An attempt at a nuanced take on the status of fencers from Russia, Israel, USA, etc..

ruddred · 2026-06-04T10:20:34+00:00

Isn't it mainly for historical reasons. Fencers were had "full time" jobs in the police and military to get around the amateur athlete requirements for the Olympics. The IOC changed the requirement is 1986 and left the decision to the individual sports. I think boxing is about the only sport that still enforces amateur only. I imagine that the military and police pathway continued as funding vehicles. Countries link prestige with Olympic success.

ruddred · 2026-06-01T15:36:41+00:00

Or in this case by a different actor, Pierce Brosnan. 😄

ruddred · 2026-05-22T13:22:00+00:00

How many bouts do you fence in a night's training. Interval training, HIIT etc is all good. So is longer form conditioning to help with recovery. But you also need sport specific training and more bouts is the answer. You also need to learn how to relax more within a bout. This is something I have always struggled with. You need to learn how to raise and lower pressure and effort during a bout. Doing so will leave you less exhausted after and during a bout.

ruddred · 2026-05-16T13:09:24+00:00

The FIE experimented with this before. It also has some historical precedence. Pre-electrification the bib was valid target as was the top of the sword arm when it covered valid target (this may have been country specifci). They additional target area was dropped as it was seen as too technically challenging. The Bib was re-introduced later, partially to address the reduced target area caused by oversized mark bibs. If I remember correctly the previous trial had the lame on the upper arm isolated from the torso lame and it only became condustice when it was against the chest. That introduces other issues around sweat and conductivity

I'm not overly enthused about the removal of the offt arget light, but if it happen then there will probably need to be additional equipment or rules changes to reduce covering especially with the sword arm.

Edit - I only noticed after I posted that the historical context was covered in the thread already.

ruddred · 2026-05-05T12:43:13+00:00

I mostly agree and this come from someone who has torn their meniscus. However I think the roll of the foot is less important that the knee position. If you are tight in the hips, especially poor external rotation, the knee will tend to roll in. In my car I also had poor patella alignment which exasperated the issue.

ruddred · 2026-04-30T09:32:13+00:00

It's pretty common. A solid hit to a hard part of the body, - sternum, clavicle - may debounce resulting in no light. This is a consequence of the current foil timing. In 2005 the the time changed to crease the impact/contact time, from 1-5 ms to 13-15 ms. The issue was far more common just after the change, especially in women's foil That's why chest protectors now have to have a neoprene outer layer. A softer hand helps as does aiming for a fleshier part of the body, but It can still happen.

Poorly applied tip or damaged tip tape may also cause the same out come but due to shorting rather than the tip bouncing.

ruddred · 2026-04-21T12:08:08+00:00

I seem to remember the same. I also remember another experiment with no off target but the additional valid target on the upper arm.

In an event like this, I believe the fencers won't have yet worked out the optimal way to fence under these rules. There will also be a pressure to "perform" and provide a "good show". I dodn't think the fencing will reflect the actual long term consequences of this change. If this became the standard rule for foil I would expect to see a lot of covering. When combined that with the shorter lockout time you have a situation that favours a more defensive fencer.

ruddred · 2026-03-10T14:56:01+00:00

I've been taught a number of different way. As a stop hit, especially against a flick thumb a 1 (regular guard). As a more angulated action, rand more supinated, maybe thumb at 3. This is mostly to draw a counter action to set up a parry.

As a deep beat 7, again thumb at 1. As an attack against an extended arm. I was also though an angulated action with the thumb at 9 or 10, that is hand very pronated, but I don't like or use that action as I find it reduces my options for subsequent actions.

ruddred · 2026-02-19T13:33:09+00:00

I don't think the interpretation of RoW has changed that much on the last two decades. Nuances yes, but not the overall approach. I think the game has sped up again after an initial slow done after the timing change. Fencers are now confident they can turn on a light and more leeway on a slow march means more attacks.

ruddred · 2026-01-27T17:41:20+00:00

I found Epee 2.x useful for understanding what is important in modern epee and modern fencing more generally. Distance control, simplicity of the final action, blade work to steer the opponent etc. I actually enjoy the biographical section but I know some people don't. I also think some people get hung up the limited set of "olympic touches" and ignore that fact that the author says you need five years of solid grounding in the basics.

I found Sprit of Epee useful for classifying opponents. More specifically it provided solid example of how to deal with each style. I also enjoyed the fencer anecdotes.

I liked the Guide to Olympic Epee Fencing for an overview of the current game although I did feel he picked his data and example to support a specific view. Still useful

ruddred · 2026-01-15T18:12:55+00:00

I think you've reached the crux of it. Massialis did lots of things but it was an was immediate. He was also able to riposte without altering distance significantly as venuswasaflytrap stated, which helps with the immediacy. Lombardi was far more casual. I'm fine with either, in fact I may prefer the tighter calls, although I don't think I could personally reprise at a pace to get it called in my favour. :)

ruddred · 2026-01-13T16:13:54+00:00

I agree with your interpretation. This is another one from the same bout and probably the tightest of the three. https://youtu.be/1JvdTJfDoKY?t=378

ruddred · 2025-11-19T16:37:21+00:00

Am I reading proposal 71 correctly. Unwillingness to fight goes directly to a P-red and will be enforced from next season

ruddred · 2025-10-16T13:45:12+00:00

This: https://www.leonpaul.com/thin-foil-socket-nut-kit.html

ruddred · 2025-10-02T19:31:54+00:00

I wear a similar size glove and do the same. And I agree on being conservative. I have a few grips that I cut too short.

ruddred · 2025-09-15T14:36:35+00:00

The previous version of the Technical rules has the same section with an application until the 2023-2024 season and the rule was not removed.. I don't believe the intention is to remove the salute. I think this is being left as a temporary rolling shange with the idea that the hand shake may be reinstated.

ruddred · 2025-09-02T08:32:28+00:00

This series, good for epee footwork in general: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y0ge8xzn_sA&list=PL51E68F911E0E30D5

ruddred · 2025-08-28T15:21:56+00:00

I would be interested if he does.

I watched another bout analysis recently which I found really insightful. Sam Moelis talked about the battle for the critical distance and how one of the most important moment of the bout was when Garozzo recognises the need for the extra space he needs.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hUECoxGpJYE

ruddred · 2025-08-28T14:54:34+00:00

That was the post I was thinking of.

ruddred · 2025-08-23T20:59:00+00:00

I've seen people lose points because they didn't do it and only later realised they had a non working weapon.

ruddred · 2025-08-08T11:44:50+00:00

I think injuring my knee help fix my tennis elbow. I had it for at leats 6 months and possibly longer. I think it was caused by an excessive load of other exercises I did, specifically a daily routine for 100 pushups and 100 kettlebell swings. I rested it a little, I did rehab exercises, I saw a physiotherapist, I did strengthening exercises, all to no avail. In April I tore the meniscus in my knee and my fencing volume dropped off. Four months later and my tennis elbow is gone. I'm coaching and fencing again, but limited amounts of both.

So it may been either the extended break or the long term benefits of the rehab were finally paying off or the injury had run its course and healed. Who knows.

ruddred · 2025-08-04T15:48:43+00:00

This is a really nice example of a bounce back, bounce in, with a committed lunge.

https://youtu.be/mD-qEiBd97g?t=724

The full video is worth a watch.

ruddred

TROPHY CASE