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FALL 2021 | VOLUME 72 | ISSUE 1
TEAM USA
SHINES AT
2020 OLYMPICS P. 38
42
WOMEN’S PARAFENCING ON THE RISE IN TOKYO
44
BUCKIE LEACH
USA FENCING COMMUNITY MOURNS THE LOSS OF OLYMPIC COACH
THE FRONT 5 EDITOR’S NOTE 7 IN THE NEWS
COLUMNS 12 POST CARDS FROM THE STRIP 13 RULES & REFEREES 15 SPORTS MEDICINE Q&A 16 SPORTS SCIENCE 20 BEHIND THE MASK 24 WHERE ARE THEY NOW?
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WHERE ARE THEY NOW NIKKI FRANKE
FEATURES 26 CLUBS & COVID 32 JUNIOR WORLDS 38 OLYMPIC RECAP 36 WOMEN’S PARAFENCING IN TOKYO 44 B UCKIE LEACH THE POINT 52 IN THE SPOTLIGHT 53 PRODUCT PREVIEW 54 WOMEN IN FENCING 56 PARENTS’ CORNER 58 TECH TALK
FALL 2021 VOLUME 72 ISSUE 1 C USAFENCING.ORG 3
DEDICATED TO THE MEMORY OF Jose R. DeCapriles Miguel A. DeCapriles CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER Kris Ekeren K.Ekeren@usafencing.org PUBLISHER/ADVERTISING SALES Nicole Jomantas Kristen Henneman K.Henneman@usafencing.org EDITOR Serge Timacheff editor@americanfencing.org PRODUCTION/DESIGN Manna Creations www.MannaCreations.com Please send all correspondence and articles for submission to Editor, American Fencing 210 USA Cycling Point, Suite 120, Colorado Springs, CO 80919, editor@americanfencing.org. American Fencing is published quarterly in March, June, September and December. Please contact the editor regarding submission deadlines and advertising. American Fencing (ISSN 0002-8436) is published quarterly by the United States Fencing Association, Inc., 210 USA Cycling Point, Suite 120, Colorado Springs, CO 80919. Periodicals postage is paid at Colorado Springs, CO 80909-5774, and additional offices. Subscriptions to American Fencing are included with membership in the association. Individuals can subscribe for $25 in the United States and $37 elsewhere. Postmaster: Send address changes to 210 USA Cycling Point, Suite 120, Colorado Springs, CO 80919. DISCLAIMER: The views and opinions expressed by the authors and contributors of content in this magazine are theirs alone and do not necessarily reflect any position or policy of the United States Fencing Association (“USFA”). No author or contributor is authorized to speak herein on behalf of USFA or otherwise bind USFA. USFA does not warrant the accuracy of, nor intend reliance upon, any fact or opinions stated herein. The rules and policies of USFA are set forth in, among other things, USFA’s Fencing Rules, Athlete Handbook, Operations Manual, and Bylaws. Nothing herein shall be deemed an amendment or modification of any such rule or policy, nor a binding interpretation thereof.
Cover Photo: by Augusto Bizzi/FIE
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CONTRIBUTORS JEFF BUKANTZ author of Rules & Referees, was a member of the FIE Rules Commission and has been captain of multiple U.S. international teams, including the 2006 World Championships Team and the 2004 and 2008 Olympic Games Teams.
KRISTEN HENNEMAN goes Behind the Mask with Jackie Dubrovich, who competed in her first Olympic Games in Tokyo. She also featured Temple Head Coach Nikki Franke in Where Are They Now, detailing her illustrious career as both a fencer andcoach. Henneman is the communications manager, joining the National Office staff in 2016.
TED LI (Tech Talk) is a member of the SEMI Commission for both the FIE and USA Fencing. He was the chef de contrôle or head site armourer for three Olympic Games (1984, 1996, 2000). Li has also served as the head armourer at the NCAA National Championships and countless USA Fencing North American Cups. He is a proud student of Joe Byrnes and Dan DeChaine, and has been armouring for more than 30 years.
JENNY PETITE (Parent’s Corner) is both a fencing mom and veteran epeeist herself, living in Nashville. A former college heptathlete, Petite looks into how to keep your children injury-free in a twopart column.
BONNIE L. HENNINGTRESTMAN is a Vet World Team foil fencer from Research Triangle Fencing who explains how she has converged fencing and art for greater happiness in life.
JEREMY SUMMERS is the director of sports medicine for USA Fencing and a former World Team member himself. In this issue, Summers offers a 1-23 equation for safe fencing in clubs as we emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic.
DR. ROBERT OWENS is a performance coach trained in the mental and physical aspects of human performance. He has been working with studentathletes for over a decade and currently is a faculty advisor for the martial arts club at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. Dr. Owens is the former chair of the Association for Applied Sport Psychology (AASP) Diversity Committee (2017-20), a co-facilitator for AASP’s Diversity in Sport and Culture course and a founding member of AASP’s Advocacy Committee and the Diversity in Sport Conference. He is currently working on projects related to consulting with first responder populations.
KAROLYN SZOT is a former foil fencer at Northwestern University and current coach at Silverlake Fencing. In the Women in Fencing column, Szot weaves-together an inter-view with U.S. referee Iana Dakova and the story behind Netflix’s ‘The Queen’s Gambit’ to address the changing world of women in refereeing.
EDITOR’S NOTE
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ogether we’re working our way through what is arguably one of the most challenging and strange periods we will hopefully ever experience in our collective lifetimes due to the global COVID-19 pandemic.
We must never forget the losses and tragedies continuing among our ranks, and the sacrifices made facing COVID-19. We owe it to the ones who have worked so hard and tirelessly and given so much – and continue to do so – to keep fencing alive and carry the proverbial torch forward. Fencing has endured much in its rich history, and virtually every time our sport has faced a challenge, it has risen to the occasion and overcome adversity only to become stronger. We are a community. We are a team. We are a family. We are Americans. We stand together. And we have a lot to celebrate. First and foremost, let’s celebrate all our Olympians and Paralympians who braved a pandemic to proudly represent the United States in Tokyo — even bringing home gold and bronze medals! Just to have made the team, the trek to Japan and having competed were awesome personal achievements especially given the challenges and risks of being an athlete during these times. And grand kudos to our organization, local organizers, officials, referees, volunteers, athletes and coaches for all it took to host and participate in the USA Fencing National Championships, Junior Olympic Championships and July North American Cup in Philadelphia. Thank you for all your super-human efforts and congrats to all the medalists! Reflecting on the last year-plus, I found myself not lamenting the problems so much, but instead counting my blessings for being part of the fencing world and being in awe of how we have worked side-by-side to overcome adversity. Through social media and the web, being able to stay in touch without being face-to-face is easier than ever before. YouTube training sessions, Zoom gatherings, Facebook and Instagram and other digital platforms, and even cell phones, have all become creative opportunities and resources for us to commune and share our fears and hopes, losses and achievements, talents and gifts in diverse ways all serving to reinforce
our resilience and strength. The downtime has given us the chance to reflect, reinvent, forgive and revitalize how we see ourselves, and what we want for the future. Club owners, coaches, fencers and parents have come up with remarkable and innovative ways to pursue fencing and keep it going against seemingly insurmountable forces. The saying goes, “This too shall pass.” And one day this difficult period will be behind us. What will we have learned? What will we cherish? What will we have that is new and different? How did we use the downtime? And how will we look back to appreciate what we did to make ourselves better, individually, as a community and as a sport? Together, let’s celebrate the strength and fighting spirit of our fencing world. Let’s celebrate all the kids who now don two masks to get out on the strip and fence. Let’s celebrate the coaches who reinvented how they teach to keep training their students. Let’s celebrate the parents who give so much so their children can be part of an amazing sport. Let’s celebrate club owners who made personal sacrifices to keep their clubs alive. And let’s celebrate all our Olympians and Paralympians who braved a pandemic to proudly represent the United States in Tokyo — even bringing home gold and bronze medals! In this divisive, turbulent and topsy-turvy world, I urge us as a big family to do all in our power to leverage this difficult period to rise above once again and show the world how fencing inspires determination, respect, unity and success – not only on the strip, but in life.
Serge Timacheff Editor, American Fencing Magazine
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NIKE BALLESTRA 2 AVAILABLE NOW!
www.athleteps.com 6 AMERICAN FENCING B
IN THE NEWS DONORS A heartfelt thank you to our generous donors. Your support develops American fencers and inspires the next generation of athletes.
early 4,000 athletes competed at the 2021 USA Fencing National Championships, Junior Olympic Championships and July North American Cup in Philadelphia from July 3-12.
AUGUST 1, 2019 - PRESENT
USA Fencing GOLD United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee
The Richards Family
DeSeranno Foundation
The Stanley Family
El Pomar Foundation
United States Fencing Foundation
SILVER Gregory & Sabrina Massialas
Rasha Abdellatif Valerie Asher The Sam Cheris
Rita Comes
Sheri Jensen
Ahmed Fayez
Stacey Johnson
Alan Geller
Ted Koehn
Evelyne Gibson
Victoria Voytek
US Fencing Foundation
American Fencing Legacy Society
Foundation Stewards
Irwin Bernstein
Donald Alperstein
Robert S. Dow and Lindsay J. Dow
Jonathan Jefferies
Robert & Debb Zagunis
Stacey Johnson Robert Zagunis
WSE
(Weapon Specific Endowments) ME David Hitchcock Jeff Johnson Gregory A. Jones ** In Honor of Bill Reith from his Fencing Family Sophie Rheinheimer Lee Shelley John & Namhan Le Varney William Walker **** Mark Wheeler **
MF James Adams Pierre Chao Michael Dayton
The 10-day event and largest fencing tournament in the world since the COVID-19 shutdown saw athletes ranging in age from seven to 88 with 54 individuals and six junior teams crowned national champions.
DIVISION I
Windy City Fencing
Charitable Fund
Awarded in Philadelphia
N
BRONZE
SIXTY NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS
DeSeranno Foundation
Mr. David M. Wishart &
Kerry Grether
John Kelley
Ms. Josephine Wilson
Gary & Janie Hibler ***
Sophie Rheinheimer
WE
Stacey Johnson
The Richards Family
Valerie Asher
Duncan & Mar-
The Stanley Family
Sharon Marcil and
lene O’Brien
Chad Sunderland
Tom Monahan
Colleen Olney
In Honor of Van Wolosin
Lorrie Marcil Holmes
Adam Skarbonkiewicz
Sophie Rheinheimer
Chad Sunderland
MS
In Honor of Ms.
The Bacon Family
WF
Fran G. Swehla
Victor Bianchini
Daniel L. Berke
Janice-Lee York
Julian, Marcel, Lianne
Jane Carter
Romary
& Gregory Merchant
The Indelebilis Trust
Mariel Zagunis &
Ann Marsh Senic
Michael Swehla
PARA
Sophie Rheinheimer
Marten Zagunis
Anonymous
the sphinx foundation
Merrick Zagunis
**************
Felicia Zimmerman
Robert & Debb Zagunis
William Nikolai
Traute Zagunis
Joan Owens
WS
Dr. Lou Papouchado
Anonymous
Michael Vitoux
Chris Becker
Division I Men’s Epee Matthew Comes (Bothell, Wash. / Ohio State University) Division I Men’s Foil Nick Itkin (Los Angeles, Calif. / LA International Fencing) Division I Men’s Saber Colby Harley (Alpharetta, Ga. / Nellya Fencers) Division I Women’s Epee Hadley Husisian (Oakton, Va. / Fencing Sports Academy) Division I Women’s Foil May Tieu (Belle Mead, N.J. / Premier Fencing Club) Division I Women’s Saber Chloe Fox-Gitomer (Portland, Ore. / Oregon Fencing Alliance)
JUNIOR Junior Men’s Epee Nicholas Lawson (New York, N.Y. / Fencers Club) Junior Men’s Foil Edriss Ndiaye (Columbus, Ohio / Fencing Sports Academy) Junior Men’s Saber Nickoloz Lortkipanidze (Mt. Kisco, N.Y. / Tim Morehouse Fencing Club) Junior Women’s Epee Kyle Fallon (Greenwich, Conn. / Fencing Academy of Westchester) Junior Women’s Foil Zander Rhodes (South Orange, N.J. / V Fencing Club) Junior Women’s Saber Magda Skarbonkiewicz (Portland, Ore. / Oregon Fencing Alliance)
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IN THE NEWS Junior Men’s Team Epee Alliance Fencing Academy 1: Mihir Kumashi, Alexander Liu, Ark Ma, Miles Weiss Junior Men’s Team Foil LAIFC 2: Bryce Louie, Eric Yu, William Kelly, Brandon Kim Junior Men’s Team Saber MFC Team 1: Luca Berman, Tariq Karam, Matthew Linsky, Darii Lukashenko Junior Women’s Team Epee New York Fencing Academy: Isabella Chin, Jaclyn Khrol, Rachel Kowalsky, Mia Smotritsky Junior Women’s Team Foil Gutkovskiy Fencing Academy: Haley Koo, Rachel Koo, Renata Chusid, Mikayla Chusid Junior Women’s Team Saber OFA: Siobhan Sullivan, Xinyan Chen, Vivian Lu, Magda Skarbonkiewicz
DIVISION II
Y12
Division II Men’s Epee Sergei Kudriavtcev (Houston, Texas / Alliance Fencing Academy) Division II Men’s Foil Caleb Jeon (Los Altos, Calif. / Silicon Valley Fencing Center) Division II Men’s Saber Tony Escueta (Grand Prairie, Texas / Fencing Institute of Texas) Division II Women’s Epee Zara Pehlivani (Las Nevas, Nev. / Battle Born Fencing Club) Division II Women’s Foil Sofia Guerra (University Place, Wash. / Metro Tacoma Fencing Club) Division II Women’s Saber Kavya Menke (Athens, Ga. / Athens Fencing Club)
Y12 Men’s Epee David Dodin (Brooklyn, N.Y. / New York Fencing Academy) Y12 Men’s Foil Jeidus Deseranno (Grosse Point Shores, Mich. / Renaissance Fencing Club) Y12 Men’s Saber Daniel Holz (Sacramento, Calif. / Premier Fencing Academy) Y12 Women’s Epee Alexandra Rakhovski (Brooklyn, N.Y. / New York Fencing Academy) Y12 Women’s Foil Jaelyn Liu (Plano, Texas / Fencing Institute of Texas) Y12 Women’s Saber Angelina Tse (San Francisco, Calif. / Halberstadt Fencers’ Club)
CADET
DIVISION III
Y10
Cadet Men’s Epee Henry Lawson (New York, N.Y. / Fencers Club) Cadet Men’s Foil Andrew Chen (Lexington, Ky. / Bluegrass Fencers Club) Cadet Men’s Saber Darii Lukashenko (Fort Lee, N.J. / Manhattan Fencing Center) Cadet Women’s Epee Sedna Gandhi (Mamaroneck, N.Y. / Fencing Academy of Westchester) Cadet Women’s Foil Ivy Zheng (Lexington, Mass. / Marx Fencing Academy) Cadet Women’s Saber Veronica Mika (Basking Ridge, N.J. / Advance Fencing and Fitness Academy)
Division III Men’s Epee Samuel Minwook Choun (Hoover, Ala. / Music City Fencing Club) Division III Men’s Foil Eric Li (Sharon, Mass. / Star Fencing Academy) Division III Men’s Saber Vincent Hong (Chatham, N.J. / Bergen Fencing Club) Division III Women’s Epee Claire Norconk (Williamsburg, Mich. / Three Swords Fencing Studio) Division III Women’s Foil Irene Wu (Weston, Mass. / Marx Fencing Academy) Division III Women’s Saber Kira Erikson (Torrance, Calif. / South Bay Fencing Academy)
Y10 Men’s Epee Zhengyang Chen (Irvine, Calif. / Yang Fencing Club) Y10 Men’s Foil Alexander Tang (Fairfax, Va. / OnTarget Fencing Club) Y10 Men’s Saber Alex Huang (Totowa, N.J. / Lilov Fencing Academy) Y10 Women’s Epee Chloe Tolsma (Houston, Texas / Alliance Fencing Academy) Y10 Women’s Foil Sara Amr Hossny (Brooklyn, N.Y. / South Brooklyn Fencing) Y10 Women’s Saber Charlotte Young (New York, N.Y. / Manhattan Fencing Center)
DIVISION IA
Y14
Division IA Men’s Epee Maximo Zafft (Worthington, Mass. / Marx Fencing Academy) Division IA Men’s Foil Lachlan Grant (Tiburon, Calif. / Massialas Foundation) Division IA Men’s Saber Darren Yen (Chatham, N.J. / Integrity Fencing Studio) Division IA Women’s Epee Hadley Husisian (Oakton, Va. / Fencing Sports Academy) Division IA Women’s Foil Lydia Shen (Lexington, Mass. / Star Fencing Academy) Division IA Women’s Saber Casey Chan (Cresskill, N.J. / Bergen Fencing Club)
Y14 Men’s Epee Ryan Jeyoon (Vienna, Va. / Elite Fencing Academy) Y14 Men’s Foil Jeidus Deseranno (Grosse Pointe Shores, Mich. / Renaissance Fencing Club) Y14 Men’s Saber Cody Walter Ji (Atlanta, Ga. / Nellya Fencers) Y14 Women’s Epee Yasmine Khamis (Grapevine, Texas /Alliance Fencing Academy)
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Y14 Women’s Foil Katerina Lung (Lexington, Mass. / Moe Fencing Club) Y14 Women’s Saber Veronica Mika (Basking Ridge, N.J. / Advance Fencing and Fitness Academy)
HADLEY HUSISIAN (RIGHT) WON TWO NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS IN PHILADELPHIA.
IN THE NEWS
USA FENCING
AWARDED COACHING EDUCATION GRANT By KRISTEN HENNEMAN
USA FENCING IS ONE OF 10 ORGANIZATIONS TO BE AWARDED THE MILLION COACHES CHALLENGE GRANT, WHICH WILL BE USED OT CREATE A GRASSROOTS SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL LEARNING PROGRAM.
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n partnership with USA Triathlon and USA Weightlifting, USA Fencing was awarded the Million Coaches Challenge grant to help further coaching education. A three-year grant, USA Fencing is one of 10 organizations to receive the grant from Susan Crown Exchange, which works to help youth build critical skills through youth sports and prepare them to thrive in a rapidly changing, highly connected world. Working together with USA Triathlon and USA Weightlifting, USA Fencing will use the grant to create a grassroots social-emotional learning program, including a coach module, refresher course and clinic, as well as train 6,000 coaches throughout the country.
“USA Fencing is excited to continue collaborating with USA Triathlon and USA Weightlifting on development of a social and emotional learning module and resources,” said Christine Strong Simmons (Colorado Springs, Colo.), USA Fencing Senior Director of Sport Operations. “All three sports will benefit from this innovative educational program as it positively impacts their athletes, coaches and sport communities.” The goal of the Million Coaches Challenge is to train one million coaches by 2025 in youth development techniques and create a better playing environment for today’s youth.
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IN MEMORIUM
BY JEFF BUKANTZ
CHABA PALLAGHY as a vice president of both the FIE and AFLA (now USA Fencing), was a multiple-time Olympic referee, a member of the Olympic Games directoire technique, president of the FIE Refereeing Commission and member of the FIE Executive Committee. In addition, he was a member of the FIE Hall of Fame. As Wilson related to me, “Of course, Chaba had a huge ego. But there is a big difference between having a big ego and commanding the respect of your peers. Chaba commanded that respect in the fencing world like no other person.” I was a firsthand witness to some examples of Chaba commanding that respect.
Although Chaba Pallaghy and I were not related, he called me “one of his sons,” and I called him Uncle Chaba. My relationship with Uncle Chaba went back to the 1970s, as he and my father Dan had become great friends. They shared a love for fencing and traveled the world together as referees, including numerous Olympic Games. As my father became less involved with fencing and I became much more involved, Uncle Chaba not only became my friend, but a mentor. When another of Uncle Chaba’s sons, Russell Wilson, called me to let me know Chaba just returned home from a hospital stay due to pneumonia, and was in very tough shape, I knew I had to visit him right away. I made the drive to visit my great friend and mentor knowing it would likely be the last time we would see each other. When I arrived and saw the always-dapper Uncle Chaba in such a tough way, it was heartbreaking. For the next two hours, we told old war stories and talked about the good old days. Candidly, and for obvious reasons, Chaba was not in a cheerful mood, but I finally got him to laugh when I did my dead-on imitation of Wilson. However, the highlight of my final visit with Uncle Chaba was him getting me to laugh. I asked, “Uncle Chaba, who was the greatest saber referee you ever saw?” Without blinking an eye, but with a gleam in his eyes, Chaba said, “You mean, except for me?” Touché! Coincidentally, my Rules/Referees column in this edition deals with the egos of referees. Make no mistake about it, Chaba had an enormous ego. It was a well-deserved ego, as Chaba had served
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This was a classic. At the Junior World Championships in Stuttgart in 1986, Bob Cottingham was getting the short end of nearly every call. Chaba walked over to the strip, facing the referee in the stance for which he was reknowned, with his arms crossed, the right foot pointing at the person, leaning back on his left hip and clearly letting the referee know he was watching. He did not say a word. For those of you old enough to remember “The Godfather,” it was akin to the scene when Frank Pentangeli was about to testify against the Corleone family. His brother, Vincenzo, shows up at the trial, makes eye contact Frank, and Frank completely changed his testimony. Cottingham went on to make the 1988 and 1992 Olympic Teams, but he won that bout because Chaba’s silent presence miraculously caused that referee to see his actions a little more clearly. When I reached out to Carl Borack, who was team captain from 1986 to 2000, including four Olympic Games, he said, “I remember Stuttgart well. What Chaba did for Cottingham’s bout became a very common occurrence. We didn’t always win the bout, but Chaba’s bigger-than-life presence regularly leveled the playing field for our fencers. “Chaba was an enormous help to me as I was learning to navigate the FIE refereeing waters.” The most memorable moment took place at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles, as Peter Westbrook was the great hope for the United States’ first Olympic medal in twenty-four years. Albert Axelrod’s bronze in Rome in 1960 seemed like an eternity ago. The was a buzz in the Long Beach Convention Center, everyone who was anyone in USA Fencing was there, and American fencing was ready for a collective celebration. However, this was before electric saber, so in addition to the subjective calls of the referee, there were the subjective calls of the four side judges. There were so many variables on every single action that nearly every call resulted in some type of hysteria. And,
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as the United States was not yet the international powerhouse we eventually became, let’s just say it was uphill battle to get any call. And, in Westbrook’s bout in the round of 16 with Italy’s Gianfranco Dalla Barba, the referee and one side judge apparently weren’t giving Westbrook anything. I was at the side of the strip and watched the bout unfold. While there is no way I could be objective, it certainly appeared to me and others standing near me, such as Emik Kaidanov, Borack and Donald Anthony (another son, by the way), that every call was going against Westbrook. It was call-after-call. Of course, Uncle Chaba was there … where else would he be when Westbrook, his favorite son, was on a path to the elusive Olympic medal? This resulted in Dalla Barba building a seemingly insurmountable 6-1 lead in the ten-touch bout. At that point, the exasperated Westbrook stopped fencing and put his mask and saber on the strip. As Westbrook said to me: “There was no way I was going to win this bout. Everyone watching could see what was going on. I decided to stop fencing. The referee threatened to give me a black card. Well, if I did nothing, I was either going to lose because of the black card or because of the referee’s calls. Those were the only two possibilities. So Chaba came over to me and said to call for the directoire technique (bout committee). As always, I listened to Uncle Chaba. The DT comes over, others on the floor seeing the ruckus came over, and Chaba positioned himself facing the referee, taking the imposing Chaba stance. Basically, all eyes were on the referee. Lo and behold, I started getting the calls I deserved! I didn’t want any gifts, I just wanted it to be fair.”
told me to hold both positions at the same time was a conflictof-interest,” he said. “Not only was he right, but he was the only person who had the courage to tell me to my face. While he was immensely powerful, Chaba was extremely dignified.” Borack credited Chaba with helping improve not only refereeing in the United States as well as throughout North and South America as well as Asia. “Chaba not only helped elevate the American referees internationally, but also encouraged and promoted referees from Canada, the Pan American Confederation and the Asian Confederation,” Borack said. “He changed the landscape completely, and by doing so, strengthened the countries that weren’t traditional powerhouses.” Wilson clarified the respect Chaba commanded and the fear he instilled. “When Uncle Chaba came over to the strip to make sure the referee knew he was watching, it was not to get the referee to give touches that weren’t deserved. That was never the case,” Wilson said. “Chaba was only interested in keeping the playing field level. Nobody in USA Fencing should ever forget that Chaba Pallaghy helped level the playing field for a generation of American saber fencers.” On behalf of American fencing, thank you Uncle Chaba.
Westbrook overcame a 9-7 deficit to defeat Dalla Barba, 11-9, and went on to win the bronze medal later that evening, thereby ending the United States’ 24-year drought. Westbrook went on to say, “If not for Uncle Chaba’s presence at that moment, I would have been eliminated in the round of 16, and there would have been no Olympic medal.” Kaidanov remembered Chaba, the referee. “At the 1979 Luxardo World Cup, there was a bout between Italy’s Michele Maffei and the Soviet Union’s Vladimir Nazlymov. The bout was incredibly hard and Chaba was flawless. There were all sorts of simultaneous actions and he didn’t miss anything,” Kaidanov said. “On the final touch, Maffei initiated an intricate action I had never seen before and Nazlymov attempted a counter-beat. It was a super-fast and nuanced action and extremely tough to call. Without any hesitation, Chaba called the action for Maffei. He had the guts to call it and he got it right.” Kaidanov summed up Chaba, the man. “He was a principled man. When I was both the national training director and member of the Fencing Officials Commission, Chaba
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POSTCARDS FROM THE STRIP BY DR. BONNIE L. HENNIG-TRESTMAN FINDING A HAPPY PLACE IN ART AND FENCING
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rt is my happy place. Fencing, well, let’s just say it is a love-hate relationship.
When I began fencing 15 years ago, I began thinking about somehow combining art and fencing. Whenever I saw large “found object” sculptures, I envisioned a life-sized fencer. I carried that vision with me for years. Fast forward to 2019. I was volunteering at the Taubman Museum of Art Annual Sidewalk Art Show in Roanoke, Virginia. I met a couple from Florida who were displaying and selling found object art in their booth. Most of the items were small. These included turtles, frogs, fish and an impressive medium-sized dragon. The largest pieces were of tall birds made from motorcycle gas tanks. I immediately introduced myself and talked about my vision. The creator of the larger pieces, Josh Price, was intrigued. We spoke about the potential for a commissioned piece and I took one of his business cards. I don’t think he expected to hear from me. A few months later I emailed Josh asking if he recalled our conversation. He did, said he was happy to hear from me, and we set up a time to chat. The first conversation included viewing text message photos of me in full fencing gear along with a stick figure diagram of rough dimensions. I told Josh I really wanted to be part of this journey and give input along the way and he was very excited about this collaboration. From start to finish with a few breaks in-between, the sculpture came to life over a 13-month period. I’m pretty sure there were days Josh wanted to reach through the phone to throttle me. Although I certainly let him know up front that I was a perfectionist, I think he got more than he bargained for. In my defense, the messages at the end of this process from Josh read like this: ”You have an amazing eye for detail. Any time something seemed ‘off’ you knew right away what it was and made suggestions. You have helped to push my boundaries and allowed me to become a better artist.” I think that is sweet but I still think it is code for: “You were a giant pain in my butt.” The reality is that now I couldn’t be happier. I watched the creation, or as I say, the birth of this sculpture. I have named her “Pointe En Ligne.” She symbolizes confidence, strength and poise. Now fencing is my happy place too.
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v
RULES & REFEREES
BY JEFF BUKANTZ
NOT
WHAT IS ULTIMATELY THE JOB OF THE REFEREE? It is ultimately NOT the job of the referee to put their ego ahead of the fencers.
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s we discussed in the previous issue, the referee’s job is to enforce the rules, call the actions, keep the environment safe, control the fencers, coaches, parents and spectators, and, ultimately, to maintain a level playing field. The best referees check all of those boxes, and as a result are assigned to the most important and potentially contentious bouts and matches. These referees are fair, consistent, always put the fencers first and strive to diffuse an incident rather than throw a black card. Unfortunately, in nearly half a century (yikes!) of refereeing, I have encountered numerous referees who check all the boxes of what not to do. • Great referees have a feel for seeing the most complicated actions, while others appear to struggle to see relatively simple actions • Great referees will make the same call at 14-14 as they would at 0-0, while others will almost always find a way not to make the most crucial call of the bout • Great referees quietly diffuse tense situations, while others have a propensity to escalate them • Great referees, when looking at a video review, are single-minded in getting the call right, while others are single-minded in defending their original call • Great referees always appear confident and relaxed, no matter the situation, but others regularly appear tense, nervous and distressed • Great referees shine when the going gets tough, while others crumble • Great referees are open to constructive criticism, while others know it all Well, I’m sure you’re already thinking of the refs you know and whether they fall into the “great” or the “others” category. However, it is a specific personality trait that is the key component of what a referee should NOT bring to the strip.
Even if a referee checks all or most of the right boxes, a runaway ego will negate those otherwise positive traits. Let’s stipulate that we all have egos. Whether as a fencer or as a referee, it was always a competition to me. I know that as a referee I always wanted to be the best, make every call correctly, get the best assignments and never be embarrassed publicly by a fencer or coach. I know that while I didn’t yearn to be the center of attention, I absolutely wanted to control the strip. I also know that as a young and relatively inexperienced referee, I’m sure there were times when I exhibited an attitude and let my ego take over. The same as with other newbie refs, it was likely a natural defense mechanism as opposed to being ego-driven. Let’s give the neophyte referees some benefit of the doubt, as they are still developing their competence and confidence. However, it is quite unfortunate that some of the most qualified and experienced referees do put their egos at center stage. I’m not saying these refs don’t do a great job for the fencers and aren’t extremely competent. In no way am I suggesting these refs are anything but great. I’m just saying that their greatness is tainted by their overinflated and ever-present egos. Now, the referee cadre comprises those who were high-level fencers and those who weren’t. It is understandable that a referee who used to fence in the World Championships or Olympics would have a well-earned ego. It is undeniably difficult to leave the limelight of competing on the strip and being the center of attention, to conducting business from the side of the strip. Candidly, you’d expect that referee to sometimes let their ego take over, as they used to be the star and still want to be the star. On the other hand, the referee who wasn’t a great fencer is finally getting their day in the sun, and, hence, may also exhibit a full-blown ego. Fortunately, most referees always put the fencers first and check their egos at the door. But, for those who don’t, it often creates an unhealthy environment.
I spoke with five-time Olympic coach Yury Gelman, who didn’t pull punches about referees letting their egos get in the way of their job. “The main responsibility of the referee is to just be fair and do their job. Never to put their ego ahead of the job. Some referees punish fencers who show a negative reaction or question a call. It is not possible to always be right. Referees are human beings,” Gelman said. “With some referees, they have a big ego all the time. As a result, the fencers try to be nice to them and, at the same time, are afraid to question any calls.” Gelman echoed what I mentioned earlier about the referee who never changes the call on a video challenge, saying: “With these referees, it is unfair to the fencers. Fencers feel like it is not worth challenging a call, as this referee almost never changes the original call. To make matters worse, the fencers are afraid to make this challenge, as the big-ego referee will then punish them afterward during the bout.” When it came to this being a bigger problem with less-experienced or more-experience refs, Gelman didn’t hesitate: “Clearly, this is a much bigger problem with the less-experienced referees. They often act as if they know everything and how dare you question or challenge them. Many are extremely defensive. But for me the biggest problem with the younger and less experienced referees is that they are instructed to focus on the coaches’ behaviors and sometimes lose focus on the bouts. It is very unhealthy when cards come first, and discussion second.” Gelman expressed frustration regarding whether referees with questionable behavior have consequences. “When fencers, coaches and even parents act inappropriately or unprofessionally, they are rightfully punished. Yet, I almost never see a referee who acted inappropriately or unprofessionally, whether ego-driven or not, get punished,” he said. “I believe it is ultimately the responsibility of the leadership to keep the egos in check, but the apparent lack of accountability has the opposite effect.”
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Gelman’s ever-present candor is appreciated. Although it may ruffle some feathers, it will provoke thought. As long as we’re speaking about referees’ egos, I decided to reach out to my dear friend Russell Wilson, whose ego is well-earned and well-known. Wilson was no slouch as a fencer, having represented the United States at the 1982, 1983 and 1984 Junior World Championships. However, Russ was a prodigy as a referee, having earned his FIE B in all three weapons by the age of 19. Incredibly, WIlson earned his triple-A FIE rating in 1988, at the age of 24, the youngest referee in history to have accomplished that feat, when he also officiated at the Seoul Olympics. As our refereeing careers paralleled each other, which included being roommates at multiple World Championships, I had a firsthand look at Russ’s development. He was not short on confidence, let’s put it that way. Wilson is very open to discussing the perception that he had a world-class ego as a referee. “I was being pushed on the international scene at a very young age. I had the backing and protection of then-FIE Executive Committee member Chaba Pallaghy and I spoke multiple languages,” Wilson said. “I was afraid of nothing or no one and I embraced the political scene of international refereeing. None of that would’ve mattered if I wasn’t a good ref, though.” Wilson continued: “I know there were times I let my ego supersede what was best for the fencers. I saw the actions quickly and made my calls even quicker. That was my style internationally. I probably developed it to show the fencers I saw the action, I was completely sure about what I saw, and let’s move on to the next action before you can even think about questioning the call.” On the NCAA circuit, however, Wilson admitted that his tactics should have been different. “When I officiated college meets, I kept the machine-gun pace of calls. This was good for me, but I know it irritated the fencers,” he said. “It really wasn’t best for them, and this was clearly an example of putting my ego first. Although I never punished the fencers, I was annoyed and disgusted that anyone could possibly question one of the great Russell Wilson’s calls. While I was pissed internally when fencers questioned my calls, I tried to be deal with them fairly and engage openly. There is a distinct difference between having an ego and putting it ahead of the fencers.” Wilson went to on to give his thoughts on referees and their egos. “I saw many international refs with gigantic
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egos. But I think the problem is much bigger domestically. The referee is no bigger or smaller than the fencers. They are just one aspect of running a fencing tournament. It is when they deviate from that mindset when the problems start,” Wilson said. “A lot of the egodriven referees really don’t have the credentials. As Carl Borack so eloquently put it: ‘They are arrogant without portfolio. But whether you have the credentials or not, your ego should never come ahead of the fencers.’” I have always been a big believer in doing everything in my power as a referee to diffuse a situation before the last resort of a black card. I think I’ve given out seven since 1973. Wilson, in direct contrast, had a very quick black card trigger finger. “I gave a lot of black cards and every single one of them was deserved. I was given the moniker of ‘The Czar of Noire,’” Wilson said. “From early in my career, I became the designated ref to handle troublemakers and tense bouts or meets. I really regret that this became part of my reputation. I wish I hadn’t been put into every situation like that. Some in the fencing community accused me of putting my ego ahead of the fencers for properly enforcing the rules and giving those cards.” I pushed back a little and said: “Russ, I’m sure every black card you gave was deserved. But, when you look back, don’t you think you could have diffused some of those situations before the black card was given?” “Maybe. But I look at it differently,” he replied. “By giving black cards when they were deserved, it served as a deterrent for fencers and coaches acting inappropriately.” It is certainly refreshing to hear a referee who was once considered one of the best in the world openly acknowledge that there were times when his ego did take center stage. I also reached out to Ivan Lee, as he made the transition from world-class fencer (with a world-class ego) to referee. “There were times when I let my ego affect the flow of the bout. The fencers usually weren’t the problem, rather, it was the coaches. I’d stop the bout to go at it with the coaches,” Lee admitted. “I felt it was my job to explain to the coaches why I made my call and why they shouldn’t be arguing. But, as I learned, my job was to make the calls, not battle or try to educate the coaches.” As Ivan was an Olympian in 2004 and ranked in the FIE top-16 for nine years, I asked him if it was tough to make the transition from being the show to becoming a referee. “Actually, it was challenging for me because other referees who’d been refereeing much longer than me told me I didn’t know what I was doing,” Lee said. “They said that just because I was a good fencer it didn’t mean
I would automatically become a good ref. But, yes, it took me a little time to realize and accept that I was no longer the center of attention.” Regarding the problem of runaway egos, Lee said: “The very best international refs have some of the largest egos I’ve ever seen. But they all answer to a higher source within the FIE, and never want their egos to potentially affect being assigned to a major event. Lee noted that egos among referees can be an issue among the next generation. “As I see it, a generation of young American referees with FIE licenses have egos that appear to have gone unchecked. While those egos are held in check at international competitions, they are sometimes out-of-control at our NACs,” he said. “I’m not sure what, if any, concerted effort is made from the Referees Commission to rein-in the ego-driven refs, but clearly there is a problem.” Gelman, Wilson and Lee all agreed there is a problem with referees putting their egos ahead of what is best for the fencers. The trio concurred that, while this problem exists internationally, the problem is bigger domestically. They also agreed the problem is more prevalent with younger and less-experienced refs. Finally, they all agreed the situation could improve with a concerted effort by the leadership. I reached-out to Patrick Webster, vice chair of the Referees Commission in charge of domestic development, to address the issue at hand. “I don’t disagree there is a problem out there. We push the young referees hard, and as a result many develop an ego, same as they would in corporate America,” Webster said. “We take great effort in developing the young refs and explaining what is expected of them if they are to become successful international referees.” As for the Referees Commission dealing with the problem of runaway egos of the young refs, Webster said: “We do one-on-one mentoring. We tell the ego-driven refs they are doing a disservice to the fencers, coaches and parents. The problem is bigger today than in past generations because we have developed exponentially more qualified young referees than in the past. The Referees Commission recognizes the problem and will continue to work with the referees who put their egos ahead of the fencers.” It was very reassuring to hear the Referees Commission not only accepts there is a problem, but is actively dealing with it.
SPORTS MEDICINE Q&A
BY JEREMY SUMMERS
1, 2, 3, EQUATION FOR A SAFE TRAINING ENVIRONMENT DURING COVID-19
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he coronavirus has decimated lives across the globe. The United States of America surpassed 33 million cases and 600,000 deaths from COVID-19 by June of this year – nearly a year and a half after the nation’s first confirmed case of COVID-19.
TO BRIEFLY PUT THIS IN PERSPECTIVE:
• The U.S. lost 2,977 lives during 9/11 • 2,501 American lives were lost on D-Day when the allied forces stormed Normandy • On Jan 12, 2021, the U.S. reported 4,327 deaths, the U.S. highest total of lives lost in one day due to the pandemic • In the first 18 days of Jan 2021, the U.S. has lost 53,316 lives due to the COVID-19 pandemic • The U.S. is on pace to lose more American lives than during any war in our history COVID-19 disrupted fencing clubs; cancelled numerous events, including the 2020 Junior and Cadet Worlds as well as the Vet Worlds; postponed the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games; and halted more than a year of the USA Fencing North American Cup circuit. How we rebound as a fencing community to make positive change for the safest training environment is up to ALL of us.
1-2-3 EQUATION FOR A SAFE TRAINING ENVIRONMENT
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ADHERE TO BEST PRACTICES
As we have previously written, it is imperative that clubs, coaches, parents and athletes pledge to make their environments safe for training and the return of our sport during the COVID-19 pandemic. It is suggested that mask wearing will be around for at least one or more years as the vaccine effort continues; and, “yes,” this includes individuals who have received the vaccine because they can spread it just like the rest of us without symptoms. Medical experts say asymptomatic spread of COVID-19 is very real and a recent study found that nearly 40 percent of children who tested positive for COVID-19 were asymptomatic.
There is ZERO room for individuals who do not believe in COVID-19 nor that mask wearing does not help prevent the spread of COVID-19. The refusal for not adhering to science and the tactics to reduce transmission exposure has no place in any sports community, period. This includes common practices for all sport participants at home, work, training facility or school (all the time). It is imperative to stay informed and follow instructions from medical professionals, pledge to be honest about your or your child’s health and always adhere to good hygiene and social distancing to the greatest extent possible. This includes wearing a mask when in public and includes all members of your family or friends with whom you come into contact. Overall and moving forward, the strategy of a community approach to combating COVID-19 in sport is the most effective way to be successful.
2TECHNOLOGY
Incorporating the advancement of technology for club administrators is highly recommended to consider. Technology can support tracking and limit the risk of COVID-19 transmission that has ramped up over the past year. Phone and/or web-based apps to monitor and screen athletes is something many organizations and clubs around the country are currently considering implementing. Here are a handful of sport-based apps for coach and athlete screening enabling clubs to help protect their sport and members, and that are relatively cheap. • Athlete Monitoring App – One dollar per user for 12 months and paid annually. Allows sport club administrators to monitor/ screen for COVID-19 symptoms and team compliance. • Clear2Play App – A web and mobile app providing fully customizable daily health checks, test and vaccine tracking, and a full suite of digital document management (COVID-19 waivers, parent/athlete agreements, etc.). They feature real-time alerts and secure cloud-based storage. It is priced at $12 per user per year. Other costs may be
reviewed on their website, www.Clear2Play.com. • TeamSNAP App – A sport management service, TeamSNAP strives to offer clubs and administrators solutions in coordinating practices, schedule games/events, reduce liability and risk and plan for future events. TeamSNAP offers a “Health Check” feature with costs unknown, but you can search and inquire via their website.
3WEAR BETTER MASKS
Like most athletes, there is a good chance you are wearing a cloth or surgical mask during training or physical exercise. We all have seen many types of masks and some with which we may be extremely uncomfortable. So, what is a good standard to follow? Homemade cloth masks were encouraged as a stopgap measure during severe shortages in the supply chain for masks. As you may know, medical-grade masks called respirators or N95 masks are not to be used during exercise, due to these devices not allowing small particles in or out. Also, masks with an exhaust valve are not viable due to the mask not protecting the public, which are usually used in construction work to protect the worker from the environment only. The world is overwhelmed with fraudulent mass medical-grade masks production with some that may be as little as one percent effective. Currently, there is an absence of certification available (e.g. FDA) for the most useful masks for the public and sport participants. Countries across the globe are beginning to recommend and/or mandate high-quality, medical-grade masks for public use to better protect against the transmission of COVID-19. However, fixing the problem may be more urgent now that a new B.1.1.7 virus variant is traversing the world. This variant is about 5070 percent more transmissible than the original virus discovered early last year. It is important that all sport participants and their guardians know “your mask protects me, and my mask protects you.” Overall, there are few characteristics making masks more
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effective. The No. 1 characteristic is the fit and second is the material and/or number of layers. If any reader wears glasses, they will know right away if a mask is properly fit or not by their glasses fogging up. Minimizing escaping air/respiratory droplets by a properly fit mask and its absorption of respiratory droplets is the overall goal. If you do not wear glasses, throw on your sunglasses and if they fog up the mask fit is not secure. Lastly, absorption is a key component and the more wet a mask becomes the more it loses its core function of protecting your fencing family around you. So, what can we do and what are our options in sport? 1. Any mask is better than no mask. 2. Ditch the homemade cloth mask. 3. Ditch the surgical mask, if possible. These usually are the worst-fitting masks if not put on properly. 4. Find a mask that is comfortable and fits properly. 5. Equally, find a mask that has at least two layers of protection. 6. Ditch a wet mask during training and/or find one that absorbs better. 7. Lastly, work on a balance of filtration and breathability that best fits you. Below are some masks that seem to have a good fit and enough materials and layers to be able to absorb the respiratory droplets. Remember, these listed masks are not certified by any overseeing body like the FDA and are not 100% effective; however, decreasing the
SPORTS SCIENCE
risk of transmission by a proper number of layers and a properly fit mask can help better protect our fencing community. • UA Sportsmask: Made for athletes. Durable, structure and secure but not tight. Multilayered for absorption. Washable and reusable. • Athleta, Activate Face Mask: Adjustable soft knit ear loops for all-day comfort. Performance-driven with TurboDry fabric. Moldable fit around nose and cheek bones. • Hammacher Schlemmer, The Antibacterial Cooling Face Mask: Infused with antibacterial silver nano particles to protect from trapped pollutants. Also, has an adjustable ear straps and a metal nose bridge for a more secure fit. • Reebook Face Covers: Made of recycled polyester and elastane. Tight fit coverage with comfortable stretch around the ears. Two layers of fabric. Washable. • Adidas Face Covers: Made of recycled polyester and elastane. Tight fit coverage with comfortable stretch around the ears. Two layers of fabric. Washable. • Carbon38, The Mask Kit: Multilayered with Oeke-Tex cotton, recycled Primaloft for filtration, filter screen and Oeko-Tex microfiber four-way stretch fabric. • U-Mask Model 2: If you have ever seen Formula One drivers, this is what they are wearing. Replaceable filters. Custom secure fit if sized properly. The most expensive mask on this list.
BY DR. ROBERT OWENS
GOT CULTURAL HUMILITY? A FUNCTIONAL APPROACH TO LEADING DIVERSE TEAMS
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s a performance coach and educator of mental performance coaches, I consult with athletes and coaches on how to lead through excellence and inspire optimal individual, team and organizational performances. Many of my athletes are college students competing at the varsity or club level. One of the challenges they face is how to effectively communicate with each other during a time of deepening racial divide in our country. Student-athletes who are members of BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) communities are put in the situation of being a “team player” and ignoring the microaggressions they experience from coaches, fans, officials and even their teammates. This can lead to what is known as the “intergroup
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bias effect” (Homan et al, 2020) where individual members of the team begin perceiving members who are similar to them more favorably than members who are of different cultural or ethnic backgrounds. Intergroup biases negatively affect team communication. This can be extremely detrimental to team performance, especially when combined with the stressors of COVID-19 where many of my athletes are currently in a state of limbo waiting to hear when they will be able to practice again and are fearful that they will not be in “game shape” when the competitive season begins.
I use the example of one of my athletes who was having difficulties communicating with two of his fellow teammates. I had been working with this athlete for about four months on a weekly and semi-weekly basis. During one of our consultations, he mentioned he was upset because two of his teammates were no longer speaking to him. When I asked why, he stated it was due to a “difference of opinion” surrounding politics. When I asked him to be more specific, he kept hedging and after about five minutes of talking in circles, I empathetically confronted him and said: “Well, it doesn’t seem like you are going to tell me what is on your mind. It is okay. We don’t have to talk about it.” After a moment, he responded: “I don’t want you to think less of me.” In response, I immediately broached the issue of race with him and affirmed that anything he said would not change our coaching relationship. He then went on to explain his teammates were not speaking to him because of the candidate he voted for in the 2020 presidential election. He could not understand why they were not speaking to him and not giving him the opportunity to explain why he voted the way he did, because he was raised to talk through conflict. As his coach, it was important for me to quietly listen to his story without interruption to obtain a sense of his worldview and how it shaped him as both a person and an athlete. After listening to him and acknowledging the difficult situation he was in, I revisited a conversation he and I had earlier about the importance of “taking space and making space.” I inquired if he was taking up too much space by trying to force the conversation instead of giving his teammates the space to have the conversation when they were ready. Listening to the stories of other members of a team requires self-reflection and a consideration of one’s own cultural humility. Hook and colleagues (2013) define cultural humility as the “ability to maintain an interpersonal stance that is other-oriented (or open to the other) in relation to aspects of cultural identity that are most important to the [person]” (p. 2). In simpler terms, athletes should be aware of where they are in terms of their willingness to engage in perspective-taking and entertain the ideas of another teammate, especially when the other teammate’s background and identities may be different from their own. I liken it to exploring the other person’s “cave.” How does this person show up in the world, how are their worldviews different from mine and what are the blind spots
preventing me from fully seeing this person in their fullness? We need to know who we are, our strengths and areas for growth, in order to become better versions of ourselves, as individual athletes and as teams. One of the essential leadership lessons I try to instill in my athletes is that each member of the team has a function in ensuring the team’s successes or failures. Functional leadership is different from other leadership approaches including transformational leadership or servant leadership in that functional perspectives of leadership focus primarily on the team, and not the individual who may have a formal leadership role of coach or team captain (Coleman & Morales, 2019). Functional leadership is like functional fitness. We all need it to perform at our best. To achieve it requires intentionality. According to the functional leadership model, teams that are diverse in terms of gender and gender identity, race, ethnicity, faith, sexual orientation, etc. are more susceptible to intergroup bias and lack of information sharing among members (Homan et al., 2020). To mitigate bias and foster information sharing amongst the team, it is important for athletes (and coaches) to lead by attending to the wellbeing of team members, resolving conflicts between individual members and subgroups, and listening to members’ personal stories. Athletes should also consider what informal (functional) roles they currently inhabit within the team’s culture and how these roles promote wellbeing or create conflict including roles like the “spark plug” that inspire the team toward a common goal or roles like “cancer” that are the constant purveyors of negative emotion (Cope et al. 2011). As a performance coach, I have found that shifting the conversation to leadership is productive as it helps empower athletes to see how they can shape and influence team dynamics and cohesion. Having these conversations is also powerful for me as a coach because I can help the athlete focus on “controlling the controllables.” Moreover, I can motivate athletes to set goals that align with the core values and culture of the team without compromising their personal values or cultural identities, teach them self-regulation to achieve expressed goals and encourage them to communicate effectively with other members of the team, knowing when to take space and make space, with the intent of fostering a mindset that the team is all in this together and can grow from embracing diversity within the team.
REFERENCES Coleman, J.M., & Morales, H. (2019). Leadership. In A. Mugford & J.G. Cremades (Eds.) Sport, exercise, and performance: Theories and applications (pp. 382-406). Routledge. Cope, C. J., Eys, M. A., Beauchamp, M. R., Schinke, R. J., & Bosselut, G. (2011). Informal roles on sport teams. International Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 9(1), 19-30. Homan, A. C., Gündemir, S., Buengeler, C., & van Kleef, G. A. (2020). Leading diversity: Towards a theory of functional leadership in diverse teams. Journal of Applied Psychology, 105(10), 1101-1128. Hook, J. N., Davis, D. E., Owen, J., Worthington Jr, E. L., & Utsey, S. O. (2013). Cultural humility: Measuring openness to culturally diverse clients. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 60(3), 353-366.
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By Kristen Henneman
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ackie Dubrovich has been busy the last couple years. After making her first Senior World Championship Team, winning team bronze and getting engaged in 2019, Dubrovich continues to climb the ranks in women’s foil, sitting at No. 2 in the USA Fencing National Team Point Standings. While working full time in the advertising industry, Dubrovich qualified for the Olympic Games in March and made her Olympic debut in Tokyo, where she earned a top-32 individual finish and placed fourth in the team event.
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What was your Olympic experience like? It was obviously incredible to be at the Olympics – kind of hard to put into words. It was a unique Olympics to say the least. I spoke to some teammates who had been to other Olympics and it was very different in years past because of COVID, but just to be there, to be surrounded by all these incredibly talented athletes and to compete in the highest echelon of our sport, it’s hard to put into words what that meant. It was tough. I lost my first bout by one touch and we were very close to medaling as a team as well in our bout against Russia to make the finals, so it’s hard and it’s something that I’m still trying to process. A lot has happened since then, so I’m obviously very appreciative of the opportunity and enjoyed every minute of it. It’s a lot to process when you get home and all the Olympic craziness dies down. Were there any athletes you met that stood out to you? Yeah. Kevin Durant. [My fiancé] Brian is a huge Brooklyn Nets fan – diehard from when he was a little boy. He is not a bandwagon fan. He’s loved the Nets ever since the beginning, and I’m a pretty shy person when it comes to approaching celebrities. I feel uncomfortable asking them for photos and stuff. I remember having a conversation with Brian. He’s like, “If you see Kevin Durant, you have to come up to him.” And I saw him – this was the night of the Opening Ceremony – and he came out into the pavilion behind the Team USA House and was taking photos with other athletes. I’m just standing there literally shaking. I was like, “Do I do it? Do I do it?” I’m motivating myself, giving myself a pep talk, saying, “You can this.” I just remembered Brian. He would be so disappointed if I gave up this opportunity. So Kevin was about to leave and I was like, “Kevin!” in this overly awkward shy voice. “Do you mind taking a picture with me?” He did and he was very gracious and really nice. It was such an amazing moment because I’m not a huge basketball fan, or I hadn’t been until I was with Brian, and it was such a cool moment for him. He was like, “I’m going to frame this photo and put it on my desk.” [Laughs]. It was really special. In terms of other exciting news, you’re engaged to Brian Kaneshige. I know you both fence, but how did you meet? We knew each other because we both fenced in high school in New Jersey and so, it’s kind of a small community. It’s a small community nationally, let alone when we’re living in the same state, so we knew of each other. Actually, at the 2011 Junior and
JACKIE WITH BRIAN AND THEIR DOG MIKA, WHOM THEY ADOPTED DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC.
Cadet World Championships in Jordan, that’s when we got to know each other and it’s going to be 10 years at the end of this year, so in December of 2021, that we’ve been together. So I can really thank fencing for that. So how did Brian propose and what are you guys planning for the wedding? He proposed [the summer of 2019]. We were doing long distance for a while. I was at Columbia and Brian was at Harvard. He’s a year older and he decided to stay a year post graduation, so we were doing long distance for quite a while. He had always said that he was going to propose to me – there’s a church on Harvard’s campus, a beautiful church – and the first time I visited him, it was kind of funny, but he was like, “I’m going to propose to you here.” And at that time, I was like, “‘We just started dating. That’s a little forward of you.” [Laughing]. So then, last summer, we planned this impromptu trip and went to Boston and had a little weekend getaway. He took me to Harvard’s campus and he had compiled all these photos, from the very first visit when I came up to Harvard to the most recent ones that we had taken and he’d prepared a little book of all these photos and then at the end of that, he proposed by that church. So it was very meaningful, definitely very thoughtful. In terms of the wedding, it’s been tough with the pandemic and also training for the Olympics. Things have been postponed and really we haven’t JACKIE WITH HER FIANCÉ BRIAN EXPLORING CAIRO WHILE IN EGYPT FOR THE GRAND PRIX. gotten much wedding planning done. Assuming that people who were supposed to get married last year and this year, they’re going to be postponed, so that further postpones us, so really I’m just trying to get through the Olympics and then we’ll probably start planning more concretely, but I think we’re going to have two wedding ceremonies. One will be in Okinawa, Japan, where Brian has family, and it’s going to be a much smaller ceremony. And then we’re going to have a bigger ceremony, with more friends and family that are able to make it in the States. But it’s all very TBD at this point. What’s it like dating another fencer? Does that help in some capacities with what you went through in training for the Olympics? That’s a great question. I think there’s two sides of it. Brian is no longer fencing, but it’s fantastic to have a training partner. He’s
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very knowledgeable about fencing, so when we watch videos of my fencing or he watches me compete, he has a really high fencing IQ, so it’s great to get that perspective from him, and he’s just incredibly supportive. There are very few people who understand what it’s like to be on this Olympic journey as a fencer, specifically, and so for him to be by my side and just know all the trials and tribulations associated with it has been a blessing.
Building up to 2020 Games, did you always want to be an Olympian or was there a moment where you thought it was possible? I think I’ve always wanted to make the Olympics. I think whenever you’re a serious athlete that’s making various cadet and junior teams, fencing in college and you still feel you have that passion and hunger, you naturally want to make the Olympics. For me personally, I wasn’t honestly sure if I wanted to continue fencing after college. I’d kind of, I would say lost my passion a little bit and felt like I had plateaued in my fencing.
On the other hand, I’m also someone who really likes to leave the fencing talk when I leave the fencing gym or the competition. So, sometimes, if Brian wants to talk about fencing, but I don’t, that could lead to a little bit of, not conflict, but misalignment there [laughs].
Really I give a lot of credit to Brian. Who we had a conversation about it, and he told me he definitely saw the potential in me. He brought me on board to work with Jed Dupree and I felt reinvigorated. I felt like I had a purpose. I felt I had a tangible goal that I was reaching for. And I think the pursuit of the goal, which was the Olympic Games, really reignited my love and my hunger for the sport. I think naturally through that, that was the driver for me to continue was to have that goal in mind, and to also do it together.
JACKIE QUALIFIED FOR HER FIRST OLYMPIC TEAM AT THE DOHA GRAND PRIX IN MARCH OF 2021.
My friends all joke about this, but I’m very emotional when I fence and once when he was in my box, I yelled at him and actually got yellow carded [laughs] by the referee. I think I’m the only person in history that has gotten yellow carded for yelling at my significant other who was in the box coaching me, so that’s a little bit of an embarrassing story … But obviously more than anything, having him there is a blessing. At the end of the day, he knows it’s not against him, but I’ve definitely tried to rein it in. Let me back up a little bit. How did you start fencing? I started when I was eight. My parents wanted me to get into a sport, but I was always pretty tall and kind of uncoordinated and lanky for my age. And so, naturally, they thought it would be a good idea to put me into gymnastics [laughs], which was the complete opposite, so that was kind of a self-esteem killer. I couldn’t do anything that all these smaller girls could do, so I didn’t want to do that anymore and my cousin fenced in New Jersey because there’s a pretty big New Jersey high school fencing community, and so they were like, “Why don’t you try it?” I really did not enjoy it at first. I wasn’t one of those people that was enamored by fencing in the beginning. I was actually teased a lot in school for fencing. But then when I started getting results, I started liking it obviously throughout time. I really started to love the sport for what it is, not just for medals and winning. But it was a bit of a turbulent start in the beginning and obviously I’ve grown to love it very much.
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I had to take a really hard look at did I want to really sacrifice these next four years and seriously pursue the Olympic Games, because with that comes an immense amount of hard work and sacrifice and on top of that, for me, it was very important to continue growing in my career. And so, with that, having both of those responsibilities, it has involved an incredible amount of sacrifice.
In 2019, you make your first Senior World Team. I know women’s foil is a tight group. What that was like breaking on to that world stage? It’s so different comparatively to the Junior and Cadet World Championships and any World Cups and Grand Prix events, and so, I have such immense respect for Lee [Kiefer], Nicole [Ross] and Nzingha [Prescod], who managed to be this cohesive unit for 10-plus years and to be able to be on this team and deal with all the pressures that come with competing at Senior World Championships and then also at the Olympics, so it was definitely … an eye-opening experience for
JACKIE COMPETING IN THE TEAM SEMIFINALS AGAINST RUSSIA IN TOKYO. PHOTO CREDIT: #BIZZITEAM
Quick Facts CLUB: Fencer’s Underground COACH: Brian Kaneshige JACKIE WON BRONZE AS PART OF THE WOMEN’S FOIL TEAM AT THE 2019 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS.
SCHOOL:
Bachelor’s degree from Columbia University in psychology, human rights and Russian literature and culture
CURRENT LOCATION: me at the World Championships. I didn’t do as well as I had hoped for individually, but we did win the bronze medal as a team, and I think that experience that I gained from that is something that I hope I learn from. To ask you a more fun question, you get to do a lot of traveling on the circuit. What is your favorite place you’ve gone while fencing? There are so many cool places. I would say I loved going to Shanghai for the shopping. I’m kind of a shopaholic, so getting all of those deals in Shanghai at the markets is always really fun. I really loved going to St. Petersburg. Both of my parents are Eastern European and for me, it was such an amazing experience to see my culture firsthand. St. Petersburg is such a beautiful city. When we went, it was May and it was still cold, but the city is so gorgeous – the architecture. We did a bit of sightseeing, so I really enjoyed that … I I would also say traveling to Peru for the Pan American Games. I had never been to South America and it was such a different experience. To be able to go to Peru, do some sightseeing and see the culture there, was really awesome. I’d probably say those would be my top three. Do you have any competition or pregame superstitions? I used to when I was younger. I have no idea where this came from, but I always had these pearl earrings I would have to put on and wear before I competed. There was no backstory to it. I just felt like if I didn’t have them on, I wasn’t going to have a good day. But I’ve kind of moved on from that just because there was no basis for that. For me, I really need to have everything be super prepared the night before. So, I’m never one to be packing my bag the morning of. I have everything packed in my bag, all my clothes laid out so I just wake up, get ready in the morning and just head out. I like to feel super organized and feel everything that I can have within my control is in my control. Obviously when you actually compete, not everything is in your control, so I like to make sure that I’m all buttoned up and organized before I get to the competition or else I feel like I’m starting in a very disorganized, chaotic way.
Maplewood, N.J.
BEST RESULTS: 2019 Senior World Championship team bronze medalist 2019 Pan American Team Champion Seventh at the 2019 Tauberbischofsheim World Cup Two-time NCAA team champion Four-time Junior World team medalist (gold in 2014)
GREATEST ACCOMPLISHMENTS:
Making the
2019 Senior Word Team and winning team bronze
FAVORITE FENCING ITEM:
Anything Uhlmann (her
sponsor) and the Kempa shoes
JOCK OR GEEK: Both TRAINING REGIMEN: Train five times a week in the evenings Mornings or afternoons: 2-3 days of conditioning Lessons 4-5 times a week
FAVORITE DRILL: Old Faithful drill “It’s really just about working on technique, being able to hit straight or with one disengage or two disengages. I think making sure that even though I’ve been fencing for so long, it’s important to keep up with the fundamentals. I think sometimes people get a little focused on all the flashy aspects of fencing and doing all of these cool moves, but I think at the core of it, making sure that your fundamentals, so being able to hit with a beat straight, beat disengage, beat two disengages as your opponent is defending themselves in four and six is super important because sometimes the simplest touches are the best touches.”
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whe r e a r e t he y now?
Nikki Franke How the New York Native Who’d Never Heard of Fencing Became One of the Sport’s Biggest Names BY SERGE TIMACHEFF
N
ikki Franke didn’t plan on becoming a fencer. Nor did she dream of being an Olympian or expect to become a fencing coach. And yet, not only did she become all three, she became one of the most successful athletes and coaches in the sport’s history. During her fencing career, Franke won two National Championships and is a two-time Olympian, qualifying for both Games while serving as the head coach of the women’s fencing team at Temple University, where she has racked up more than 850 career wins in 49 years at the head of the program. “I think she has probably the most amount of respect of anyone I know in the fencing community,” said 2019 Senior World Team member and Temple alumna Kamali Thompson. “I think it comes from different reasons. Her career has been amazing. She was an amazing fencer. She has so many athletes as a coach, and on top of that, she’s still the only African-American female coach of a Division I team … and I think the fact that you can be so successful for so long, it means a lot and people recognize it.” It all started back during Franke’s senior year of high school. Growing up in Harlem, Franke had never heard of fencing, but when a new teacher started a fencing club, she was intrigued. “At that time, I was on the tennis team and I think basketball team and I said, ‘That sounds interesting. I’ll go ahead and try that,’” Franke said. “From that point on, it really changed my whole life, my whole trajectory, and it really dictated all the next major steps in my life. So it was purely by chance.” Franke didn’t have plans to fence collegiately, but she was finding success as a beginning fencer and was encouraged to continue in the sport. When Franke met one of her future teammates, Ellen Jacobs, who was on the fencing team at Brooklyn College, her plans changed.
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“[Jacobs] said, ‘Hey, you should come. We have a really good coach, Denise O’Connor, and you should think about coming to Brooklyn,’” Franke said. “At that time, I was planning on going to City College, which was where my brother had gone and was close to where I lived, and I said, ‘Okay, why not?’ So I ended up applying to Brooklyn College and going there and training under Denise O’Connor, which was fabulous and she was a fantastic mentor to me.” Franke’s success continued at Brooklyn College as she became a four-year letter winner. In 1972 as a senior, Franke placed third individually at the NIWFA National Championships and was named an NIWFA All-American. She would later be inducted into the Brooklyn College Hall of Fame in 1979. Looking to become a high school teacher, the next step for Franke required earning a master’s degree. Several Brooklyn College graduates had gone to Temple University as graduate assistants to earn their master’s and teach the fencing classes, and with the current fencing teacher graduating, Temple went back to the pipeline at Brooklyn College. “I had no intention of leaving New York,” Franke said. “I always wanted to be a schoolteacher and I was going to teach school, live happily ever after and my mom and Ms. O’Connor convinced me, ‘Well to teach in New York you have to get your master’s within five years anyway, so you may as well go get your master’s where they’re going to pay for it as part of an assistantship.’” So Franke’s plan was to get her master’s and leave after two years. But instead, she never left. When Franke arrived at Temple, there was a collegiate men’s team, but women’s fencing was a club sport, something Franke was unfamiliar with coming from Brooklyn College.
“And so I went to [women’s athletic director Barbara Lockhart] and I go, ‘How come we don’t have a team? Why do we just have a club?’” Franke said. “Now here I am right out of college, okay? With absolutely no coaching experience whatsoever. And she goes, ‘I don’t know. Should we have a team?’ And I went, ‘Well, yeah!’ And she goes, ‘Well, if you have enough people that are interested, we can do that.’ And that is how the team started. Totally out of my being extremely naïve and her being very open to if there was student interest, we would provide it.” And so the women’s fencing team was started in the 1972-73 season with Franke as the head coach and director of fencing. Building the program from the ground up, she started the team with walk-ons and students from her fencing class, encouraging participants to bring a friend. In the end, Franke fell in love with Temple and coaching. So when she was given the opportunity to continue, she took advantage. In 1979, she coached her first All-American, Maureen Syrnick, who was a member of the field hockey team and joined the fencing team after the field hockey season ended. At the same time, Franke was still fencing at an elite level. She won national titles in 1975 – the same year she earned her master’s degree – and 1980, and competed at the 1976 Olympic Games before qualifying for the 1980 Games. Later, Franke went on to earn her doctorate in 1988 and became a full-time professor in the Department of Public Health. “I didn’t grow up saying, ‘I want to be an Olympic athlete when I grow up.’ It was just like, ‘We’ll work hard and see what happens.’ And so, I never had all my eggs in one basket,” said Franke, who got married in 1975, raised two children and now has three grandchildren. “It was always a balancing act: raising a family, coaching, teaching. I think that helped me to be able to succeed. I really do.” She keeps that same mindset when it comes to her athletes at Temple. “I’ve always had the idea that fencing, especially in college, is something you do in your spare time. And it’s something you don’t have to do, so it should be something that you enjoy. So we work very hard. I push these ladies a lot, but we have fun,” Franke said. “I look for fencers who are passionate about the sport, who really love the opportunity to fence. That’s really important to me because that’s kind of how things have been for me.” In 1992, Franke led the Owls to the NCAA Women’s Foil Championship. The team was inducted into the Temple Hall of Fame this past year. “It was amazing. I just happy for the team. It was the culmination of all their hard work,” Franke said. “It was a young team. No one expected us to win. We were not favored in any way. And so, they had such enthusiasm and they had such support of each other that it was just wonderful to see them succeed. And that’s what made it great for me.” The same year, Franke, along with Tina Sloan Green, Linda Greene
and Alpha Alexander – all of whom she met at Temple – founded the Black Women in Sport Foundation, a non-profit based in Philadelphia that encourages Black women and girls to participate in all aspects of sport, including athletics and coaching administration. The idea for creating the Foundation started when they realized some of the issues and concerns that were important athletes of color weren’t being addressed at the coaching conferences they attended. As a result, they began running their own conferences before starting the Foundation. “The focus of the Foundation is really to provide opportunities for underserved populations in non-traditional sports,” Franke said. “We really felt strongly that, as myself, if I had never been introduced to fencing, I never would have accomplished the things I did in the sport. And so we really believe it’s all about opportunities and exposure … providing that exposure to both girls and young boys and we’ll work afterschool programs, summer camps, those types of things.” Now nearly 50 years into coaching, Franke is still seeing success, and says her student-athletes and the camaraderie keep her going. The Owls ended the 2020-21 season with outstanding results, qualifying five athletes for NCAAs for just the second time in the last 20 years with two fencers placing in the top eight for the first time in history. Senior Eva Hinds finished seventh in saber with sophomore Margherita Calderaro placing sixth in epee – the highest finish in program history for an epee fencer. Franke has also been inducted into the Temple University Athletics Hall of Fame, the International Women’s Sports Hall of Fame and the USA Fencing Hall of Fame. But more than the accolades, it’s the relationships and positive influence she’s had on her students she cares about most. “I think she’s a fantastic coach. She’s so great at giving every fencer what they need, whether that’s something on or off the strip,” Thompson said. “Some people needed tough love. I would say that was more like me when I got to the end of my college career and some people needed an office to come talk to … I think it’s a lot to have 15 girls come into your program every year and their problems become your problems and every year, she just takes them on and she’s such a great support system and a mom for so many of us.” Franke may have found fencing and started coaching by chance. But the positive impact she’s made on hundreds of student-athletes is no accident.
FUN FACT: Franke got married in 1975
and their honeymoon was camping crosscountry to go to Summer Nationals, where Franke won her first National Championship.
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CLUBS & COVID
FENCING THRIVES & SURVIVES BY SERGE TIMACHEFF
ZETA FENCING ACADEMY WORKED ON FACILITY UPDATES AND RENOVATIONS WHEN THE CLUB WAS CLOSED AT THE START OF THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC. PHOTO CREDIT: ZETA FENCING ACADEMY.
I
t’s been just over a year since perhaps the biggest crisis in modern-day fencing confronted clubs across the United States: a global pandemic spreading worldwide and throughout the country with virtually all classes, lessons, open fencing and tournaments coming to an abrupt, government-mandated halt. Regional restrictions went into place shuttering businesses. Facing unexpected membership and revenue losses, club owners faced an uncertain future. However, fencers are not typically characterized as quitters. Years of losing bouts by a single touch, learning how to persevere when the odds are against you and finding new ways of solving problems are inherent in the competitive sword-wielding mentality. A sport that has fought its way to winning a full complement of 12 medals in the Olympic Games, staying relevant through wars, depression and politics, and winning the hearts of millions worldwide throughout the tumultuous 20th century wasn’t about to let a pandemic keep it from moving forward. In chats with clubs across the country, a key bridge – but not the only one – that helped fencing endure the COVID challenge was technology. Fencing has always had a techie-edge to it, from electrical scoring to some of the amazing staging seen at recent World Championships. And this was no exception: In the face of club memberships being sequestered in their homes, unable to shuttle kids to the club several days a week, the new opportunities afforded by the Internet came to the rescue.
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ENTER ZOOM
Arguably, the advent of the Zoom generation – quickly adopted by companies faced with converting office workers and students working from home – became an obvious quick fix to keeping in touch with students and athletes, and a way for clubs to keep close to their members. Within a few weeks, fencing clubs across the country were offering fencing Zoom classes and lessons, and finding new and interesting ways to keep kids in shape, communicate and even organize virtual events. Zoom, it turned out, was a godsend. More than a year later, far longer than anticipated, many clubs are still operating this way. Class sizes in many places across the nation remain limited, with social distancing and face coverings now the new normal. While some locations opened sooner than others, to survive, clubs have been forced to adapt and learn how to service their communities with new value propositions for fencing that don’t necessarily involve face-to-face bouts or tournaments – but still presenting an optimistic hope for a future of getting back on the strip. “The big date was March 16, 2020,” said Terrence Lasker, coach and director of youth programs at Atlanta’s Nellya Fencers Club. “We were lucky to have a very supportive community. We were one of the first clubs to move to Zoom to keep kids exercising and maintain memberships. Maestro Arkady Burdan, who has been very active in social media in past years, had
NELLYA FENCERS KEPT STUDENTS IN SMALL PODS TO ALLOW FOR EASIER MONITORING AND CONTACT TRACING. PHOTO CREDIT: NELLYA FENCERS.
the vision for the club for us to immediately start with groups on Zoom even though we didn’t have private lessons at first. Everyone continued with memberships and after a few weeks we added them.” Savvy clubs throughout the country turned to Zoom as an untried but promising, if short-term, solution to staying in touch with their members and keeping revenue flowing. “We were in one of the most restrictive states of the pandemic,” said Oregon Fencing Alliance’s Cathy Zagunis. “We were completely shut down, while some other states were at least running partial classes with safety precautions. We worked to institute Zoom, getting up on the technology with parents, staff, etiquette, signing in, and what to cover. Coach Adam [Skarbonkiewicz] was really creative with Zoom showing fitness videos, technical issues, showing kids how to build practice dummies out of recycled materials, footwork and hand drills with the dummies, and basically being nimble to avert having to completely shut down.” Skarbonkiewicz added to that, saying: “While we were working on Zoom, Cathy did a great job with administration, finding financial aid, and running the club operations. We have three coaches – Ed [Korfanty], Ian [Farr] and myself – and we split the job between us on Zoom, with strategy and tactics, watching competitors on video, and then also actually running classes in different places in-person, such as forests and parks, doing fitness in natural conditions just like we used to do it a long time ago in Poland. I’m a traditionalist and I think it’s much better to be fencing in a gym, but for at least a short
term, we survived because of technology.” Some coaches found Zoom afforded them aspects of instruction that improved teaching beyond what could be done in the gym. “We kept it interesting for the kids,” said Nellya’s Lasker. “We found with multiple coaches we could target things that got missed in the club, technically, like small mistakes with footwork and technique during normal group classes with only one coach moving around. With a good camera angle and Zoom, we normally had multiple coaches in one session, so kids got more eyes on them than usual. We paid close attention to the content of the class and did some tailoring, which forced us to reexamine some of the things we were doing. It was good to refresh things and take stock of what we were doing and create new content that was Zoom-friendly.” Marshall Hibnes, president of Salle Auriol Seattle, said that he saw other benefits to Zoom as well. “I found I had to focus more on footwork and keeping it engaging over the course of a year and it made me think about other aspects of fencing I hadn’t thought about as much, which, in turn, increased knowledge for fencers and coaches alike,” Hibnes said. “In addition, there are other benefits: For example, there’s a club in Spokane who wants to work with us and instead of traveling across the state for training, referee exams, etc. I can see how that’s better than having to deal with the cost and time of travel. And at a national level, it’s more efficient than travel or even email.”
ALLIANCE FENCING ACADEMY USED ZOOM SESSIONS TO HELP RETAIN ALL OF ITS MEMBERS WHEN PRACTICE WAS ALLOWED TO RESUME. PHOTO CREDIT: CAMILLE SIMMONS PHOTOGRAPHY.
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A NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION, SALLE AURIOL RECEIVED CHARITABLE CONTRIBUTIONS TO ASSIST DURING COVID-19. PHOTO CREDIT: SALLE AURIOL.
CLUB FINANCES
From a financial perspective, it was daunting for clubs to think about how they could possibly keep revenue flowing over a computer instead of in-person classes. Salle Auriol Seattle’s Hibnes, leading a club in one of the most restrictive states (Washington), found an interesting solution. “We were fortunate enough to be a nonprofit corporation with a lot of our membership working in technology,” he said. “We focused not on just fencing, but keeping fit, and we allowed people to schedule and come into the club by themselves and work on things alone. We converted from paying classes and lessons to charitable donations and ran several types of Zoom sessions.” Hibnes sent messages to members letting them know that he understood if people were having a hard time giving donations, but to please keep on our Zoom sessions and stay connected. At the end of the year, we gave everyone who donated tax deduction documents,” Hibnes said. “We had lots of content in addition to drills, and we found that activities such as sharing and analyzing videos of fencing bouts was much easier on Zoom than having everyone huddle-together around a monitor. I found as a coach that I had to focus on footwork and keep it engaging over the course of a year, which helped me to help others leverage it and think about areas I hadn’t thought about as much, thus increasing knowledge sets for both fencers and coaches.” A number of clubs applied for and received Paycheck Protection Program funds that helped them make it through periods of lower membership, lesson and class fees coming in. “I applied twice and got a PPP loan twice, and that helped a lot,” said Zoran Tulum of Zeta Fencing in Boston. Some clubs, like OFA, were fortunate enough to have stashed a “rainy day” fund that helped sustain them through the lean period. “If we hadn’t had that to draw on, we would have been out of business,” said Zagunis. It was a period of being as resourceful as possible for most clubs and working with landlords and banks, ranging from loans, rent forgiveness, dipping into savings and incurring credit card debt to stay in business.
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Alliance Fencing Academy in Houston had fewer restrictions in Texas, but nonetheless had to shut down entirely for about six weeks. “We started doing Zoom classes, and I was skeptical at first,” said Coach Andrey Geva. “But it worked very well. All of our students enrolled, we didn’t lose any members, and we got everyone on Zoom with classes and activities that kept them engaged with our program and club.” Tulum used the inability to hold classes to address another opportunity: improving his facility. “When we were hit by the pandemic, we were closed in March and April, we had no [in-person] classes and jumped on Zoom to work with students online,” he said. “But there was very limited cash flow without our usual classes and lessons, so I used that time with no classes to remodel, repaint and refurnish anything I could think of to fix, repair, redecorate or improve at the club. For two months, coaches would come to the club between classes and worked on doing all these things together. So it was actually a pretty active time, and then everything was brand new again. I paid the coaches for their time so they didn’t lose a single dollar. I still like in-person classes better than the Zoom two-dimensional medium, and for me it was a way to get by and not perfect for our sport. But I know life may never be the same, we adjusted to COVID, and some things are here to stay.” In all, of the clubs canvassed in this report, each one retained a majority—if not all—of its students and members. Some, when things began to at least approach returning to normal class sizes, actually saw an increase. “We were lucky in Massachusetts where we weren’t impacted as much as some areas,” Tulum said. “We were closed for two months, which were tough, but we were able to start classes again with limited numbers at the end of May, up to 80 percent by June and then back to 100 percent. This was a state where people had a chance to work and we only have one Zoom class now and it’s almost normal. In fact, I didn’t lose that much, I got a lot of work done in the downtime. It went fast and I actually gained students with huge beginning classes when we started-up again. Everyone was tired of staying home.”
CULTURE & COVID
Tulum and Skarbonkiewicz each take an old-school approach but at the same time face the realities of keeping membership alive with remote classes and lessons. They also know the challenges and restrictions of a year-plus of lockdown, distancing and maskwearing are changing the very fabric of the fencing club milieu as in-person fencing is slowly returning. “Right now it’s more quiet than it’s ever been in the club,” said Tulum. “It’s more like a ballet class than fencing, with limited sound and social distancing – and I’m not sure I like that because fencing is a social sport, we’re about people. It reminds me of a cartoon I saw of a couple walking in the park holding hands and carrying their phones, saying ‘I can’t wait to get home on my computer and
ZETA FENCING ACADEMY RETURNED TO SMALL CLASSES IN LATE MAY OF 2020. PHOTO CREDIT: ZETA FENCING ACADEMY.
find out who you really are.’ Everyone is looking at their phones when off the strip, on Zoom, losing social skills and yet for me, fencing is a social sport and a social skill and we have to deal with people. We need to read people, read body language, and I feel we’re losing that ability and it’s very important for people. Everyone is wearing a mask and no one is talking to anyone. The April NAC was like watching TV with the sound off – like a silent movie – and I’m afraid those changes will stay with us for a while.” Skarbonkiewicz said that the pandemic also brought a lot of great takeaways. “We’ve spent a lot of time online, but also outdoors. I feel special in the woods, and I love the outdoors. We’ll keep some of it, like being outside for practice as well as Zoom. We’ll keep watching bouts on Zoom and using it for things like meetings and video, but most likely if it is all safe, we’ll be back at regular practices,” Skarbokiewicz said. “On Zoom, you cannot have the same types of practices and certainly not as long. Zoom classes are fun, but they are intense and short and fencers get tired of it quickly. You do a 30-to-45-minute session, they break a sweat, and that was fine. Enthusiasm for these was good at first, but it came down over time. I think sport isn’t something to be done on Zoom in general, it has to be done hands-on in a gym.”
TRAINING GOES ON, EVEN WITH MASKS & DISTANCING
As restrictions eased, tensions sometimes rose, and coaches became diplomats. In states like Texas, where the mask mandate has been abolished earlier than in other regions, Geva found himself riding a fine line between having a club mask and distancing policy, a diverse and large membership base and the requirements of USA Fencing. “We did have some parents who didn’t understand why fencers had to wear masks when it wasn’t a state requirement,” he said. “But we follow both local and USA Fencing standards, and what’s best for the club and its fencers. We encourage them to use masks while fencing because this is what they will have to do at national events and they need to practice how they will compete.” When in-person classes were allowed to resume in Atlanta, Nellya created pods for the fencers to allow for contact tracing. “We keep fencers in separate, dedicated groups with no mixing among them so that we still have some isolation, and if there was an outbreak it would only affect a small percentage of the members,” Lasker said. “We’re looking forward to opening more and combining groups, by skill and age, and we’re still missing the diverse skills and festive weekly events we enjoy so much. We’re looking forward to having that return and hope to see it in six months or so. Right now even vaccinated people still have to wear masks and show negative tests, but still have the benefit of the doubt of returning with shorter or no quarantine time.”
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TOURNAMENTS RETURNED TO NELLYA IN FEBRUARY. PHOTO CREDIT: NELLYA FENCERS.
THE TAKEAWAY
As the United States begins to see some hope with the pandemic and being able to reopen fencing clubs, everyone is still facing the foreseeable future of masks, distancing and possible setbacks. There is a general sense of cautious optimism across the country, and everyone has lessons learned from a very difficult year on all accounts. How clubs are run, the importance of social media, how memberships are retained, how finances are managed and how athletes can train and practice have all been affected in ways that will undoubtedly have lasting impact. It is a testament to the resilience and tenacity of the fencing mindset, the resourcefulness of coaches and club owners, and the remarkable loyalty of club members that carries the sport of fencing forward.
SOCIALLY DISTANCED SESSIONS AT NELLYA. PHOTO CREDIT: NELLYA FENCERS.
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THE JUNIOR MEN’S EPEE TEAM WON ITS SECOND STRAIGHT TEAM SILVER IN CAIRO. PHOTO CREDIT: BIZZI TEAM
JUNIOR
WORLDS BY NICOLE JOMANTAS
A
year after the cancellation of the 2020 Junior and Cadet Fencing World Championships marked the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2021 Junior and Cadet Worlds served as a return to competition for athletes from more than 50 nations who competed in Cairo, Egypt. For some, the event would be a chance at redemption after qualifying for the 2020 event and being unable to compete. For others, the Junior and Cadet Worlds would be their first major event – a joyous moment that also included strict protocols with spectators restricted and masks on every podium. For nearly all, Cairo marked their first international event in over a year after the cancellation of all leadups to the tournament. After nine days of competition, Team USA ended the tournament with 14 medals – second only to Russia, including three individual golds and four team silver medal finishes.
TIEU, ZHANG TOP FOIL PODIUMS
Team USA’s foil fencers racked up six medals in Cairo with May Tieu (Belle Mead, N.J. / Premier Fencing Club / Princeton) ending her junior career with her first individual Junior World title. A 2018 Cadet World silver medalist, Tieu also won gold in the team event at the 2018 Junior Worlds. After a 15-5 win over 2019 Junior World team bronze medalist Yeongji Joo (KOR), in the semifinals, Tieu took on three-time Junior World Team member Nicole Pustilnik (ISR) in the finals. Close throughout, Tieu broke a 10-10 tie by scoring the next four points and earned the gold medal by a 15-12 score. “It feels so unreal. It’s been such a long time since I’ve had
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AFTER WINNING SILVER AS A CADET IN 2018, TIEU BECAME THE JUNIOR WORLD CHAMPION IN WOMEN’S FOIL. PHOTO CREDIT: BIZZI TEAM
COLBY HARLEY WON BRONZE IN CADET MEN’S SABER. PHOTO CREDIT: BIZZI TEAM
this kind of competition, so it’s very exciting to bring home a gold medal,” said Tieu after securing the sixth gold medal in the event for Team USA in the last 11 years. In the cadet men’s foil competition, Daniel Zhang (Belmont, N.J. / Star Fencing Academy) returned the World title in the event to the United States, following in the footsteps of 2018 Cadet World Champion Kenji Bravo (San Francisco, Calif. / Massialas Foundation / Harvard) as well as two-time Olympic medalist Alexander Massialas (San Francisco, Calif. / Massialas Foundation) who won Cadet World titles in 2010 and 2011. Zhang fenced teammate Chase Emmer (Morristown, N.J. / V Fencing Club) in the semifinals with the battle of the Americans guaranteeing a double medal finish for Team USA. With the score tied at two, Zhang ended the first period on a 3-0 run to take a 5-2 lead. Going up 13-8 at the second break, Emmer pushed to narrow the gap, scoring the first touch of the third period, but Zhang earned the final two touches he needed to advance to the gold medal final. With Hyeonbhin An (KOR) holding a 9-8 lead in the finals, Zhang scored four straight touches to regain the lead at 12-9. Holding onto a two-point advantage at the break, Zhang once again closed out strong, opening the period with two touches to win the bout, 15-11 and become the Cadet World Champion. “It was really tough getting here and I had to fence a lot of tough people, but I worked through it and [the win] feels good,” said Zhang, a two-time Cadet World Team member who was competing at his first Worlds after last year’s event was canceled. In the cadet women’s foil event, it was first-time team member Alexandra Jing (Boston, Mass. / Marx Fencing Academy) who reached the podium to claim bronze and extend Team USA’s streak to 13 straight Cadet Worlds with an American on the women’s foil podium. In the team events, both the men’s and women’s foil squads earned silver medals. After missing the medal rounds in 2019, the U.S. Women’s Foil Team earned its ninth medal in the last 10 Junior World Championships as Tieu and Lauren Scruggs (Ozone Park, N.Y. / Peter Westbrook Foundation), the World Champion in both the 2019 junior and cadet events, were joined by 2019 Cadet World Team members Maia Weintraub (Philadelphia, Pa. / Fencers Club) and Zander Rhodes (South Orange, N.J. / V Fencing Club). The squad’s depth showed with Scruggs, Tieu and Rhodes each contributing in the anchor role during the first three bouts and all four fencers posting positive indicators throughout the day, including a +10 by Rhodes against Spain in the 16 and +13 by Weintraub in Team USA’s win over Canada in the quarter-finals. Team USA edged Romania, 45-41, in the semis, but missed a return to the top of the podium when Russia held off a comeback by Scruggs to take the match, 45-43. With Bravo and 2021 NCAA Champion Marcello Olivares (Cooper City, Fla. / Notre Dame) rotating as anchors, the U.S. Men’s Foil Team rolled into the finals with dominant wins over Qatar (45-10), Korea (45-31) and Poland (45-31). Bravo led the squad in scoring at +27 over the three bouts with Olivares going +20. Ashton Daniel (Morristown, N.J. / Silicon Valley Fencing Center / Columbia) contributed +14 with Zhang subbing in at +4 the day after his cadet win.
ZHANG EARNED TWO MEDALS AT THIS YEAR’S WORLDS, BEING CROWNED CADET WORLD CHAMPION AND TAKING TEAM SILVER. PHOTO CREDIT: BIZZI TEAM
MAGDA SKARBONKIEWICZ BECAME THE FIFTH U.S. WOMEN’S SABER FENCER TO EVER TO CLINCH A CADET WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP. PHOTO CREDIT: BIZZI TEAM
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TEAM USA’S FOIL FENCERS BROUGHT HOME SIX PODIUM FINISHES. PHOTO CREDIT: BIZZI TEAM
In the finals, however, Russia took a 45-35 win, leaving Team USA with a silver and giving the squad its third medal in the last four Junior World Championships after a gold medal win in 2017 and bronze in 2018.
SCARBONKIEWICZ MAKES SABER HISTORY Following in the footsteps of her Oregon Fencing Alliance teammate and mentor, two-time Olympic Champion Mariel Zagunis (Beaverton, Ore.) who won the first Cadet World title for a U.S. women’s saber fencer in 2001, Magda Skarbonkiewicz (Portland, Ore.) won gold in her debut in the event. Skarbonkiewicz got the ball rolling for a saber squad that brought home four medals, including three cadet podiums and the silver in junior women’s saber. “I don’t believe it. This is crazy,” said Skarbonkiewicz who is coached by her father and former Div I National Champion Adam Skarbonkiewicz (Portland, Ore.) “It’s mind-blowing that I’ve been training for a whole year and then suddenly I go to my first competition in a year and I win.” In both the semis and the finals, Skarbonkiewicz took large leads after the first period and never looked back, following a 8-1 first period in the semi against Zarifa Huseynova (AZE) with a 15-9 win in the second. In the finals, the 15 year old built an 8-5 lead over Yulia Salabai (RUS) at the break. Salabai scored the first point of the second period to cut the lead to two, but Skarbonkiewicz clinched the gold by ending the bout on a 7-1 run for a 15-7 victory. Skarbonkiewicz, now just the fifth U.S. woman ever to win a Cadet World title in women’s saber, stood on the podium alongside teammate Zoe Kim (Basking Ridge, N.J.) who won bronze. The moment was even sweeter for both athletes as each had qualified for the team in 2020, but were unable to compete due to the pandemic. On the men’s side of the cadet competition, Colby Harley (Alpharetta, Ga. / Nellya Fencers) also made the most of his delayed debut with a bronze medal result. In the women’s team event, Kim joined with Honor Johnson (Bethesda, Md. / Bergen Fencing Club), Alexis Anglade (Alpharetta, Ga. / Nelly Fencers / Princeton) and Atara Greenbaum (Boca Raton, Fla. / Alle Fencing Club / Notre Dame) to earn the silver medal. A bronze medalist at the 2018 Cadet Worlds, Johnson anchored Team USA to wins over Belarus and Ukraine by 45-30 and 45-32 scores, respectively, in the first two rounds.
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In the semis, Romania led the match, 30-23, after the first two rotations, but Greenbaum and Kim won the next two bouts with 8-5 scores and Johnson went 6-2 as anchor to close the match at 45-42. Kim had a clutch performance in the eighth bout of the finals against Korea, outscoring Jueun Lee, 13-5, but Korea still ended with a 45-31 win.
TEAM USA RETURNS FOR EPEE SILVER The U.S. Men’s Epee Team won its first-ever silver medal at the Junior Worlds in 2019 and Team USA was back for more this year with a new cast of characters. Tristan Szapary (Wynnewood, Pa. / Fencers Academy of Philadelphia / Princeton), Mihir Kumashi (Houston, Texas / Alliance Fencing Academy), Valentin Matveev (Las Vegas, Nev. / Battle Born Fencing / Notre Dame) and Nicholas Lawson (New York City, N.Y. / Fencers Club) each arrived in Cairo as first-time Junior World Team members with only Lawson having previously fenced on a Cadet World squad. Seeded first in the tournament, Team USA defeated Hong Kong, 45-19, and Spain, 45-33, to advance to the medal rounds. In the semis, Team USA and Ukraine stayed within two touches of each other before Szapary outscored Daniil Hoida, 5-1, to give the United States a 30-25 lead. Lawson and Matveev protected the five-touch spread in the next two bouts before Szapary closed strong for a 45-37 win. The Americans nearly pulled off the upset to win gold, but Szapary ran out of time in the anchor bout as Russia took the match, 43-41. In the individual events, Team USA secured three more in the cadet and junior events. A 2019 Cadet World Team member, Jessica Lin (Basking Ridge, N.J. / Medeo Fencing Club) qualified for her first Junior World squad last year and returned this year to win a silver medal for the United States in the women’s epee event – making her one of just three U.S. women to advance to the individual epee final of a Junior World Championships. Ketki Ketkar (Sammamish, Wash. / Kaizen Fencing Academy) earned bronze in her first appearance at the Cadet World Championships while Skyler Liverant (Brooklyn, N.Y. / New York Fencing Academy) went from being the youngest male fencer on the 2019 Cadet World Team to standing on the podium in 2021 with a bronze in the men’s event.
EPEE
RESULTS
MEN’S
MEN’S INDIVIDUAL EPEE JUNIOR WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS 14. Tristan Szapary (Wynnewood, Pa. / Fencers Academy of Philadelphia / Princeton) 45. Valentin Matveev (Las Vegas, Nev. / Battle Born Fencing / Notre Dame) 51. Nicholas Lawson (New York City, N.Y. / Fencers Club) 59. Mihir Kumashi (Houston, Texas / Alliance Fencing Academy)
MEN’S TEAM EPEE JUNIOR WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS SILVER: Szapary, Matveev, Lawson, Kumashi
MEN’S EPEE CADET WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS BRONZE: Skyler Liverant (Brooklyn, N.Y. / New York Fencing Academy) 6. Avery Townsend (Ferndale, Wash. / Dynamo Fencing Club) 9. Henry Lawson (New York City, N.Y. / Fencers Club)
WOMEN’S WOMEN’S INDIVIDUAL EPEE JUNIOR WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS SILVER: Jessica Lin (Basking Ridge, N.J. / Medeo Fencing Club) 7. Jaclyn Khrol (Brooklyn, N.Y. / New York Fencing Academy) 33. Hadley Husisian (Oakton, Va. / Fencing Sports Academy) 37. Michaela Joyce (Sterling, Va. / Cardinal Fencing Academy)
WOMEN’S TEAM EPEE JUNIOR WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS 9. Lin, Khrol, Husisian, Joyce
KETKI KETKAR STOOD ON THE PODIUM AT HER FIRST CADET WORLDS. PHOTO CREDIT: BIZZI TEAM
WOMEN’S EPEE CADET WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS BRONZE: Ketki Ketkar (Sammamish, Wash. / Kaizen Fencing Academy) 9. Michaela Joyce (Sterling, Va. / Cardinal Fencing Academy) 10. Faith Park (Lorton, Va. / DC Fencers Club)
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THE JUNIOR MEN’S FOIL TEAM WON ITS THIRD MEDAL IN THE LAST FOUR JUNIOR WORLDS WITH SILVER. PHOTO CREDIT: BIZZI TEAM
FOIL MEN’S
MEN’S INDIVIDUAL FOIL JUNIOR WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS 5. Marcello Olivares (Cooper City, Fla. / Notre Dame) 7. Kenji Bravo (San Francisco, Calif. / Massialas Foundation / Harvard) 17. Daniel Zhang (Belmont, Mass. / Star Fencing Academy) 19. Ashton Daniel (Morristown, N.J. / Silicon Valley Fencing Center / Columbia)
MEN’S TEAM FOIL JUNIOR WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS SILVER: Olivares, Bravo, Zhang, Daniel
MEN’S FOIL CADET WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS GOLD: Daniel Zhang (Belmont, Mass. / Star Fencing Academy) BRONZE: Chase Emmer (Morristown, N.J. / V Fencing Club) 5. Brandon Li (Acton, Mass. / Marx Fencing Academy)
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RESULTS
WOMEN’S
WOMEN’S INDIVIDUAL FOIL JUNIOR WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS GOLD: May Tieu (Belle Mead, N.J. / Premier Fencing Club / Princeton) 5. Lauren Scruggs (Ozone, Park, N.Y. / Peter Westbrook Foundation) 8. Maia Weintraub (Philadelphia, Pa. / Fencers Club) 33. Zander Rhodes (South Orange, N.J. / V Fencing Club)
WOMEN’S TEAM FOIL JUNIOR WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS SILVER: Tieu, Scruggs, Weintraub, Rhodes
WOMEN’S FOIL CADET WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS BRONZE: Alexandra Jing (Boston, Mass. / Marx Fencing Academy) 11. Elizabeth He (Houston, Texas / Salle Mauro) 17. Crystal Qian (Cupertino, Calif. / Silicon Valley Fencing Center)
SABER MEN’S
MEN’S INDIVIDUAL SABER JUNIOR WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS 17. Jackson McBride (Gilbert, Ariz. / Phoenix Fencing Academy) 22. Christopher Walker (Atlanta, Ga. / Nellya Fencers / Columbia) 23. Luke Linder (Chandler, Ariz. / Phoenix Fencing Academy / Notre Dame) 62. Robert Vidovszky (Emerald Hills, Calif. / Premier Fencing Academy)
MEN’S TEAM SABER JUNIOR WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS 4. McBride, Walker, Linder, Vidovszky
MEN’S SABER CADET WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS
RESULTS
WOMEN’S
WOMEN’S INDIVIDUAL SABER JUNIOR WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS 6. Honor Johnson (Bethesda, Md. / Bergen Fencing Club) 21. Atara Greenbaum (Boca Raton, Fla. / Alle Fencing Club / Notre Dame) 22. Alexis Anglade (Alpharetta, Ga. / Nellya Fencers / Princeton) 23. Zoe Kim (Basking Ridge, N.J. / Kaprica United Fencing Club)
WOMEN’S TEAM SABER JUNIOR WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS SILVER: Johnson, Greenbaum, Anglade, Kim
WOMEN’S SABER CADET WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS
BRONZE: Colby Harley (Alpharetta, Ga. / Nellya Fencers)
GOLD: Magda Skarbonkiewicz (Portland, Ore. / Oregon Fencing Alliance)
19. Matthew Limb (Northridge, Calif. / Avant Garde Fencers Club)
BRONZE: Zoe Kim (Basking Ridge, N.J. / Kaprica United Fencing Academy)
49. Jaden Callahan (Carlsbad, Calif. / La Jolla Fencing Academy)
31. Lola Possick (Weehawken, N.J. / Advance Fencing & Fitness Academy)
THE JUNIOR WOMEN’S SABER TEAM RETURNED TO THE PODIUM WITH SILVER. PHOTO CREDIT: BIZZI TEAM
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LEE KIEFER BY NICOLE JOMANTAS
Takes First U.S. Women’s Foil
OLYMPIC TITLE 1,811 days passed between the moment Lee Kiefer (Lexington, Ky. / Bluegrass Fencers’ Club) stepped off the Olympic stage in Rio de Janeiro and when she would return for gold at her third Games in Tokyo. Kiefer left Rio not knowing if she would ever compete at another Olympics. There were plans to be had, after all. First and foremost, a fourth NCAA title to be earned for Notre Dame. But then graduation after a year off to train for the Olympics. And, of course, medical school. By 2016, Kiefer had become one of the best women’s foil fencers in the world with a Senior World Championship medal to her credit as well as six medals on the World Cup circuit and seven Pan American Zonal titles on her bio.
She could retire at 22 knowing she had set the bar high for future generations. The only thing she had left to do was maybe a few international events just to stay sharp during her last college season. But anyone who knows Kiefer knows that nothing is done half-heartedly and, if she’s going to compete, the goal remains to win. And so she won her first Grand Prix title in December of 2016 in Torino and earned a second gold in Long Beach the following March, defeating the 2016 Olympic Champion Inna Deriglazova Gracheva (RUS) and earning the World No. 1 in the process. Now there were new decisions to be made. Not wanting to defer med school, Kiefer kept her acceptance to the University of Kentucky in the fall of 2017 and made the decision to try both: chasing her goal of Olympic gold with a full-time course load.
LEE KIEFER BECAME THE FIRST INDIVIDUAL U.S. FOIL FENCER, MALE OR FEMALE, TO TAKE GOLD AT AN OLYMPIC GAMES. PHOTO CREDIT: BIZZITEAM
“I felt like I still had more to give and more to learn. During my senior year, I think when I reached No. 1 in the world, I felt like I had put some things together and I still loved the sport,” Kiefer said. “So, I talked to people at UK Med School and they were supportive, as well as my family, so there really was not a good reason to retire at that point.” The decision would pay off, both for Kiefer and Team USA. The U.S. Women’s Foil Team won its first Senior World Championship medal in 16 years with a silver in 2017, followed by gold in 2018 and bronze in 2019. Individually, Kiefer racked up 14 more medals on the World Cup circuit before the world was shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic in March of 2020. Off the strip, Kiefer married fellow Olympian Gerek Meinhardt (San Francisco, Calif. / Massialas Foundation) in September of 2019 in what came to be known as the Royal Fencing Wedding as the fencing community honored the duo who were as beloved as friends as they were teammates. Kiefer deferred her third year of medical school to train for Tokyo 2020 and was in peak form when she won a silver medal at the Torino Grand Prix in February before the shutdown in 2020. Better still, Meinhardt stood on the top of the podium in Torino, winning gold.
LEE KIEFER CELEBRATING AFTER WINNING GOLD, 15-13. PHOTO CREDIT: BIZZITEAM
TEAM USA TOKYO OLYMPIC RESULTS MEN’S INDIVIDUAL EPEE 24. Curtis McDowald (Jamaica, N.Y. / Peter Westbrook Foundation / St. John’s) 26. Jake Hoyle (Philadelphia, Pa. / New York Athletic Club / Columbia) 30. Yeisser Ramirez (Brooklyn, N.Y. / Peter Westbrook Foundation)
MEN’S TEAM EPEE Then everything ground to a halt and there were more decisions to be made.
9. McDowald, Hoyle, Ramirez
WOMEN’S INDIVIDUAL EPEE Kiefer and Meinhardt had been each other’s primary training partner since the two moved from Notre Dame to Lexington in 2017. But now, with the world locked down, they would become each other’s sole training partner, preparing for a delayed Games on a fencing strip built in the basement of Kiefer’s childhood home.
12. Kelley Hurley (San Antonio, Texas / New York Athletic Club / Notre Dame) 24. Kat Holmes (Washington, D.C. / New York Athletic Club / Princeton) 26. Courtney Hurley (San Antonio, Texas / New York Athletic Club / Notre Dame)
The time would also come for a decision about medical school.
WOMEN’S TEAM EPEE Take another year off to train for a Games that athletes around the world feared may never happen? Or return to studying and rotations at the hospital knowing it could mean juggling courses with a full or partial World Cup circuit?
5. Hurley, Holmes, Hurley, Anna van Brummen (Houston, Texas / Alliance Fencing Academy / Princeton)
MEN’S INDIVIDUAL FOIL Kiefer chose to go back to medical school. Only this time she would be joined in her studies by Meinhardt who, after earning an MBA at Notre Dame, decided to change careers and enrolled in his first year of medical school at UK in the fall of 2020. She completed her first seven months of her final year before taking a leave of absence to train and would enter the Games ranked No. 5 in the world after having fenced just one individual event in nearly 17 months.
12. Nick Itkin (Los Angeles, Calif. / Los Angeles International Fencing Center / Notre Dame) 17. Gerek Meinhardt (San Francisco, Calif. / Massialas Foundation / Notre Dame) 18. Alexander Massialas (San Francisco, Calif. / Massialas Foundation / Stanford)
When she finally took the stage in Tokyo on July 25, Kiefer started the individual event strong with a 15-4 over Amita Berthier (SGP), a former Junior World No. 1 and sophomore at Notre Dame.
THE U.S. MEN’S FOIL TEAM (L-R: RACE IMBODEN, NICK ITKIN, ALEX MASSIALAS AND GEREK MEINHARDT) STOOD ON THE PODIUM FOR THE SECOND STRAIGHT GAMES, EARNING BRONZE. PHOTO CREDIT: BIZZITEAM
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MEN’S TEAM FOIL BRONZE: Itkin, Meinhardt, Massialas, Race Imboden (Brooklyn, N.Y.)
WOMEN’S INDIVIDUAL FOIL GOLD: Lee Kiefer (Lexington, Ky. / Bluegrass Fencers’ Club / Notre Dame) 12. Nicole Ross (New York City, N.Y. / New York Athletic Club / Columbia) 21. Jackie Dubrovich (Riverdale, N.J. / Fencer’s Underground / Columbia)
In the table of 16, Kiefer would fence another familiar face in Eleanor Harvey (CAN) – a top-eight finisher who Kiefer has battled since her days as a cadet fencer, both on the international circuit as well as at North American Cups and in NCAA events. There are few competitors in the field who could be as familiar with Kiefer as Harvey and it showed as the Canadian took a 7-3 lead after the first period. Kiefer fought her way back, tying the score at 10 at the start of the third period and ending with a 15-13 win. In the table of eight, Kiefer opened aggressively against World No. 7 Yuka Ueno (JPN), keeping the pace fast and ending the first period up, 12-8. Kiefer took two touches and nearly ended the bout with a third that was missed. Ueno capitalized with three scores before Kiefer closed out at 15-11.
WOMEN’S TEAM FOIL 4. Kiefer, Ross, Dubrovich, Sabrina Massialas (San Francisco, Calif. / Massialas Foundation / Notre Dame)
MEN’S INDIVIDUAL SABER 9. Eli Dershwitz (Sherborn, Mass. / Zeta Fencing Academy / Harvard) 23. Daryl Homer (Bronx, N.Y. / Peter Westbrook Foundation / St. John’s) 31. Andrew Mackiewicz (Westwood, Mass. / Zeta Fencing Academy / Penn State)
MEN’S TEAM SABER 8. Dershwitz, Homer, Mackiewicz, Khalil Thompson (Teaneck, N.J. / Peter Westbrook Foundation / Penn State)
WOMEN’S INDIVIDUAL SABER 5. Mariel Zagunis (Beaverton, Ore. / Oregon Fencing Alliance / Notre Dame) 19. Eliza Stone (Chicago, Ill. / Bergen Fencing Center / Princeton) 25. Dagmara Wozniak (Avenel, N.J. / Manhattan Fencing Center / St. John’s)
After a two-hour break, Kiefer took on the first of two opponents now representing the Russian Olympic Committee in the final rounds. The semifinal saw Kiefer fence 2012 Olympic team silver medalist Larisa Korobeynikova (ROC). While Korobeynikova won their last bout in March at the Doha Grand Prix, Kiefer crushed through the semifinal, defeating the Russian, 15-6, to secure the first ever individual medal at the Olympic Games for a U.S. women’s foil fencer and set up the final against Deriglazova Gracheva. Kiefer and Deriglazova Gracheva have fenced at all levels for more than a decade, dating back to Kiefer’s earliest days on the junior circuit as a 13-year-old in 2008. As seniors, the two have fenced 10 times with the Russian winning four of the last six bouts. While Deriglazova Gracheva has a tendency to control bouts early, Kiefer ended the first period with an 8-7 lead, but the six-time Senior World Champion was undaunted and tied the bout at 12 in the second. Kiefer replied with two touches and Deriglazova Gracheva earned another to stay within a touch of Kiefer at 14-13. Kiefer countered Deriglazova Gracheva’s final attack to score once more, winning Olympic gold, 15-13.
WOMEN’S TEAM SABER
Kiefer credited her support system with playing a key role in her historymaking title.
6. Zagunis, Stone, Wozniak, Francesca Russo (Wayne, N.J. / Bergen Fencing Club / Notre Dame)
“It took my husband, my teammates, my family, my coach – to pull me up in the moments I didn’t believe in myself. This whole day, they’ve been there and I think they literally won bouts for me by being like, ‘Believe! Be confident!’ That’s what it takes at the Olympics and they did it for me,” Kiefer said after she received her gold medal.
WOMEN’S FOIL FINISHES FOURTH
FIVE-TIME OLYMPIAN MARIEL ZAGUNIS SECURED A FIFTH-PLACE FINISH AT HER FIRST GAMES AS A MOTHER. PHOTO CREDIT: BIZZITEAM
Kiefer narrowly missed a return to the podium in the team event when the U.S. Women’s Foil Team finished fourth. Kiefer and teammates Jackie Dubrovich (Riverdale, N.J. / Fencer’s Underground), Nicole Ross (New York City, N.Y. / New York Athletic Club) and Sabrina Massialas (San Francisco, Calif. / Massialas Foundation) defeated Japan, 45-36, in the quarterfinals, but fell to the Russian Olympic Committee, 45-41, in the semis. Fencing for bronze, Team USA took on Italy – the 2019 Senior World silver medalists.
2012 OLYMPIC TEAM BRONZE MEDALIST KELLEY HURLEY EARNED HER BEST INDIVIDUAL RESULT AT THE OLYMPIC GAMES WITH A TOP-16 RESULT. PHOTO CREDIT: BIZZI TEAM
Italy took control early and earned the bronze, 45-23. “We left it all out and no regrets. We’re really heartbroken, but we have each other and we have such a special bond and a special team, and I just feel so, so lucky to have the support of Lee and Sabrina and Jackie, Buckie [Leach], Greg [Massialas] and our whole team,” Ross said after the loss. “Being here under these extremely difficult conditions is an honor and we hope that a lot of little girls back in the U.S. are watching us and dreaming with us and looking forward to the next generation and the next Olympics when they’re going to win medals.”
MEN’S FOIL RETURNS FOR BRONZE The U.S. Men’s Foil Team won its second straight Olympic bronze with Meinhardt standing on the podium with teammates Alexander Massialas (San Francisco, Calif. / Massialas Foundation), Nick Itkin (Los Angeles, Calif. / Los Angeles International Fencing Center) and Race Imboden (Brooklyn, N.Y.). The reigning Senior World Champions and No. 1 team in the world, Team USA earned its 23rd straight international podium finish with the bronze medal result in Tokyo. The Americans began with a 45-36 win over Germany in the quarterfinals, but were upset by a young Russian Olympic Committee squad, 45-41, in the semis. Fencing Japan for bronze, Team USA dominated the host nation squad that upset Italy in the open round, taking the match, 45-31. “We went from a longshot to make the top four to being upset that we didn’t win gold,” Imboden said after the match. “I hope this is able to springboard the fencers back home to really have them chase their dreams because we’ve shown the world that US Fencing has come so far and that if you put in the work, you can get those results too, so I’m just happy for the generations of fencers behind us and hopefully they will make us proud.”
ZAGUNIS INSPIRES AT FIFTH GAMES Team USA’s most decorated fencer of all time, Mariel Zagunis (Beaverton, Ore. / Oregon Fencing Alliance) returned to a fifth straight Olympic Games, just missing the opportunity to fence for a fifth career medal when she finished fifth in the women’s saber event.
Now the mother of three-year-old daughter Sunday Swehla, Zagunis bested 2012 Olympic Champion Jiyeon Kim (KOR), 15-12, in the 16 before a 15-8 loss to fellow mother Sofya Velikaya (ROC) who went on to win her third straight individual silver medal at the Games. “I think the most important thing for me is to walk away from this individual competition with my head held high, knowing that I’m really proud to be here and show that it can be done,” Zagunis said after her quarterfinal bout. “You don’t have to just choose motherhood or being a professional athlete or motherhood or a career. Just setting the example to be proud of yourself for what you can accomplish, even if it doesn’t mean getting everything.” With only three years left before the Paris Games, Zagunis also said she wouldn’t rule out a sixth team. “This whole time, I was just trying to keep my thoughts focused on Tokyo … but I’m not ruling out Paris, especially knowing that again, what I’ve been through the past five years. To feel the way I did out there today really gives me good confidence going forward,” she said. “I didn’t want it to be over. It was over too soon because I feel like I have more in the tank.”
TOP 16s ACROSS THE WEAPONS Team USA also had athletes earn top-16 individual results in each of the weapons. A silver medalist at the 2018 Senior World Championships, Eli Dershwitz (Sherborn, Mass. / Zeta Fencing Academy) was back in action at his second Olympic Games and earned the top finish for the U.S. men’s saber fencers with a ninth-place result. Returning to the Games after making her debut in London, Nicole Ross placed 12th in the women’s foil event. Men’s foil fencer Nick Itkin also earned a 12th-place result as he competed at his first Games, taking the top individual finish for the U.S. Men’s Foil Team. In epee competition, Kelley Hurley (San Antonio, Texas / New York Athletic Club) led the way for Team USA with the four-time Olympian finishing 12th overall.
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T
hree U.S. fencers each made a debut at the Paralympic Games in Tokyo with the United States competing in a team event for the first time since 2004 and Team USA’s athletes earning valuable experience in preparation for the 2024 Games in Paris.
BY NICOLE JOMANTAS
SHELBY JENSEN, ELLEN GEDDES AND TERRY HAYES BEFORE THE OPENING CEREMONY. PHOTO CREDIT: KRISTEN HENNEMAN
“It’s great for the first time here,” the four-time Wheelchair World Team member said after the individual foil event. “I would’ve much preferred to move up again and it just wasn’t an opportunity today, but I am glad that I made it into the top 16. A 10th-place finish certainly isn’t something to be that disappointed about.” Jensen and Hayes made history together as two of the first women ever to compete in saber at the Paralympic Games after the event’s addition to the program for the first time in Tokyo.
ELLEN GEDDES, SHELBY JENSEN AND TERRY HAYES BEFORE THE TEAM FOIL COMPETITION IN TOKYO. THE TRIO REPRESENTED TEAM USA IN BOTH THE TEAM FOIL AND EPEE EVENTS. PHOTO CREDIT: KRISTEN HENNEMAN
Ellen Geddes (Johnston, S.C. / Shepherd Swords), Shelby Jensen (Salt Lake City, Valkyrie Fencing Club) and Terry Hayes (Fort Myers, Fla. / Southwest Florida Fencing Academy) represented Team USA in Tokyo, competing in the women’s team foil and epee events and competing in two individual competitions each. Fencing with Hayes and Geddes in Category B and Jensen in Category A, the Americans placed seventh in team epee and eighth in team foil. “It’s really nice to have enough women in the U.S. who are able to qualify and come to the Paralympics so that we can once again have a women’s team,” Geddes said. “We are certainly in the beginning stages of developing a women’s team, but everybody has to start somewhere and we started this quad and we made it to the Paralympics.” Individually, Geddes narrowly missed the cut in the epee event after a 2-4 finish in pools. Geddes rebounded in the foil event to advance to the table of 16 with a key win at 5-3 over 2019 World Team Champion Boglarka Mezo (HUN). The two would fence again in the direct elimination rounds, however, with Mezo taking the bout, 15-6, and Geddes placing 10th.
Although neither fencer advanced out of the pool rounds on the opening day of competition, the duo relished the opportunity to fence saber for the first time on the Paralympic stage. “It’s an amazing feeling being one of the first women to actually fence saber in wheelchair in the Paralympics,” Jensen said. Twenty-year-old Jensen, who competed at the Wheelchair Worlds for the first time in 2019, did advance to the direct elimination rounds in the epee event, upsetting two-time individual World medalist Marta Fidrych (POL), 5-4, in the pool rounds before falling to Amarilla Veres (HUN), 15-5. Veres would go on to win gold with Jensen placing 12th overall. “I’m glad I made it past pools and into my first DE,” Jensen said. “I think I fenced [Veres] better than I have in the past.” At 63 years old, Hayes was the oldest American to compete in any sport for Team USA and was eliminated in the pool rounds in both the epee and saber events, but remained positive throughout the Games and was thankful to her teammates. “It was a really long and difficult journey to get here … but I can’t think of two other teammates that I would’ve rather traveled this with,” Hayes said. “Ellen and Shelby have just been amazing mentors to me, amazing friends, and [Head Coach] Mickey [Zeljkovic] and [Team Manager] Ginny [Boydston] have just brought us all the way to the end, and I just can’t thank them enough for making my dream come true.”
SHELBY JENSEN EARNED TOP-16 FINISHES IN CATEGORY A WOMEN’S EPEE AND WOMEN’S SABER. ELLEN GEDDES AND TERRY HAYES EACH ALSO BROUGHT HOME A PAIR OF TOP-16 RESULTS. PHOTO CREDIT: KRISTEN HENNEMAN
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USA FENCING COMMUNITY MOURNS THE LOSS OF OLYMPIC COACH BY NICOLE JOMANTAS
L
ess than two weeks after returning home from Tokyo, where he served as a coach at his fifth Olympic Games, Buckie Leach passed away on August 14 at the age of 62 following a motorcycle accident on a cross-country road trip. Leach, who was just beginning his retirement after a lifetime in fencing, led the U.S. Women’s Foil Team at the 1996, 2000, 2004, 2016 and 2020 Olympic Games. He is credited with building the U.S. Women’s Foil Team’s success over nearly 30 years, including four medals at the Senior World Team Championships and the squad’s first Senior World title in 2018. He also coached more than a half dozen personal students to Olympic berths as well as foil fencers to Senior, Junior and Cadet World titles. Leach’s students reached new heights for any weapon for USA Fencing during the 1990s when Iris Zimmermann became the first U.S. fencer to win a World Championship in any weapon, taking gold in cadet at age 14, followed by a Junior World title in 1999 and earning the first medal at the Senior World Championships for a U.S. fencer in any weapon with a bronze medal the same year. Zimmermann’s older sister, Felicia Zimmermann, became the first U.S. woman to win the overall Junior World Cup title and went on to compete in two Olympic Games, making her debut in 1996 and competing with Iris in 2000. Ann Marsh-Senic earned a seventhplace finish at the 1996 Games with her Atlanta Games teammate, Suzie Paxton, rising to a top-eight world ranking during her career.
Notre Dame with her final gold coming in 2017. Itkin claimed backto-back titles in 2018 and 2019 and earned bronze in Tokyo with the men’s foil squad. Massialas won silver at the 2018 NCAAs and competed in the women’s foil team event in Tokyo. Two-time NCAA individual medalist Amita Berthier also made her Olympic debut in Tokyo, competing for Singapore.
THE FOLLOWING ARE MEMORIES SHARED BY MEMBERS OF THE USA FENCING COMMUNITY IN MOURNING THE LOSS OF ONE OF THE SPORT’S MOST BELOVED COACHES.
In 2000, Leach coached Team USA to a fourth-place finish at the Sydney Olympic Games, missing bronze by just two touches. The U.S. Women’s Foil Team avenged the loss in 2001, winning bronze with an all-star lineup that included the Zimmermanns as well as Marsh-Senic and Erinn Smart, who would go on to win silver with Team USA at the 2008 Games. A coach at the Fencers Club from 2001-16, Leach’s personal students also included two-time Olympian Nzingha Prescod, who won gold at the 2011 Junior World Championships and became the first Black woman to win an individual medal at the Senior World Championships with her bronze in 2015. The U.S. Women’s Foil Team had its most successful quadrennium in history from 2017-21, earning three straight medals at the Senior World Championships, including gold in 2018, silver in 2017 and bronze in 2019. This past July, the squad narrowly missed the podium with Lee Kiefer, Sabrina Massialas, Nicole Ross and Jackie Dubrovich placing fourth at the Tokyo Games. After coaching his fourth Olympic Games in 2016, Leach joined the Universtiy of Notre Dame coaching staff beginning in the 2016-17 season. During his five seasons as an assistant coach at Notre Dame, Leach’s students won 12 individual medals at NCAAs, including five out of 10 possible gold medals in the individual foil events, with the Fighting Irish winning the team titles in 2017, 2018 and 2021. Among the athletes Leach coached in South Bend were U.S. Olympic Fencing Team members Kiefer, Massialas and Nick Itkin. Kiefer, who won Team USA’s first-ever Olympic title in women’s foil in Tokyo, won four straight NCAA titles for
2020 OLYMPIC CHAMPION LEE KIEFER WAS COACHED BY BUCKIE LEACH INTERNATIONALLY AS WELL AS AT NOTRE DAME.
LEE KIEFER More than fencing, Buckie was my friend. In 2015, Buckie appeared in Kiawah at our family vacation. I believe this was the first time I saw him in shorts and it was very disturbing! In 2019, Buckie drove down to Kentucky for a week to help Gerek and me with the ambitious renovation of Bluegrass Fencers’ Club where we were in way over our heads. Buckie generously gave his time and skills because he loved Amgad, he loved us, he was a master carpenter, and of course he was a nice guy who liked to help out. That was one of the most fun times of my life, trying to build and plan and problem solve. Fast forward to June of 2021, the end of our Colorado Springs journey, Buckie consoled me through meltdowns when the boys would pommel me in practice. Buckie also smiled/shook his head when Sabrina and I succeeded at gaming the system while doing drills or actually did the drill correctly (rare) LOL. Anyways, for
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my final Tokyo preparation, we discussed that if I could just mix my actions and be confident off the line, we thought that I could do it. So there we were, playing the simultaneous game during my lesson, so enthusiastically that Buckie strained his Achilles, denying me further lessons! To conclude the rambling, Buckie has an unfulfilled promise for another lesson DAMN IT! It has been a fun time, Buckie, and of course you are too humble to acknowledge how big of a role you played in my success. Moving forward, I will continue to eat spicy chicken sandwiches and try to not take myself too seriously in your honor. Miss you already.
NZINGHA PRESCOD
TOP: NOTRE DAME WON THREE NCAA TEAM TITLES DURING BUCKIE’S TIME AS AN ASSISTANT COACH. RIGHT: BUCKIE WITH THE 1995 JUNIOR AND CADET WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP TEAM.
Buckie. Where do I start. I still can’t believe any of this is real. Of your many roles - my personal fencing coach, caretaker, National Coach, travel buddy, advisor, friend, supporter - father figure seems most appropriate, especially since my own was absent. I depended (and will continue to depend) on you beyond your mastery of fencing, and that was largely secondary. Your reassurance was everything, your trust and faith in me, your care for me, made you incredibly special in my life and I will miss you so much. After a while, I’d absorbed a lot of the fencing strategies and could find solutions for tactics, but your presence was still invaluable. When you were in my box during my late career, it was the comfort of your voice that moved me to be powerful. I just wanted to see your face and for you to tell me to relax, drop my shoulders and to be confident. You believed in me, and like Peter Westbrook, you helped me feel secure in myself - my home when we traveled abroad to compete in this sometimes isolating and individual sport. In 2015, you asked if I’d be ok with you becoming the national coach again. In Buckie fashion, it was clear to me that I should honor the team even when it was a hard decision. It was an emotional challenge for me to share you with the other girls. But so life goes and our team was rewarded many times over. Although we were separated for some time when I retired and right before, I was really looking forward to our relationship as two adults. Me in an uncertain transition period, and you in your retired phase, coming together once again to experience a special bond. A boomerang. You were so foundational for me as a person, and I wanted to share as much of you as possible with my kids in Fencing In The Park. In fact, the mission is heavily inspired by you.
BUCKIE COACHED AT THE FENCERS CLUB FROM 2001-16, COACHING TWO-TIME OLYMPIAN NZINGHA PRESCOD, WHO WON GOLD AT THE 2011 JUNIOR WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS.
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You understood me and gave me the knowledge, support and stimulation I needed to bloom. I’m not sure many people encounter a person like you and I feel so lucky. Thank you, Buckie, for investing so much of your love, care and spirit in me and all of us. I hope I can continue your legacy of excellence, warmth and limitless ENTHUSIASM! I feel incredibly special that you gave me so much of yourself. I wouldn’t be who I am today without you. Some of my favorite qualities - leadership, self-starting, self-determination, expectation of excellence from self, being considerate, embracing the hard, being understanding of others, spending time productively - are a direct result of you. You have influenced my character more than I can know. I’m learning life can be unfair. Something that gives me solace is that he prepared us all to exist on our own. When he was strip coaching, he always said, “Don’t look at me, you have the answers.” It is a sudden shift for all of us, but now is our moment to take his lessons and apply them the best way we can. I hope to continue to make him proud and honor his legacy. Buckie, you will be sorely missed but your presence will be everlasting. Talk to you soon and always.
NICOLE ROSS Buckie was my coach on the National Team for eight years, from 2013 to just a few months ago. I first met Buckie when he came to Fencers Club in 2001, I was 12. Buckie has been in my life almost every day since then. Like many of us, I can’t begin to imagine my life without him.
BUCKIE WITH NICOLE ROSS, A TWO-TIME OLYMPIAN.
I feel so lucky to have learned fencing from Buckie, not as his personal student, but as a fencer in his orbit. When I was a kid I used to always ask him about the tactical wheel. Later on, we worked on a lot of false counter attack parry riposte. Like, a lot. I loved taking lessons with him, trying to catch him on his step, or do something a little unexpected that would maybe, possibly impress him. Like a lot of his students, I wanted his approval, but as an adult I also wanted to riff and shine and use the tools that he taught us to make something of my own that he would be proud of. On the national team he led me, Nzingha, Lee, Sabrina, Margaret and Jackie to some of our proudest moments. It wasn’t immediate and it was never easy, but he trusted us with our knowledge of fencing, and insisted we could. Many times he told me he believed in me, and that I could do amazing things - and once in a while, when I let myself go and trusted him - I did. With Buckie we won three consecutive World Championship medals for the U.S. women’s foil team: 2017 silver, 2018 gold and 2019 bronze. A full collection. I’ll never forget Buckie’s speech in the huddle after our gold medal – he started to say something, but finished in speechless tears. I’d never seen him cry. We couldn’t stop celebrating, jumping, laughing, hugging and smiling that night. I’ll hold that moment forever in my heart. Every day, I wish he was still here with us. To keep his spirit vibrant, consider sharing stories, music (especially Bob Dylan), road trips and remain connected to each other as the years go on.
BUCKIE WITH IRIS ZIMMERMANN, WHO WAS THE FIRST U.S. FENCER IN ANY WEAPON TO WIN A CADET WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP AS WELL AS A SENIOR WORLD MEDAL.
BUCKIE COACHED FIVE OLYMPIC TEAMS WITH HIS FIRST COMING IN 1996.
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AMANDA LALEZARIAN
MICHAEL MARX
I grew up in New York and was a regular at Fencers Club from 8th-12th grade where I was lucky enough to attend Buckie’s classes before open bouting. I’ll never forget Buckie’s voice ringing through the club when he reminded us to “use our voice” during bouting, plus when he’d tease me for not smiling during warm-up. (I told him that was just my resting face!) Buckie was equally funny, charismatic and genuine as he was serious in coaching his fencers.
Buckie lived on his terms and so many of us were fortunate to share our dreams and goals with him. The seven amazing years I worked alongside him and Nat Goodhartz were the most memorable and influential of my life. Prior to leaving for Tokyo, he shared how excited he was about the team but also how he couldn’t wait to get on his bike and just ride around the country.
As we all know, Buckie was not only an incredible coach, but an all-around amazing human being who put his heart and soul into everything he did. He will be so missed, but never forgotten.
JESSIE LAFFEY It was so devastating to hear the news of Buckie’s passing. He was such an incredible man and inspiration. He touched so many lives and inspired us all to be better fencers, athletes and people. It was a privilege to get to work with him. I can still hear him yelling at me to “be brave” and cheering me on on the strip. He will be very missed by our entire community. Rest In Peace Buckie. In the words of Nzingha, “Do it for Buckie!!!”
Buckie truly earned everything he achieved. His choices and sacrifices were a major influence on us. He lived his way and many of us were fortunate enough to travel with him on our own journey. Buckie rarely compromised, his determination and dedication was his North Star and if you followed him you would eventually find gold. Although it seems unjust that his time was cut short, no one has done more, for so many, in so few years. His legacy will certainly live on.
IRIS ZIMMERMANN Dear Buckie, The bond between a coach and a student is a sacred one. The coach can see the potential and the fire of a champion in you, even before you can see it for yourself. They can stoke the flames, build you up, and they can help you and others see what was always inside you from the beginning. You put a small foil in my hand at two years old and drew a small dot on the wall for me to toddle over and hit the target. You started giving me lessons at about seven years old. My first lesson was a bit of a disaster and I never really managed to learn to feint disengage. I have never taken a lesson from someone like I have from you. It was like it was music. On the good days of lessons (boy there were a lot of bad ones too), it was as if we made the most complicated melodies sing into existence. During the good lessons, I felt invincible. You will forever be known as a master of your craft and a genius at the way you saw the sport. What I remember most about your coaching were all the books that you read as fast as you ate. You would devour book after book on coaching, from female coaches to male coaches and everything in between. You were a student of fencing and a student of becoming the best coach you could be. Genius only goes as far as you are willing to take it and you did everything you could to be the best. TOP: BUCKIE WITH ANN MARSHSENIC AT THE 1996 OPENING CEREMONY. BOTTOM: IN 2018, THE U.S. WOMEN’S FOIL TEAM WON ITS FIRST SENIOR WORLD TITLE.
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The bond between a student and a coach is a sacred one, Buckie. There is so much of my life you filled with color both light and dark. You were by far, one of the most influential people in my life and one of the hardest to say goodbye to. I hope you know how many people loved you and I hope you know you had so much more to give to fencing. I am so happy you saw Lee Kiefer win an Olympic gold medal in women’s foil and I am told you were happy after Tokyo and looking forward to retirement. It brings me peace to see how many people you have impacted in this world. You legacy is a big one. I can’t believe how many people we had to remember to call to let them know about your passing. From Elmira, to Ithaca, to Rochester, to New York, to Long Island, to South Bend, to all over the globe. There are so many people that you have impacted and we are all sad to see you go. Death is so hard for the living. We will be thinking of you long after today. You will always be a part of my life because for a while, we had some good fun. Those epic van rides with Bob Dylan blasting while you ate all the snacks ... those kind of good times.
GREG MASSIALAS Words cannot describe the shock and sadness when I heard of the news about Buckie. We have been close friends for almost 50 years going back to my Cornell days. He was a fun and kind soul, who always wanted to do things his way. He revolutionized fencing in the U.S. starting back in his days at Rochester and inspired a whole generation of USA fencers and coaches that we can reach the top. He was always very humble and his mark will forever be set in U.S. Fencing. Looking back at Tokyo 2020, we worked quite hard to help develop a great spirit for both the ladies and men working together as a group. I was honored when he asked me to help box the ladies in Tokyo and he grudgingly accepted to coach in the box with the guys. Looking back, the last time Buckie coached fencing was from the box in Tokyo, when we won the Olympic men’s foil team bronze medal. His legacy is much more that this, but he did go out winning his last match.
RON MILLER Today is a sad day for American fencing and for everyone who knew, loved and respected one of our sport’s greatest coaches. Buckie Leach, a long-time friend and fellow coach, died in a tragic accident. I first met Buckie at a fencing camp at Cornell in the 1970s when he was a teenager and already involved in learning to coach. We worked together many times in camps and frequently got together at competitions to discuss our love of the sport. More recently, we coached opposite teams in NCAA competitions when he was at Notre Dame. Buckie was an incredibly talented coach and mentor for his athletes and a great inspiration and friend to his peers. I am sharing just a few pictures I have of his time with fellow coaches. I can’t believe that I will never spend time with him again.
STEPHANY MCCLAIN Along with being one of our country’s most-decorated fencing coaches, he was a second dad to my husband Sean from his early years, his mentor, his coach the person he felt the most comfortable in talking about their shared sport. I loved hearing Buckie’s stories about Sean when he was a young fencer and a very mischievous young man. Buckie was one of the few people that could make Sean blush with embarrassment with his stories and I enjoyed seeing their camaraderie. Thank you for helping Little Grayce crawl, for our talks about the best barbecue, mac and cheese, for paying our violinist at our wedding when we forgot the cash, for all the quirky observations you made, for the crazy stories, for the beautiful things you made with your own hands that made us go wow, for making us dream about taking more risks in life, but mostly for the belly laughs right in the thick of those intense fencing bouts when I felt my heart was shriveling up watching my older kids fence. I wish you could have seen Grayce and Madison on the strip, I hope you know how much you were loved. I hope we continue to make you proud.
He was a special person that always did things his way. In some ways he left us doing what he loved doing - riding his bike. I will miss my dear friend, but he will always be with us.
BUCKIE HELPED BUILD THE SUCCESS OF THE U.S. WOMEN’S FOIL PROGRAM AND HAD RETIRED AFTER THE 2020 GAMES.
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NICK ITKIN
AL NAVARRO
Rest in Peace to my coach Buckie Leach. Working with you the last four years has been such an honor. We became very close these past few years. We had an amazing dynamic and I always had so much trust and respect for you. I will always remember the drives from Chicago to South Bend returning from World Cups where you would talk about your crazy life. You had so much wisdom, I learned so much from you about fencing and in life. You have had such a strong impact on the fencing community. You are truly a legend. I realize how lucky I am to have been able to work with you. You have been a huge influence in my life. I would not be the fencer or the person I am today without you. I’m so glad we got to experience my first and your fifth Olympic games together. You were family to me. I’m going to miss you Coach, fly high.
Like so many young fencers, my daughter Ava started out with foil – including attending a Fencers Club camp run by National Team coach and fencing legend Buckie Leach.
BUCKIE WITH THE WOMEN’S FOIL TEAM AT THE WHITE HOUSE IN 1996.
I ran into Buckie at an SYC the following season (I remember distinctly that it was Capitol Clash as we were sitting at a table in the atrium of the hotel/convention center) and he asked how Ava was doing. When I said that she was thinking of transitioning to epee, he commented how, given her style and natural tendencies he could see that being a good move. That conversation was the catalyst for Ava making the change more permanent ... a decision that eventually led her to becoming a recruited Div I athlete in epee.
SUNIL SABHARWAL I was in my second or third year of collegiate fencing at Ohio State and then-coach Charlotte Remenyik would always take the team on an annual East Coast tour of dual meets. At one of these, that was held at Cornell, the club team of Rochester was also there, and Buckie was helping out with refereeing, directing as we called it in those days. I was fencing and Buckie was directing, and I think it was against Terrence Gargiulo, but neither Buckie nor I could recall that with 100% certainty, and I was up 4-0. Then I believe I scored the last touch but Buckie gave it to the other fencer. I must have gotten really upset by the call and the bout became 4-4 (and I cannot actually recall who in the end won the bout). Decades later (I think at the Budapest Worlds), Buckie told me that he quit competitive refereeing after that day – because of that bout. The point of the story is that it speaks of a person who was absolutely fanatical about perfection, and demanded that not only from everyone around him, but of himself as well. It is this relentless pursuit of excellence that propelled him to become one of the best foil coaches of all time. American and global fencing lost a true icon with his passing. I am honored I could get a glimpse of him in Tokyo.
UNDER LEACH, NZINGHA PRESCOD BECAME THE FIRST BACK WOMAN TO WIN AN INDIVIDUAL MEDAL AT THE SENIOR WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS WITH HER BRONZE IN 2015.
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RIGHT: BUCKIE SHOWING OFF HIS SENSE OF HUMOR DURING USA FENCING’S #WHYIFENCE CAMPAIGN. BOTTOM: DURING BUCKIE’S TENURE, THE U.S. WOMEN’S FOIL TEAM WON FOUR SENIOR WORLD MEDALS, INCLUDING BRONZE IN 2019.
ERIC ROSENBERG If a historian were to accurately chronicle the periodization of U.S. fencing, they would likely apply the notations BB (Before Buckie) and AB (After Buckie). No single American coach has had a more transcendental impact on the ethos of competitive fencing in the United States. Anthony “Buckie” Leach and I belonged to a generation of dilettantes that grew up tacitly accepting the predestination of American competitors as bit players on the international scene. Then, this American-born coach started a Club in Rochester that focused exclusively on youth development. It was always assumed every great maestro had to have a foreign accent and pedigree; until this young upstart adopted modern training techniques and recruited a dedicated contingent of talented kids who eventually made their mark on the international scene. It began with Felicia Zimmermann, the first American to win the Junior World Cup Championship title. But the ultimate paradigm shift occurred when her younger sister, Iris, won the Cadet World Championship. Iris and Buckie’s achievement was a seismic event, which shook every U.S. club, coach and competitor from the comfortable complacency of mediocre results. Under his guidance, the RFC became the epicenter of American fencing. Every other serious competitive club (including the Fencers Club) wanting to remain relevant scrambled to reevaluate their modus operandi. At the time, I had been running the FC’s youth development program, contented with guiding several fencers to
Junior, World and Olympic Teams. Buckie Leach opened my eyes to the possibility of more, and along with our coaches, we began retooling the club’s infrastructure. FC membership became more youth-centric, and our traditional focus on bi-weekly individual lessons was replaced with comprehensive training programs. Shortly thereafter, our youth, cadet and junior fencers began making their mark on international fencing. Buckie Leach catalyzed this change. Even as our fencers challenged his own, he recognized the need to increase effective youth development nationwide, and unselfishly supported our efforts, as well as those of numerous clubs across the country. In 2001, Buckie approached me with an offer to join our coaching staff. He believed that the FC presented an opportunity to access a larger potential talent pool and free him from the administrative duties of running a club. I couldn’t agree fast enough. While our existing coaching staff was concerned that he might poach their most talented students that never proved to be the case. Rather, he always fostered an atmosphere of respect and cooperation. Over the years, I came to know Buckie Leach, the man. He was the quintessential child of the 60s: obsessively listening to Dylan; unconcerned with money or material gain; a virtual itinerant fencing monk. Yet in contrast with his footloose-hippie lifestyle, he drove his students relentlessly in pursuit of excellence. While I had reservations about some aspects of his approach, he never demanded more of his students than he did of himself. Undeniably, he left his mark of multiple generations of successful FC athletes and nascent coaches.
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the point
IN THE SPOTLIGHT 40 PRODUCT PREVIEW 41 WOMEN IN FENCING 42 PARENTS’ CORNER 44 TECH TALK 47
IN THE SPOTLIGHT
Daniel Holz T
he middle child in the family, Daniel Holz grew up playing with his brothers, constantly dueling with lightsabers, sticks or swords. As a result, fencing was a perfect match and he began in the sport at seven and half. Holz quickly learned to enjoy how quickly a bout can change as well as the mental aspect. “You have to think more and be able to analyze your opponent,” Holz said. “It’s like an action game of chess or like solving a Rubik’s Cube, trying to figure out the opponent and whoever can do it faster wins.” Holz also loves fencing because it’s all about overcoming obstacles, something he know a lot about. At nine years old in 2017, Holz was diagnosed with systemic juvenile idiopathic arthritis, a rare autoinflammatory disease that affected his joints. He felt pain in his muscles, including his thighs, and had headaches and fevers. After about a year of treatment and therapy, Holz is now in remission and in 2019, he won the Y10 National Championship, a moment he calls the proudest of his career. Two years later, Holz won his second National Championship with the Y12 title in Philadelphia. “I learned that in the most desperate of situations, there’s always hope. There’s always some way to get around the problem,” Holz said. “I’ve learned to appreciate every day that I have.” FAVORITE BOUT: My favorite bout was probably the finals of the Y10 [March] North American Cup, which was in 2019. To be up on stage on a national-level tournament for the first time in the finals, to win that was such a rush of excitement and it was such an amazing feeling. Especially since I’d only been a year in remission, I felt like as if it was that much more special. LEAST FAVORITE BOUT: There was a [tournament] in 2020 and of course it was the finals, but I lost to my brother badly. I forgot the score, I think it was like 15-5 or something, but that really sucked because it was the finals and I just felt as if it was so close, but to be beaten by my brother made it that much worse. HIS FENCING HEROES: I look up to Daryl Homer. He’s super inspirational and he actually came and visited my club once. This was before COVID of course and he talked to all of us about persevering and working hard and going for it. I really admire him.
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u STATS & FACTS EVENT: Men’s Saber HOMETOWN: Sacramento, California BIRTHDATE: 01/10/08 SCHOOL: Brookfield School CLUB: Premier Fencing Academy COACH: Hristo Hristov & Kristiyan Hristov HOBBIES: Fencing, reading, coding & playing video games
u HIGHLIGHTS CURRENTLY RANKED NO. 1 in Y12 in the USA Fencing National Rolling Point Standings GOLD, Y12 USA Fencing National Championships (2021) GOLD, Y10 USA Fencing National Championships (2019) GOLD, Y10 March NAC (2019)
the point PRODUCT PREVIEW By Serge Timacheff
NEW FENCING PRODUCTS
The LEONARK FENCING TARGET is a self-training fencing target made of microfiber that is wearresistant and durable. Filled with shock-proof sponge and felt, it is ultralight and stable, suitable to mount on the wall or throw in your bag for pre-tournament warmups. $71.68 from Sportsridge.com
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the point WOMEN IN FENCING By Karolyn Szot
The Fencer's Gambit Queens of the Refereeing World
D
uring quarantine, you might have caught Netflix’s new mini-series, “The Queen’s Gambit.” The show is about a young orphan girl who becomes a chess star prodigy. At a time when women were extremely underestimated in the mid-50s, she sets-out on a journey to become the greatest chess player in the world. While watching the series, I couldn’t help but constantly think of fencing. The main character, Beth Harmon, envisions a chessboard on her ceiling and constantly plays out moves in her head. I think all fencers can relate to daydreaming about their previous bouts and calculating what moves they could do differently in their next competitions. I had the pleasure of speaking with Iana Dakova, who actually started playing chess after she and her husband saw the show. She enjoys playing just to think several moves ahead like in fencing bouts. Iana is the founder of the Three Rivers Fencing Center and the Pittsburgh Fencer’s Club, and previously was a member of the Bulgarian National Team. For the last 10 years, she has been focusing on coaching and refereeing. She has served on the USA Fencing Referees Commission, and is currently on the FIE Refereeing Commission. The refereeing world of fencing, I learned, is incredibly intricate and requires much dedi-
cation. A fencing director must be the most knowledgeable “player” in the game. She or he must be capable of slowing things down in their heads to make the final call. “I replay actions, bouts and decisions in my head all the time,” Dakova told me. “I sometimes have seen those decisions for months and months in my head. Every referee goes through this.” I could only imagine the constant replay of fencing bouts in a referee’s head, especially if one questioned themself after a call. “The Queen’s Gambit” follows the heroine from tournament to tournament, where she must not only prevail over her opponents but the predominantly male society of chess as well. Dakova tells me when she was a young fencer she remembered opening an FIE magazine to see a big double-page picture that said: “A drastic improvement in the female presence in the last Olympic Games.” Similar to the atmosphere in “The Queen’s Gambit,” she recalled looking at the magazine picture and noticing one woman in a sea of men. There has definitely been an improvement in female participation in the sport of fencing but refereeing remains one often-overlooked area yet to show similar numbers of inclusion. “Why is it difficult for women to be more present in larger numbers?” Dakova ques-
tioned. “Besides fencing being a predominately male sport, is it because of lack of tradition or support?” Women are definitely judged by having traits of being nurturing, compassionate and empathetic. Dakova mentions that, especially in refereeing, “If you feel too much, these qualities can interfere with your judgment.” Since the beginning of time, women have had to prove, in more ways than one, that they can put preconceived notions aside and rise to meet any obstacle if they so choose. With this comes sacrifice, and it is no secret that many successful women have sacrificed much in their lives to move ahead in their careers. The term “The Queen’s Gambit” is a move in chess where you’d begin the game by sacrificing your Queen’s pawn to gain control of the center of the board. Sounds like the familiar second intention, right? “If you want to raise a family, that could take 10 years out of your refereeing career and this puts you automatically on the older side and it’s difficult to get established or promoted because it takes time to gain the experience,” Dakova said. “It takes time for referees to build the confidence and the presence that is necessary to referee at the highest level.”
Dakova (fourth from left) at the 2020 Budapest Grand Prix where a record eight women refereed the event. Photo Credit: #BizziTeam. 54 AMERICAN FENCING B
Dakova with the cadre at the 2018 Asian U23 Championships.
Women, particularly in careers like athletics where age is of the essence, often sacrifice starting families earlier, relationships or other personal life decisions in order to devote the time and effort necessary to excel in their careers. As such, ageism severely impacts women, particularly in this field. The expectations of society for women in terms of childcare and family produce an environment where men can continue to advance in their careers while women are often expected to take a pause to focus on family. The merits of these decisions are entirely up to one’s personal beliefs and values, but the effect they have on a woman’s career are the same. Particularly in fencing, as an athletic career, the pressures of these decisions are multifaceted as women race against the clock of societal standards for both age and gender. Dakova went on to tell me that the FIE selected four women referees for the Tokyo Olympic Games, including Kelly Koehler from the United States, versus in the Rio Olympics where they had only three. “It is also important to note that these women were selected based on their merit and not just a promotion based on gender,” Dakova added. When considering there were 24 referees total for the Olympics in Tokyo, this may not seem like a large number of women selected to participate. “It’s a matter of time for things to improve,” Dakova said. “We need to detect women referees that have the potential, support them, and then promote them to give them the chance to make it to the highest level. Not because they are women, but because they are great!”
because they are paving the way to influence the younger generation who see refereeing in fencing as an attainable career path.
Directing is one of those areas where I know I’d like to feel comfortable with the level of competition before being promoted to the next level. No one would want a referee who doesn’t feel confident yet, and it wouldn’t be providing a good service to the fencers in the competition.
“Unfortunately, there is a double standard when it comes to being competitive, aggressive or ambitious, which women need to free themselves from,” Dakova added.
Dakova made a good point: "For women, it’s easier to be noticed if you are good. But it’s also very easy to be noticed if you make a mistake. The old-boys’ club would say, ‘See, a woman can’t direct.’” It’s tough to think about the women who put themselves out there to try something new, only to be judged by their first impression.
If a woman chooses to be devoted to something, she will make sacrifices to achieve success. Hopefully, there will come a time when women do not need to sacrifice their valuable Queen’s pawn to gain control of the center of whatever field in which they find themselves.
“No one is good immediately in his or her first competition,” she said. “Everyone is nervous and everyone will make mistakes. That’s why it’s important for a female referee to be supported, and to be mentored in order for them to reach their own full potential.” Just before the pandemic on March 8, 2020, which happened to be International Women’s Day, there was the single-largest number of female referees at the Grand Prix in Budapest. Out of the 24 refs total, they had eight females, comprising a third of the referees. “This was a huge improvement,” Dakova said. I think it’s also important to spotlight these women who are breaking the proverbial glass ceiling in refereeing
At the Tokyo Olympic Games, Kelly Koehler became the first U.S. woman to serve as a referee at the Olympic Games since 1996.
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the point PARENTS' CORNER by Jenny Petite
Parents, Kids & Preventing Injury in Fencing In the last issue of American Fencing, columnist Jenny Petite, a fencer, fencing parent and a former college heptathlete and Olympic Trials qualifier in the sport, examined how parents can help keep their kids injury free in collaboration with fellow fencer Kevin Bradshaw, a chiropractic physician. In this issue, Petite looks at how stretching, hydration and sleep can help in recovery.
STRETCHING Although all the components of recovery are equally important, neglecting this one had the greatest negative impact on my athletic career. This is an area where your athlete should never compromise. If you do not feel like he or she is getting enough stretching in, talk your child and find ways to add extra stretching in after practice, while lying in bed or watching television. This is a valuable topic that could be discussed with the coach as well. I was concerned with my son going to college and having the same result I had. To prevent this, I talked him into taking a yoga class, convincing him with the “easy A” argument. There was such reassurance knowing that at least twice a week he was taking an hour-long class focused on stretching and poses that emphasized balance. Being a fencer himself, Dr. Bradshaw has a good insight into the particular type of stretching most beneficial to fencers. “Stretching is such a vital need in any athletic sport, especially in a sport that has the burst agility, strength and various muscle usage that fencing requires. Stretching is not only important prior to each individual bout, open fencing or lesson, but is severely important post-workout. This is a mistake that people often make in the maintenance of their bodies and prevention of injury,” Dr. Bradshaw said. So, what type of stretching program should a fencer engage in daily? “Let’s first start with legs. I often tell patients to view their leg as a box; they have a front, a back and two sides. Each side of a box carries load and has its roll in carrying whatever is inside, or in this case, holding and supporting the body,” Dr. Bradshaw advised. “We first discuss stretching all four sides of this box; so, the front would be the quadriceps, the outer side being the gluteal muscles, piriformis and elongating the IT band. The medial (inside) would be the adductor muscles, and very importantly the back, focusing on hamstrings, and calf muscles. Focusing on all four sides of the box in a pre- and post-fencing workout will not only help prevent injury, but will help lead to greater lengthening, flexibility, agility and recovery of the muscle tissue if injury occurs.”
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PART 2
Dr. Bradshaw noted that the shoulders, chest and spine need to be accounted for as well when developing a stretching plan. “The spine is extremely important to stretch, as it is the main component of your core. If your core is tight, then your extremities are tight, which means less extension and flexibility, which is needed during this sport. One of the absolutebest stretches to perform for the lower back and spine is oblique stretches,” he said. “This is where one stands straight, raises the arms above the head and grasping the elbows, and laterally bending side to side. Stretching the chest will help reduce constriction of the arm, which is needed for extension when fencing. If we want to make it simple, to prevent injury or help the body recover from an intense fencing session, focus on the box leg stretches, elongating the spine, opening the chest and stretching the shoulders.”
HYDRATION Not only is hydration critical for to optimize exercise performance, it also transports nutrients throughout your child’s body, regulates their body temperature, lubricates their joints and promotes better sleep. However, hydration is something your athlete needs to actively stay on top of. The body has a limited capacity to absorb fluids. So, drinking a large amount of water once you are already thirsty is not going to hydrate you instantly. Encourage your athlete to take sips of water regularly three hours before workout. A good rule of thumb is two to three cups of water before workout, about a half to one cup every 15 to 20 minutes during the workout and two to three cups afterwards.
SLEEP Sleep is crucial to your child’s health. Just like your athlete needs more caloric intake, they also need more sleep for the demand that he or she is putting on their body. One of the first thing that suffers without enough sleep is mental clarity. In a sport based on strategy, this should be a significant aspect of your child’s athletic recovery. The average amount of daily sleep people need ranges from seven to nine hours. These days our kids are pushing the envelope with activities, technology and social events and it is hard for them to get to bed at a reasonable time. Your child should be getting closer to nine hours of sleep a night since their body and mind is still developing in addition to their rigorous athletic program. A good night’s sleep for an athlete can mean quicker reaction time, more energy and agility, improved accuracy and, for us parents, a less cranky kid.
CONCLUSION These are all key features of athletic recovery, and to help you understand an applicable approach to your child’s fencing recovery, again, here is Dr. Bradshaw’s position: “I am often asked in my clinic what I do to help prevent injury, or help my body recover from a night of fencing. I follow my own advice and place a huge emphasis on stretching the fundamental muscles needed during fencing prior-to and post-workout, and again when I get home. I spend about five to 10 minutes prior-to and post-workout, and five more once I get home. I then make sure to have a healthy nutritious meal that will serve to help the muscles that were used that day, as feeding the body will lead to reduced inflammation and quicker muscle recovery. I will take magnesium (be careful on the type that you take in supplement form), which helps
muscle tension relax, and contributes to better sleep. I make sure every day that I am not fencing, I lift weights and perform balance exercises; one I absolutely love is taking three long pieces of tape and making an asterisk on the floor. Stand on one leg in the center of the asterisk and use the opposite leg to toe touch the end of each piece of tape. This helps so much with single-leg balance, often needed with fencing.” Most people think that once you leave the fencing club, fencing is over. One of the greatest strides you can take for your child’s fencing career is to embrace a strong recovery program. And a bonus is that it is good for everyone in the family to take part. Encourage your child to research athletic recovery on their own. The more they find out about the subject, the more likely they are to participate. Encourage health and longevity in your child’s fencing career.
Here are some useful resources that can give you further ideas on recovery: • Balance and wobble boards www.lifespanfitness.com/fitness/resources/articles/balance-board-exercises www.fitandme.com/balance-board-exercises/ • BOSU balls physicaltherapyproductreviews.com/bosu-ball-exercises/ www.healthline.com/health/fitness-exercise/bosu-ball-moves-workout#2.-Bird-dog • Stretching program for fencers www.fencing.net/512/stretching-and-flexibility-physiology-of-stretching-2/ Fencer Stretch
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the point TECH TALK by Ted Li
CARE OF LAMÉ & OTHER UNIFORM MATERIALS IT OFTEN COMES AS A SURPRISE TO FENCERS THAT THE ELECTRICALLY CONDUCTIVE MATERIALS (LAMÉ) IN FENCING GEAR CAN BE WASHED. It actually can be, but due to the nature of the material, it should be washed in a special way. Traditionally, the lamé material has metallic threads woven into the cloth; more recent lamés have metal-impregnated threads comprising the entire fabric. In the traditional lamé material, excessive folding, agitating or physical abuse (associated with machine washing) would break the metallic threads and severely degrade the electrical conductivity of the lame – if not totally ruin it. The newer conductive cloths are more physically durable but are not immune to the physical thrashing machine washing and drying can administer. The best way to wash the conductive materials used in fencing is to hand wash them. As the purpose of washing a lamé is to rid the material of accumulated salts and surface dirt, soaking the conductive material in warm water with a little Woolite® and ammonia is highly effective. Rinsing the lamé twice in clear, warm water and then air-drying the material on a coat hanger completes the process. Do not wring the water from the lamé, as that will destroy the metallic fibers. Saber masks, and now foil masks, with their conductive bibs, and masks in general, also can be washed. One of the most effective ways is to put it through a warm dishwasher cycle. Again, air-drying is mandatory, as the heat of a dishwasher’s drying cycle may destroy the foam padding inside the mask. Hand scrubbing the mask is also quite effective. I have heard of people using SoftScrub® for bibs, or a bit of detergent with some ammonia can be used to clean a bib. As they are not subjected to the same folding, creasing and physical abuse as a metallic vest or jacket, the lamé on a mask doesn’t need to be washed as often.
CARE OF UNIFORMS A question that gets asked frequently is what, if any, special care should be taken when washing a fencing uniform (jacket, plastron, pants). The answer depends upon the type of material from which the uniform is constructed. Once the fabric of choice for fencing uniforms, cotton duck can be washed just as any other cotton garment.
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But, beware! Cotton uniforms tend to shrink if washed in hot water, so use the warm water cycle in your washing machine and a cool cycle in the dryer, or air-drying on a hanger. Once you begin to get into the more modern fabrics, the synthetics and synthetic blends, you need to be more careful. Reading the laundering instructions that come with each new garment will tell you exactly what you should and should not do. For instance, most synthetic fabrics do not tolerate hot water, hot air or chlorine bleach. They should washed in warm or cool water – no bleach, please! – and air-dried. When washing gloves, special attention needs to be given to the material from which the glove is made. Some of the more traditional gloves are made from different kinds of leather (e.g., pigskin, sheepskin, cowhide, deerskin). Washing gloves made of leather can remove the oils which make them pliable, so you need to be careful. Using saddle soap usually does the trick for removing the dirt and salts that accumulate, while not stripping the leather of the oils providing its pliability. Increasingly, fencing gloves are being manufactured from synthetic materials, including “synthetic leather.” These usually can be machine washed using the warm cycle, and either air-dried or machine dried using a cool cycle. How often you wash your uniform is a matter of personal preference, but there have been instances when referees have given yellow cards for malodorous uniforms. It's probably best to wash your uniform after a fencing session, rather than letting it linger in your fencing bag.
RESULTS Virtual Fitness Challenge Y10 MEN 1. Nathan Uju Lee (Irvine, Calif. / Laguna Fencing Center) 2. Nathan Zhao (Cincinnati, Ohio / Bluegrass Fencers’ Club) 3. Satoshi Hiramoto (Palo Alto, Calif. / Le Club Touche)
Y10 WOMEN 1. Francesca Celis (Clarksburg, Md. / Rockville Fencing Academy) 2. Yuwei Wu (CAN / San Bernardino Axis Fencing Club) 3. Anna Blake (Worthington, Ohio / Columbus Fencing and Fitness)
Y12 MEN 1. Jimmy Chen (Pittsford, N.Y. / Rochester Fencing Club) 2. David Oropeza (MEX / Brooklyn Fencing Center) 3. Sacha Twemlow (Decatur, Ga. / Atlanta Fencers’ Club)
Y12 WOMEN 1. Madeleine Lee (Irvine, Calif. / Laguna Fencing Center) 2. Yuwei Wu (CAN / Axis Fencing Club) 3. Francesca Celis (Clarksburg, Md. / Capitol Rockville Fencing Academy)
Y14 MEN
2. Andrew Overdeck (Short Hills, N.J. / Excel Fencing Academy) 3. Jason Zhao (Cincinnati, Ohio / Bluegrass Fencers’ Club)
JUNIOR WOMEN 1. Hadley Husisian (Oakton, Va. / Fencing Sports Academy) 2. Molly Kettelle (Tucson, Ariz. / Massialas Foundation) 3. Skylar Knight (Palo Alto, Calif. / Maximum Fencing Club)
SENIOR MEN 1. John Kissingford (Ouray, Colo. / Denver Fencing Center) 2. Zachary Chien (Los Angeles, Calif. / Los Angeles International Fencing Center) 3. Bryan Wheelock (Madison, Wis. / Cracovia Foil Fencing)
SENIOR WOMEN 1. Hadley Husisian (Oakton, Va. / Fencing Sports Academy) 2. Adi Nott (Rochester, N.Y. / Rochester Fencing Club) 3. Skylar Knight (Palo Alto, Calif. / Maximum Fencing Club)
VETERAN 40-49 MEN 1. Aaron Gaines (San Marcos, Calif. / San Diego Fencing Center)
1. Isaac Lief (Pelham, N.Y. / Long Island Fencing Center) 2. Jimmy Chen (Pittsford, N.Y. / Rochester Fencing Club) 3. Sacha Twemlow (Decatur, Ga. / Atlanta Fencers’ Club)
VETERAN 40-49 WOMEN
Y14 WOMEN
1. John Kissingford (Ouray, Colo. / Denver Fencing Center) 2. Michael Starr (Abilene, Texas / Abilene Sport Fencing) 3. Chris Balestracci (Guilford, Conn. / Fencers School of Connecticut)
1. Marisol Taylor-Casamayor (Pittsford, N.Y. / Rochester Fencing Club) 2. Nikita Swenson (Cross Plains, N.Y. / Ataba Fencing Club) 3. Madeleine Lee (Irvine, Calif. / Laguna Fencing Center)
CADET MEN 1. Benjamin Gisler (Gaithersburg, Md. / Rockville Fencing Academy) 2. Andrew Overdeck (Short Hills, N.J. / Excel Fencing Academy) 3. Isaac Lief (Pelham, N.Y. / Long Island Fencing Center)
CADET WOMEN 1. Skylar Knight (Palo Alto, Calif. / Maximum Fencing Club) 2. Molly Kettelle (Tucson, Ariz. / Massialas Foundation) 3. Marisol Taylor-Casamayor (Pittsford, N.Y. / Rochester Fencing Club)
JUNIOR MEN
1. Alexandra Swenson (Cross Plains, Wis. / Ataba Fencing Club) 2. Sandra Lewis (Colorado Springs, Colo. / Front Range Fencing Club)
VETERAN 50-59 MEN
VETERAN 50-59 WOMEN 1. Miho Zinni (Evergreen, Colo. / Denver Fencing Center)
VETERAN 60-69 MEN 1. Mark Wheeler (Chicago, Ill. / Academy of Fencing Masters)
VETERAN 60-69 WOMEN 1. Elizabeth Merritt (Washington, D.C. / Rockville Fencing Academy) 2. Rebecca Freyre (Denver, Colo. / Denver Fencing Center)
PARAFENCING WOMEN 1. Terry Hayes (Fort Myers, Fla. / Southwest Florida Fencing Academy) 2. Julie Grant (Seattle, Wash. / Salle Auriol Seattle)
1. Benjamin Gisler (Gaithersburg, Md. / Rockville Fencing Academy)
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2021 - 2022
CALENDAR OCTOBER NORTH AMERICAN CUP
OCT. 29-NOV. 1, 2021 ST. LOUIS, MO DIVISION I, PARAFENCING, CADET AND Y14
DECEMBER NORTH AMERICAN CUP DEC. 9-12, 2021 COLUMBUS, OH DIVISION I, JUNIOR AND CADET
JANUARY NORTH AMERICAN CUP
JAN. 7-10, 2022 SAN JOSE, CALIF. DIVISION I, PARAFENCING, JUNIOR AND VETERAN AGE
JUNIOR OLYMPIC CHAMPIONSHIPS FEB. 18-21, 2022 SALT LAKE CITY, UT JUNIOR, CADET AND JUNIOR TEAM
MARCH NORTH AMERICAN CUP
MARCH 4-7, 2022 RICHMOND, VA Y14, Y12, Y10, VETERAN AGE AND VETERAN OPEN
DIVISION I / PARAFENCING NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS & APRIL NAC APRIL TBD 2022 LOCATION TBD CHAMPIONSHIPS: DIVISION I IND., DIVISION I TEAM AND PARAFENCING NAC: JUNIOR, CADET, DIV II
USA FENCING NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS & JULY CHALLENGE
JULY 2-11, 2022 MINNEAPOLIS, MINN. CHAMPS: DIV IA, DIV II, DIV III, Y14, Y12, Y10, VET AGE JULY CHALLENGE: DIV I, JUNIOR, CADET, SENIOR TEAM AND VET TEAM
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