Don’t Be Foiled by Fencing

Don’t be foiled by fencing

You’re wearing a mask that covers your whole face and dressed in padded clothing. You dance back and forth gracefully whilst holding a flexible metal rod in one hand. Another person opposite you follows this process and repeats it. Sounds like a bizarre African dance.

The problem with fencing is its stereotype. Most people believe fencers are only people with perfect hand-eye coordination and quick reflexes and that they are born that way. I however have proved that this is not the case since I have less hand-eye coordination than a blind tennis player, and reflexes as fast as a sloth.

Last month I took a trip down to my local sport centre and inquired about fencing. I was told that there were evening classes every Monday and that all I needed to bring was a pair of trainers to start. It just happened to be Monday that day and so I went back home and picked up my trainers.

Our instructor Pierre Harper (six times British Senior Champion and three times Commonwealth Champion) briefly explained to us the history of fencing. Finishing with some inspirational words “The modern Olympic fencer trains for years, honing agility, quickness, and subtlety of movement”.