Fencing has its roots in the ancient games of swordplay and dueling. Today, people of many different age groups compete in fencing, using modern equipment and scoring devices. Fencing is an international sport and has been a staple of the modern Olympic Games since 1896. Today, fencing remains the only combat sport that has no weight classes for competitors.
History
Fencing was originally a type of military training performed during the 14th and 15th centuries in Europe, according to Olympic.org. Around this time, Italy and Germany founded the first fencing guilds, but fencing as a sport didn't become truly popular until around the 17th Century. In the 1600s, certain safety precautions sparked the sport's popularity. These included the invention of the foil, which had a flattened tip on its blade, the use of the wire-mesh mask as a safety device and the first rules regarding the "target areas" on the body. Fencing was an official event in the first modern Olympic Games in 1896 and has been an Olympic event ever since, notes USA Fencing. Women's fencing events premiered at the Olympics in 1924. The Federation Internationale d'Escrime, or "FIE," was founded in 1913 as the international governing body for fencing.
Equipment
There are three main types of fencing swords used in separate fencing matches, which include the foil, the epee and the sabre, Olympic.org says. The foil is a thrusting sword with a rectangular, flexible blade, while the epee is similar to the foil but has a stiffer, heavier blade and a larger guard. The sabre is also similar to the foil but has a sharp-edged blade for cutting and hitting with the point. In 1936, George Baker, Alfred Skrobisch and Hugh Alessandroni of Columbia University invented the first electronic scoring apparatus for fencing, according to USA Fencing. Each fencer has a bodywire attached to his uniform and weapon to electronically register points from hits to the opponent's target body areas. Fencers wear uniforms consisting of special jackets, chest guards, knickers and gloves, in addition to the wire-mesh masks.
Strategy
Fencers play on an area called a "piste" or "strip," which is divided in half by a center line. The piste typically measures 14 meters or about 46 feet by 2 meters or 6 ½ feet, says USA Fencing. Although scoring and time limits for fencing matches have varied widely throughout the past century or more, the modern-day time limits for a fencing match is 3 minutes for five-touch bouts and 9 minutes for 15-touch bouts. Touches are considered contacts that a fencer makes to the opponent's target body areas with the point of the weapon.
Competitions
Fencing competitions are held on the local, regional, national and international levels. International competitions include the Olympic Games and the FIE World Championships, according to USA Fencing. Both men and women compete in the fencing events in the Olympic Games in individual and team competitions. Women first competed in the foil fencing even in the 1924 Olympics, but it wasn't until the 1996 Games that women also competed in the epee event. In 2004, the women's sabre event was officially added to the Olympic Games, the FIE states. The World Championships preceded the Olympics in adding women's sabre and epee competitions, however.
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