEE1. HOWSER, Chris Category 1 Medal2. DOMEK, Stephen3. FANCOURT, Nigel Category 2 Medal3. THOMPSON, MarkWOMEN’S EPEE1. USHER, Georgina Category 1 Medal2. HULL, Nicola3. CLAYTON, Jane Category 3 Medal3. HUTCHISON, Jane Category 2 MedalMEN’S FOIL1. WEDGE, Paul Category 3 Medal2. GRIFFIN, Adrian Category 1 Medal3. BARTLETT, Anthony3. PAUL, GrahamWOMEN’S FOIL1. WORMAN, Gillian Category 2 Medal2. O’CONNELL, Kate Category 1 Medal3. CLAYTON, Jane Category 3 Medal3. BROOKS, SusanMEN’S SABRE1. FARREN, Chris Category 1 Medal2. PENTON, Rob3. POTTER, Steve Category 2 Medal3. SIMPSON, EdwardWOMEN’S SABRE1. DAVIDSON, Beth Category 1 Medal2. NAREY, Michele Category 2 Medal3. HUTCHISON, Jane3. WALLS, Yvonne Category 3 MedalHOME NATIONS, 18-19 APRILMEN’S EPEE TEM1. ENGLAND BUZWELL, DOMEK, FANCOURT, MACDONLAD2. IRELAND MUNN, SALTER, WHELAN3. WALES CALANAN, DAVIES, LAW, REES4. SCOTLAND CHALMERS, DRUMMOND, KERNOHAN, MCEWANWOMEN’S EPEE TEAM1. ENGLAND HIBBERT, McNAMARA, OLIVER, TURNBULL2. IRELAND ELVIN, HALDANE, LASCHETTI, MION3. WALES BOWD, HARVEY, KING, MYERS4. SCOTLAND GRANT, SMITH, TATEMEN’S FOIL TEAM1. ENGLAND GRIFFIN, JENNINGS, REID, WEDGE2. SCOTLAND MCEWAN, MCKAY, MILNE, MORT3. IRELAND DEMPSEY, DIGHT, LEE, LEE4. WALES BRUNDLE, CHAN, RICHARDS, THOMASWOMEN’S FOIL TEAM1. SCOTLAND ANDERSON, CABRELLI, PITT2. ENGLAND BROOKS, LEWIS, McNAMARA, UFF3. IRELAND LASCHETTI, MION, WORMAN4. WALES BOWD, FISHER, MYERS, THOMASMEN’S SABRE TEAM1. ENGLAND POTTER, SIMPSON, SWIFFIN2. WALES CRAWFURD, HUGHES, LONGTON, SELBY3. SCOTLAND DAVIDSON, FERGUSON, PEARSON4. IRELAND DIGHT, LEE, NESIRKYWOMEN’S SABRE TEAM1. ENGLAND DAVIDSON, EARLE, WALLS, WRIGHT2. SCOTLAND FRITH, NAREY, SMITH, WOODWARD3. WALES AGHAJAN, ROBINSON, SHEPHERD-FOSTER,WALLER4. IRELAND CLANCY, de BUINN, MION, WILLIAMSVETERANS INTERNATIONALEUROPEAN VETERANS FENCING CHAMPIONSHIPS, 14-17 MAYBRITISH MEDALLISTSGOLDPete Baron - Men’s Sabre (70+)Georgina Usher - Women’s Epee (40-49)Paul Wedge - Men’s Foil (60-69)SILVERJane Hutchison - Women’s Sabre (50-59)Bill Osbaldeston - Men’s Sabre (70+)BRONZESue Benney - Women’s Sabre (60-69)Jane Clayton - Women’s Epee (60-69)CORRECTION:On p27 of the April Issue (upper photograph– Cambridge Winter Tournament) AmyHyman was mistakenly listed as ‘AmyBryant’. We are grateful to her father Stevefor pointing this out.JULY 2015 THE SWORD 35

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