Fencing

Etymology

The " term; fencing " is resulting from former French “ escremy ” itself derived from the meaning Francique “ skirmjan ”: to defend , to protect . This etymological turning enables us to become aware that the fencing is an art of defense, and more specifically art to defend oneself with a Knife.

Chronological reference marks

Values

Philosophically, the Respect of the other and the Courage is paramount values of the fencing: the gunners are greeted before the attack, and then once the finished attack they thank one the other and tighten the hand before being left.

Intellectually, the Self-control is also at the base of this sport. At the time of an attack, qualities of Anticipation, development of a project Tactique of Précision are requested permanently.

Physically, the fencing requires, and contributes to, large a flexibility, the acquisition of Réflexe S and a speed in all the movements. Inter-segmentary coordination, a great static and explosive force on the level of the lower extremities associated with endurance, make fencing of competition one of the sports activities more testing.

The fencing contributes to develop and reinforce these values, in a harmony of the body and spirit.

Weapons

That it is in its traditional or modern form, the fencing uses three different weapons: the foil, the sword and the saber. These three categories are formed at the end of the 19th century. All are present at the competitions of Olympic level (the female saber began with the Olympic Games from Athens in 2004).

In the traditional academies, one teaches the handling of weapons of historical fencing and medieval Escrime such as the large cane, the Rapière, the bastard sword (called also sword 1 hand and half), the Dague and the various types of shields (targe, ecu, rondache,…). It is possible to practice the old fencing by using accessories: vestimentary, as the cape, or various such as a lamp.

The foil

See the detailed article Foil .

The foil was created at the 17th century to be used as weapon of drive and study. It is the only weapon which never left the rooms of fencing (contrary to the sword and the saber which were useful on the battle fields).

It is a light weapon - 500 grams for a 110 cm length - and flexible device whose section of blade is rectangular. The key is only done with the point.

The foil is a weapon of study, it is in general the first weapon taught with the beginners. Its name comes from the wool flower, formerly rolled up at the end of the blade to avoid the wounds. In the past, the women were authorized only with the foil and the lightness of the weapon made from there its handling easy for the children. Nowadays, although it is advised to learn at least the basic principles from the foil, the fencers can start with any of the three weapons.

The surface of key to the foil is restricted, it is a heritage of time when the safety equipments were limited. The blows with the face being dangerous, the head is not a valid target, then the surface was reduced to the trunk alone. With the foil, as with the saber, it is strictly interdict to substitute a valid surface by a nonvalid surface.

The foil is a weapon of tuck only. The offensive action of this weapon is thus exerted by the point and the point alone. As with the saber, one must respect conventions at the time of an attack. There is not thus a “double hit”. In the event of simultaneous keys, the key is granted to the gunner which had the priority. This priority depends on the “sentence of weapon” and conventions of the foil. If none the gunners had the priority, no key is granted.

There exist very strict rules for the three weapons, indeed in the event of serious errors or of lack of respect or even of violence on behalf of one of the fencers towards his adversary or the referee there exist three paperboards to sanction the gunner:

yellow: red warning (1 only yellow paperboard),
: 1 point with the adversary,
black: expulsion of the competition or prohibition to make fencing during the 2 months of the season in progress.

In the small categories, the point protected by a component, in the shape of rubber appelée" ball; mouche" , allows the courteous attacks without risk of wound during the drive of fencing.

In the main categories, the attack being held with electric, the weapon with " point sèche" was replaced by an electric weapon whose end ends in a " head of pointe" (kind of button metal on spring) which, connected to the apparatus, makes it possible to indicate the keys during the attack.

For the foil, one needs 500 grams of pressure on the button so that a lamp ignites indicating that the adversary was touched (either green or red in a valid or white part in a nonvalid part).

Philippe Omnès, celebrates fleurettist, thus defines his favorite weapon:

has my direction, the foil is the weapon of reference of the fencing. The technical control that its practice requires is first of all a handicap, but in the long term finds being an asset to benefit fully from the fencing.
Because it is through the technique of the foil that appears best the sentence of weapons, true conversation between the gunners via the blades.
the rate/rhythm of the attacks of foil can be retained, as with the sword, or on the contrary very sharp, as with the saber.

The sword

See the detailed article Sword (fencing) .

The modern sword goes down from the combat weapon used since XVIe century: the Rapière.
The rapière initially evolved/moved in sword of court under Louis XIV: this weapon is very close to the sword of current fencing which appears as for it under Louis XV.

It is a weapon of tuck only. The offensive action of this weapon is thus exerted by the point and the point alone. It is a heavier weapon - 770 G for a 110 cm maximum length - and less flexible device which the foil, and its blade is of triangular section. Valid surface includes/understands all the body of the gunner, including its clothing and its equipment.

When the two gunners are touched simultaneously, and that the apparatus records these two keys validly, there is what is called a “double hit”, i.e. a point for each one.

This weapon is known as " not conventionnelle" because she does not obey rules of priority like the foil and the saber: the conditions and the rules of the combat are thus very similar to those of old the duel S.

Eric Srecki, highly skilled epeist, defines the sword as follows:

the sword, it is the weapon where the phases of waiting, of preparation are longest; the observation of the adversary can seem " éterniser" when one is neophyte, but it is acted in fact of working around the defense of the adversary and to engage in the fault (...) It is thus the weapon of patience, where the nerves are put at severely tested.

The saber

See the detailed article Saber (fencing) .

The saber is a weapon of Estoc, size (blow carried with the edge of the blade) and of Contre-taille (blow carried with the back of the blade). It is a conventional weapon like the foil: the saber answers same the rules of engagement (conventions) that the foil, giving the priority to the attacker, and of the same lightness - 500 G for an overall length of 105 cm maximum. In the event of simultaneous keys, the referee decides to give the priority to one of the gunners, or any of both. This priority depends on the “phase of weapon” and conventions of the saber. Surface valid for the saber is all that is above the size (except for the hand postpones), because this weapon comes us from the cavalry, and which it was in this case very difficult to touch in lower part of the size. With the saber, as with the foil, it is strictly interdict to substitute a valid surface by a nonvalid surface. Contrary to the foil and the sword, the passes before (crossing of the legs in a rapid movement forwards) are prohibited (they were authorized but were removed owing to the fact that displacements of the sabreurs approached the race too much).

The saber is a weapon whose attacks are very difficult to follow by neophytes, the priority given to the attack associated with the relative facility to touch its adversary making the combat very fast.

Besides Jean-François Lamour, highly skilled sabror (he was twice Olympic champion with the individual test, in Seoul and Los Angeles, then individual World champion) and former minister for the Sports, defines the saber in this manner:

" Assaut" is certainly the word which is appropriate best for the discipline of the saber. More than with the foil or the sword, it in this weapon that the fencer is in the need for melting on his adversary while having, by interposed pretense and preparation, are prepared the final gesture.
It thus does not have there or little rest for the sabror (...) Adaptation and explosion, here what a sabror must always have at the head when it goes up in track.

Attacks

In competition, a track of fencing measurement 14 meters length on 1,5 to 2 meters broad. It is marked by perpendicular lines in various places (center of the track, line of warning statement, and back limit, in addition to the 2 last meters must be clearly identified). If a gunner leaves by one the side edges the track, the action is stopped and the gunners go back in guard while nevertheless having advanced of one meter the adversary of the gunner which left; this last thus having to move back and recover remotely. If a gunner leaves the two feet by the back end of the track, he is regarded as touched.

The three weapons are practiced according to conventions which theirs are clean. The great differences are: valid surface, the manner of touching the adversary, and form it and the weight of the weapon. With the three weapons it is strictly interdict to carry blows with the shell or to use the arm not armed at some end that it is.

The attacks dispute in three three minutes periods. The gunner which marks the first 15 keys or which marks the most points at the conclusion of the three handles is declared victorious.

The tests are judged using a recording electrical appliance of keys which makes it possible to post all the points, thanks to a wire connected at the end of the weapon. The fencers themselves are connected to the system by the wire tended thanks to the rollers. To judge the materiality of the key, only the indication of the testing device is taken. To in no case the referee cannot declare a gunner touched without the apparatus regularly recording the key, except in the cases of sanctions (left back the track the two feet or red paperboard for a fault, (technical cf Règlement TRUSTS).

The equipment of the gunners is made up:

for the high part, of a mask with flap protecting the neck, of a under-jacket, a jacket, a metal armor on the jacket (with the saber and the foil) and of a glove protecting the weapons;
for the low part, of pants arriving at the knee, high socks and shoes.

A little technique

As opposed to what some say, with the fencing being a genuine tank does not make self a champion, because the champion is that which reflects (quickly) before acting. Like any other sport the fencing requires concentration, agility, endurance, but also of the technique. Without going into the details this heading gives a small outline of it.

The position of guard

The guard is the most favorable position which the gunner takes which makes it possible to be ready to attack or to defend themselves.

How? The fencer is held the right bust and of profile and the unobtrusive shoulders in order to offer less possible valid surface to the adversary. The arm which holds the weapon must be placed so as to threaten the adversary all while being defended (with the foil and the sword, the point towards the adversary).

For the foil and the sword, this position is called the Sixte, for the saber the third .
The position of guard undergoes modifications during the combat, according to the selected tactics.

At the foil and the sword, the arm not armed is placed behind and raised in order to be better held of profile, and to stiffen the bust by balancing the armed wing. At the saber, it is placed behind the back so that the adversary cannot reach it and by security measure.

The legs are bent in order to facilitate displacements, dodgings and the slits; the center of gravity is lowered to support balance.

Displacements

Principal displacements, called fundamental , are:

the walk makes it possible to approach the adversary to attack it. The fencer is held of profile, the foot before and the heel of the foot postpones are perpendicular and to the same line to a distance from approximately fifty to sixty centimetres (approximately two feet), the whole legs bent for a better reactivity. To walk, one advances initially the front foot, then one brings back the back foot to his initial distance in the amount of time between the moment when the plant of the foot before and points it of this same front foot touch the ground. The movement can with the reading seem jerked and little naturalness but with the practice and the drive, the fencer arrives to a fast, esthetic and nimble walk.
the retirement makes it possible to move away from the adversary to avoid being made touch. It is about walk in opposite direction.

the slit makes it possible to touch the adversary after having first of all lengthened its arm (the lengthening of the arm followed by the slit is called development ), then raised its foot before and advanced this one of approximately 90 centimetres while pushing most strongly possible of the back leg. The speed and power of this movement in fact a very appreciated action of the fencers.

All the play then consists in surprising its adversary in the pace of displacements and the attacks utilisés.
These displacements are also used to make pretended , simple or composed , to mislead the unfavourable gunner.

In complement of these fundamental one will add following displacements:

the jump before and the jump postpones which are carried out while taking off promptly the two feet of the ground all while maintaining the position of guard.

the passes before (prohibited to the saber because it was too often used during the attacks while being finished by the arrow, making resemble rather displacements of the sabreurs race of sprint than to true displacements of fencing. In the history of this weapon, the prohibition of the front master key coincides almost with the electrification of the saber and from all the other consecutive changes brought to the payment) and the back passes which are carried out by crossing the legs.

the will ballestra , which generally precedes a slit, (and with the saber, a walk or a double walk, process frequently used by the sabreurs of the old USSR in the Eighties) is a kind of front jump, except that instead of posing the two feet with ground at the same time, the front foot will make a " appel" (i.e. to strike heel extremely) in order to destabilize the adversary which will tend to have a reaction of surprise.

the redoubling of slit which is carried out at the end of a slit and which consists in bringing back its back foot in position of guard and to split all again while maintaining the point threatening in direction of the adversary. the purpose of

the arrow (prohibited with the saber), undoubtedly the technical movement most esthetic and most dreaded, is to make it possible the gunner to reach the target which it wishes by creating a brutal temporal rupture, by a very abrupt acceleration, and this, starting from a distance from load higher than for a slit. It is carried out, by initially mobilizing the hand to direct the weapon towards the target, from where, in the jargon of the , fencing masters “the hand initially” . Indeed, a brutal mobilization of the lower train before the hand does not move, returns the intention of the attacker more easily perceptible, exposes it to a counter-attack on the departure of the action, and makes him waste time. This slightly anticipated action of the hand, of course is directly coordinated, in a “unit of the gesture”, with the propelling action of the front leg, itself combined in a simultaneous way with a crusader of the leg postpones further in front of possible, for, on the one hand, compensating for the strong imbalance before created by the rocker of the bust (much more marked than for a slit), and, on the other hand, to make it possible the fencer to take again his balance in the event of failure of the attack, in order to be able to avoid a possible response or a hitch. This movement requires much technique and precision, so much so that the youngest practitioners do not have the right to use it.

Various positions of the weapon

In addition to the position of guard explained previously, there exist several other ways of holding its weapon in hand:

Premium .

Second .

Third (position of guard to the saber).

Quad .

Fifth .

Sixth (position of guard to the sword and the foil).

Septime .

Octave .

Each one of these positions of the blade are related to various methods of attacks, of parades, responses and counter-attacks or of pretenses.

The attack

It is the initial offensive action which is carried out by lengthening the arm, the point threatening valid surface and coordinate with a progression of the supports forwards (slit, arrow). This action gives the priority to the conventional weapons (foil and saber).
The attack can be: simple (carried out in only one time) or made up (preceded by one or more pretenses).
There exist 3 simple attacks:

the right blow , i.e. to carry the key by lengthening the arm and splitting themselves (or by making an arrow) while remaining in the same line (side of the unfavourable blade).

the half-compartment , i.e. to carry the key by changing line (side of the unfavourable blade) while making pass its blade by the point of the blade of the adversary while splitting itself (or by making an arrow).

the release , i.e. to carry the key by changing line (side of the unfavourable blade) while making pass its blade around the shell of the weapon of the adversary while splitting itself (or by making an arrow).

Of these three simple attacks, one can in " assembler" some to carry out made up attacks : the most used are the " une-deux " and the " doublé" (a pretense of released or half-compartment followed of one released (called " trompement" who consists in avoiding the unfavourable parade), the pretense of right-released blow, the pretense of matchet… all this while changing horizontal line and/or vertical and/or diagonal.
The attack can be also made by taken iron , the attacker uses the difficulty in driving a weapon when this one is in contact with that of the adversary. This iron catch can be carried out by means of engagement, also called sixth direction of the fencer, technique which consists in contacting the weapon of the adversary to feel in which direction it will tend to leave in the event of immediate attack.

To defend oneself.

There exist several means to defend oneself.

the first means of defending oneself is the parade .

The parades are defensive actions which make it possible to be protected from the attacks. They draw aside the unfavourable blade of the target. The principal parades correspond to the various positions of the hand, and are eight: the premium, the second, the third, the quad, the fifth, the sixth, the septime and the octave.
One distinguishes the principal parades according to the position from the front armlever. In supination, they are the parades of sixth (position of the guard in the weapons of point), quad, septime, octave. In all these positions, the pommel of the weapon is above the hand. Prone, they are the parades of premium, second, third (position of the guard to the saber) and fifth. In these positions, the pommel is under the hand.
The circular parades (for example the against-of-sixth ) consist of a circular motion of the blade finishing in the starting position (in sixth for a against-of-sixth, quad for a against-of-quad, etc). This circular motion makes it possible to intercept the unfavourable blade and to block it in the position of arrival, for then leading the response. To each parade corresponds thus a circular parade. Most used is the against-of-sixth (with the foil and the sword), action redoudable and particularly effective if the gunner carries out it with the speed necessary.

the retirement makes it possible to avoid being made touch by keeping the remote adversary.

the dodging is a movement which draws aside part of its body in order not to be touched.

the counter-attack (generally out of sword) makes it possible to touch before the adversary on its attack without drawing aside its blade.

The response and the counter-riposte

To the foil like with the saber, the parade gives the priority to the attack which follows it and which one names response, offensive action intended to touch the adversary after the setting in failure of its attack. This response can also be avoided. Against response is then the offensive action which follows the parade of the response, and so on…
If the parade is not followed of a response, the gunner which avoided can undergo a handing-over of attack (dangerous because it is then difficult to carry out several parades successively). It is up to the referee to appreciate, following a parade, the time interval during which the response can be carried out by preserving its priority. This amount of time is not defined strictly: one speaks about " time of fencing " to indicate the fraction of a second necessary to a fencer to carry out a simple action, such as the lengthening of the arm for example. Thus, an immediate response (in the time of fencing) must be considered to be priority on the handing-over of attack.
With the sword, there is not nor " priorité" nor " time of escrime" , or other conventions of this kind. The response is free.

Tactical aspect

The tactical aspect in fencing is very important. It is possible to compare the strategy adopted by the gunners with a play of " rock, paper, ciseaux" , but in more complex good. " The attack simple" is demolished by the " parade-riposte" , which in its turn is beaten by " the attack composée" , which can be countered by the attack on the preparation, in its turn, this one is demolished by the attack in " against-temps" , which is overcome by a " counter-attack composée" and finally the so complex latter is demolished by " the attack simple".

Old and modern pedagogy

From the years 1970, the French fencing adopts the collective courses which consist in for the fencing master teaching opposite a group, thus allowing a pedagogy of mass adapted to the modern world. The pedagogy of the sporting fencing thus removes the particular lessons of Master with pupil at the beginning and the end of the courses, intersected with attacks. (this method was in particular theorized by Maître Rene Geuna).
One generalizes the handles also more and more known as " orthopédiques" with the detriment of the right handles more difficult to control. However, the right handle remains the standard in the majority of the clubs. This reform thus led to a standardization of teaching, causing a loss of singularity of the French fencing.
This reform, within the framework of the world competition with excess, was however inevitable to fight against the new Soviet and Chinese schools, based on the athletic reflex with the detriment of the technique.

The fencing handisport

See also: Fencing in wheel chair
Today the fencing handisport is a fencing with whole share which adapts well to its practice in wheel chair. The exchanges are very fast and the payments are close to the traditional fencing. The fundamental technique remains the same one, but particular rules are observed.
More and more of drives common valid handicapped people/are organized. More and more of competitions take place joint (on the same site) thus allowing to integrate in a more concrete way the sportsmen handicapped into the community of the fencers.
There exist competitions handisports at the national and international level.
See also: Championships of the world of fencing in wheel chair 2006

Certain rooms propose also fencing for the partially-sighted persons, who draw upright and locate themselves thanks to the contact between the blades.

The Organization of the Fencing in the world

The International federation of fencing or TRUSTS is the organization which governs the sport of the fencing universally. Domiciled with Lausanne, Olympic Capital, it counts 121 members federations. It organizes mainly the Olympic Games and the championships of the world. It creates the circuits of World cup. It is in 2005, the only international sporting federation directed by a French (Rene Roch).

In France

See also: Fencing in France

The French federation of fencing (FE) represents France in the high level fencing. FE rests on several elements:

740 Clubs of French fencing.

departmental committees charged to create, organize and animate the activity in its geographical sector.

the regional leagues organize the qualificative official tests for the various national championships of all categories of age, involve and improve the regional hopes, form the executives and the referees.

Principal competitions

Fencing with the Olympic Games

Championships of the world of fencing

Championships of Europe of fencing

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