What is Sport Fencing?
The term “Sport Fencing” is usually interchangeable with the terms “Modern Fencing” and “Olympic Fencing.” At Whitman we consider it to reference the styles of mainstream, competitive fencing after about 1940. It is extremely different from Classical Fencing, both in techniques and mentalities. One primary difference in mentality is that the purpose of Sport Fencing is usually to compete, whereas neither Classical or Historical fencers consider competition a major focus. Another difference–sometimes thought of as the defining difference between Classical Fencing and Sport Fencing – is that in Sport Fencing the focus has changed from “what would I do if the weapons were sharp,” to “how can I best score a point?” Similarly, rather than focusing on fencing’s roots as “The Art of Defense,” Sport fencers are usually more concerned with offense, and take unimaginable risks as a result, because when bouts are fenced to 15 points and 15 to 14 is a win as much as 15 to 0 is, fencers can afford
The term “Sport Fencing” is usually interchangeable with the terms “Modern Fencing” and “Olympic Fencing.” At Whitman we consider it to reference the styles of mainstream, competitive fencing after about 1940. It is extremely different from Classical Fencing, both in techniques and mentalities. One primary difference in mentality is that the purpose of Sport Fencing is usually to compete, whereas neither Classical or Historical fencers consider competition a major focus. Another difference–sometimes thought of as the defining difference between Classical Fencing and Sport Fencing–is that in Sport Fencing the focus has changed from “what would I do if the weapons were sharp,” to “how can I best score a point?” Similarly, rather than focusing on fencing’s roots as “The Art of Defense,” Sport fencers are usually more concerned with offense, and take unimaginable risks as a result, because when bouts are fenced to 15 points and 15 to 14 is a win as much as 15 to 0 is, fencers can afford
Sport fencing is a sword fighting sport which has its roots in the duel, although today it is a stylized dance between two athletes, rather than a fight to the death. Tournaments and schools for sport fencing can be found all over the world, although the sport is most popular in Europe. Students can learn several different styles including French, Hungarian, and Italian, and also learn to fence with a variety of weapons.
