Monthly Archives: February 2013

Period 1: Rodell comes off the line aggressively working his tip on Yoo. Rodell gets perhaps a little bit too close in his preparations and Yoo capitalizes with a deep low line lunge and last second disengage. 1-0 Yoo.

Yoo begins the second touch by drawing Rodell away from the middle of the strip towards his side. Rodell prepares with a simple back-forward-back-forward movement, allowing Yoo to choose the moment where Rodell is coming forward and attack right into his advance. Yoo misses the first temp and seizes the blade in preme to close the attack. 2-0 Yoo. More simple back-forward movement, and Yoo widens the distance just a hair to allow more distance to launch his attack. Once again a miss of the first temp, and a seizing of the blade in preme but he is has just passed Rodell. No touch. Another deep lunge, but this time it is into Rodell’s retreat, allowing Rodell to sneak in a counter-attack and double out. 3-1 Yoo. Rodell responds with his first single light of the bout: an explosive lunge that Yoo tries to counter with a counter-flick over the top of Rodell’s wrist: a signature move of the LAIFC. But Rodell is too deep and it’s a single.

Yoo tries to quickly attack Rodell three seconds into the sequence, but Rodell’s forte is strong blade work, strong parries. He catches Yoo with another single light in a parry-riposte in 8 to tie the bout at 3-3. Somewhere in the background, I am heard yelling like a robotic squeezy doll “Come on Fei, let’s go Fei.” Fei gets a quick advance lunge on Yoo’s half advance to take the 4-3 lead, but Yoo fights back with a signature fleche with remise in preme just as he goes by. I suggest a call for a challenge to Clinton’s coach, Robert Suchorski (like an idiot), the touch is reviewed, and Yoo gets it. 4-4. Yoo pulls Rodell to his end of the strip, and once again times his attack into Rodell’s advance who he hits with another deadly low line lunge. 5-4 Yoo. Rodell seems to change the tempo all of a sudden to more passive feet, perhaps in response to Yoo’s attacks into his prep coming forward. Now watch this attack! Sweeping 8 to get Yoo to chase his blade, and a long, explosive, athletic advance lunge for a single light. 5-5. Pretty. Rodell decides to continue with smaller feet and decides it’s a safe bet to bait Yoo’s attack for a strong parry-riposte in 8 once again. 6-5 Rodell. Rodell takes it back to his end of the strip again, and Yoo goes in for his attack with remise in preme. Just for a brief moment, Yoo turns to look at the lights…

And when he turns back to Rodell, Rodell is ready with the single light riposte. 7-5 Rodell. On a scale of “1 to holy crap you’re fast,” Yoo responds with a “holy crap you’re fast” lunge and catches Rodell standing straight up. If you are more impressed than Michela with this touch, you’re not the only one. Yoo gets so deep in the lunge that with his arm parallel to the ground, it is literally about 15-18 inches off the ground. Wow. Single light for Yoo.

7-6 Rodell. The period ends.

Period 2: Small, and I mean really tiny steps from Rodell to start the 2^nd period. Out comes Yoo’s attack which Rodell tries to take in 8. As Yoo comes up in his signature preme, Rodell manages to sneak in a counter on Yoo’s wrist. 8-6 Rodell. More small steps from Rodell, but he launches an attack from just too far out of distance and is met with Yoo’s preme. 8-7 Rodell.

This is where Yoo begins to understand the timing of Rodell’s attacks a little more. Just as Rodell begins to prepare his long advance lunge, Yoo pops him for a single light before he can extend into his attack. 8-8. It won’t be the last time you see Yoo’s impeccable timing into Rodell’s attacks. Rodell responds with a smaller, more gradually accelerated advance lunge with his tip around Yoo’s bellguard and he manages a single light as Yoo picks his hand up to parry. 9-8 Rodell. Annnnnndd again. Rodell puts his arm out in preparation. Yoo searches for a flick in preparation, but Rodell’s tip is around his guard and Rodell gets a single light counter. 10-8. In one of the more pretty touches from Rodell in this bout, he draws Yoo in to his 2 meter zone, does a small press on the inside to bait the parry, than accelerates with a lunge and a flick under Yoo’s wrist as Yoo’s arm goes up to parry.

A quick lunge off the line and Yoo is unprepared. 12-8 Rodell. Four touch deficit, and Yoo is like “NO PROBLEM THIS IS MY NINJA LONG LUNGE FOOT TOUCH! BOOM! That lunge’s speed, distance covered, and ability to sink low is quite incredible and will go a long way in his career. 9-12.

Rodell pulls Yoo out, seems surprised that he is able to take a simple 6 riposte and he gets a single light. 13-9. More active feet for Rodell this time, and he once again comes out with a beautiful long attack and picks Yoo’s wrist as he closes. 14-10. There’s still a fight to be had here.

Yoo just says “F it.” Launches an attack and gets a last second remise before he goes off the strip. 14-10. Rodell, jumpy and eager to win perhaps fleches a little bit too far out of distance and Yoo squats down with a counter. Single light, 14-11.

Yoo is intent on staying to the short targets. Flicks to the top of Rodell’s hand in prep to bait the 6, then goes inside for the 4 for a single light. 14-12. Rodell launches his signature explosive advance-lunge, and catches Yoo standing up with his hand up. Single light, and bout. 15-12 Rodell.

Overall: This bout was fenced in a matter of 314 seconds. A total of 27 touches were scored, with 2 of them coming on doubles for a total of 25 individual halts. Each touch took roughly 12.56 seconds to score—more on the quick side for an epee bout. Rodell was able to seize this victory by capitalizing on Yoo’s larger parries and closing him out with a last second disengage when the arm was picked up high. Rodell’s defense was also overwhelming. On almost all actions where Rodell baited Yoo’s attack, he was able to get a parry-riposte (mostly in 8) almost every time.

Yoo seemed to have his greatest effect against Rodell when he engaged him with a remise in preme. This strategy was abandoned after the first period, but seemed consistently effective. Had Yoo used his deep ninja lunge more to Rodell’s short targets, this bout might have had a different outcome. Both of these kids have more years left in cadet. I look forward to more matches from two excellent fencers.

To read more of the “Breaking Down the Film” series, click here.

In the lore of fencing douchebaggery, no badge of dishonor resonates with more epic power than that of a fencing black card. Eurosport enthusiasts would believe that the penalty card system ends at yellow and red; but, Fencing is so cool that you can get a black card, which means you’re knocked the F out of the tournament and you don’t pass go and collect $200. Allow me to explain the card system:

• Yellow Card- Like a warning. Received for equipment malfunction, other minor things. No big deal. You get two yellows and it becomes a…
• Red Card- A touch against you if a red is received. You can get a red card directly without a yellow for things like saying naughty words, or if you try to tackle a little kid.
• Black Card- You have done something so grievously douchebaggerous that the ref hates you enough to expel you from the tournament. Depending on the magnanimity of your douchebaggery, your black card might include: forfeiture of points, suspension, and of course, permanently perceived as a douchenozzle by the fencing community. Hester Prynne’d by a gang of gentleman in a chivalrous sport. Oh, and because you have been such a buttdouche, you get expelled from fencing history. Not even with an asterisk. It will say Fencer Excluded on the record.

Luckily, due to the gentlemanly/ladylike nature of fencing, black cards are a rarity. When they’re handed out, it’s like time stops. But, if you ever want to get a group of fencers talking, bring up black cards. I have seen a few black cards in my time. They’re always funny. So, I reached out to some friends and the Reddit Fencing Community to produce this post. Which shall be called….

TALES OF EPIC BLACK CARDS!!!

Tale number 1: Kevin “Shanabro” Shanahan is reffing a super youth circuit at the University of New Hampshire. Shanahan received score sheet. It looks like this:

Yes, you read that correctly. It said “This Ref Stinks.” BLACK CARD!!!

Tale number 2- From “Arium” of the Reddit Community- “I was fencing in an intercollegiate team tournament(unranked) with my university fencing club. Being a sabersit and our club’s captain\coach, I had some free time on my hands so during the pool, I was watching and cheering on our foil team.

Photo: Little Kids Fencing

Yesterday, I wrote a post for the Washington Times titled “Athletes and parents: A parent’s guide to fencing tournaments.” Today, established Women’s Epee Fencer, Dr. Valerie Asher weights in with a thoughtful response on her own journey to learning how to be a good fencing parent. Dr. Asher is a member of the DC Fencers Club in Silver Spring, Maryland and a Division I Women’s Epee point holder. She is a ninja on the strip, and she WILL take you down. 

I started my competitive fencing career in Div 2 and 3 where it seemed as though all my fellow fencers were 14-year-olds and I was the only one in my pool who didn’t have a stuffed animal in my fencing bag.   I got to know the girls – and their parents – pretty well and developed strong opinions about “good” and “bad” fencing parents.   “Why can’t they back off a little?” I thought as I watched them swing from desperation to jubilation and back again.  What I didn’t appreciate is how very hard it is to be a fencing parent.  I learned this when my nephew started fencing and I sat by the strip watching him in his first Y10 NAC.   I had no idea how difficult it is to watch a small child you love beyond all reason expose himself to loss and disappointment. Watching his first pool made me far more anxious than any bout I have ever fenced myself.  I looked at my friends who had watched their children fence year after year  with new respect for their ability to conceal their own emotional turmoil.  Over the past four years, I have learned to be a good “fencing parent” to my nephew as we have traveled to NACs and Nationals, and he has given me permission to write about some of our experiences that might be helpful to other families

While you have made the point that the parent is not the coach, I think the parent has a vital role in helping a child learn to manage his or her emotions and behavior on and around the strip.  Just as parents teach their children table manners,  parents should be the first ones to  teach their children to treat referees, coaches, and their fellow fencers with respect.   When Nephew was small, before each tournament I would remind him that even if he wasn’t happy at the end of the bout, he should give his opponent a sincere handshake and acknowledge and thank the referee at the end of the pool.  At the end of the day, if his coach is present I reminded him to thank his coach – even if he was disappointed with his performance.  I also think that a parent who really knows the child is often the best one to help him/her learn to manage the emotions around losing – because very few fencers win everything along the way.  Nephew’s first club tournament was marked by a spectacular outburst when he lost a bout he thought he could win; he saluted and then bolted for the men’s room without shaking hands and still wearing his mask.  He did come back to the strip to shake hands – and then bolted out to the parking lot where he rolled on the asphalt in his new whites.

An hour later he wanted to know if we were still going to the Capitol Clash.  At that point, I decided we needed an emotional game plan.   A few days later, away from the heat of competition, I explained to him that he and his coach could set competitive goals, but that he and I were going to set emotional goals.  His first goal was to be able to finish a losing bout; behave well with the referee and his opponent; collect his gear; and leave the room.  After he left the room he was allowed to vent in any way he felt he needed to.  He thought this was a reasonable goal but asked that I set a small reward for making his goal; a post-tournament doughnut and one new game downloaded to my phone.   We agreed; and once he met this goal, we set the next goal.  He next had to learn to decompress by sitting for thirty minutes in the venue with his headphones on listening to music; followed by finding a teammate or friend who was still in the tournament and cheering for him. Now that he is in his  early teens, the goals I set are about organization: keeping track of his equipment and paying attention to the posting of pools and the tableau so that he is at the strip on time.

I’ve also had to learn to ask Nephew what he needs from me at a tournament. Most kids have very definite opinions about what they want from mom or dad.   I try to listen to him and not let my own ego or opinions get in the way.   Does he want me by the strip or out of sight?  Am I allowed to cheer?  if his coach isn’t there, am I allowed to coach? (the answer is usually no). His answers change tournament to tournament and year to year.  At his behest, I always have plenty of water.  When he’s doing well, he needs hydration to recharge his batteries; when he’s not doing well, drinking seems to calm him down.  He also asks me to keep score and keep track of the bout order during the pool.   While any scrap of paper will do to keep score, bout order can be found in the Fencing Journal sold by Absolute Fencing and is also available if you enter your child’s pool in the Fencing Ref app for iPad or iPhone.

I have  been interested to see that letting Nephew make mistakes can lead to insights that will ultimately make him a better competitor.  In Louisville, he fenced a lackluster pool.  When I tried to get him to eat before DE’s he refused, saying he didn’t feel hungry.  I pressed a little but didn’t try to force him and ultimately he started the next round on an empty stomach. After an upset win in his first DE, he faced a more successful teammate.   Just before he hooked up, he asked me if he could have some food after the DE.  For the first two periods he had a strong lead.  However in the third period I watched his his focus dribble away and he lost 14-15.  Sitting next to me after the bout, he sounded puzzled when he said, “My concentration just disappeared.” And then a moment later, he said, “I think that I should have eaten when you wanted me to.”   It’s much better for him to learn to manage his food and hydration during the tournament than for me to to manage everything for him.

Lastly, I try to make our trips to NACs and Nationals include more than fencing.   It is my hope that he will fence well and meet or exceed all his goals, but that is not a sure thing.  Before his first NAC I told him that I couldn’t guarantee success; but that I can always guarantee that we will fun and will have at least one great meal with our friends.  While some cities are more exciting destinations than others , I’ve yet to find a city that doesn’t have something worth trying, even if it’s just a barbecue joint or the best local doughnut shop.  I do the research (or outsource it to his dad) ahead of time so I can manage our time well.

At the end of any tournament, only a few kids will have gold medals.  However I think that with some parental guidance, competition provides any child with an amazing opportunity to gain skills that will be useful well beyond childhood.  And even when we have a disappointing day,  I never forget that Nephew and I are lucky to be able to see a new city eat a great meal together.

This is TheFencingCoach.com’s 4th guest post. I encourage any enthusiastic fencers to submit entries and I will post!

-Damien

The people-watching associated with fencing is often as entertaining as the sport itself—and this couldn’t be truer when it comes to watching parents during a tournament. Parents during tournaments can range from enthusiastic cheerleaders to coaches (either actual coaches or parents who think they know something when they don’t) and to parents you would think are mental asylum escapees.

A few months ago during the Capitol Clash Super Youth Circuit, as soon as the referee declared “fence!” a father began to scream ruthlessly at his son. His son, unable to focus and relax on the strip proceeded to lose every pool bout. As he unplugged from each bout, the father’s relentless screams continued. At one point, I turned to see the father grab his son by his (facial) cheeks, and the boy’s simple crying dissolved to hysteric wailing. The boy left the tournament empty handed after losing his first direct elimination match.

Yet, this last weekend at Junior Olympics, our club had two parents who played a really supportive role in their kids becoming junior olympic champions. I wanted to share this article with you as a primer on conducting oneself as a parent during a tournament. Curious to hear your ideas.

Original Video Can be Found Here

Period 1: Simmons and Eldeib begin the bout at large distance, with Simmons preparing with half advance and half extension to draw out Eldeib’s attack because of Eldeib’s significant height advantage. Eldeib takes 3-2 lead by baiting Simmons’ attack and countering before Simmons’ front foot is able to hit the ground. Simmons changes tactics to bring the bout inside by engaging in a deep six to tie the bout at 3-3, yet Eldeib is ready for this action on the next touch and meets Simmons with a well-timed parry-riposte before Simmons can get inside to take a 4-3 lead. Simmons does a beautiful last second disengage into Eldeib’s preparation to tie at 4-4.

At this point, Simmons tries to take a different tactical approach, trying to lure Eldeib to his end of the strip. Simmons and Eldeib launch an attack at the same time, doubling out. Once again a consecutive double to tie the bout at 6-6. Simmons surprises Eldeib with a short feint 6 preparatory action under the guard with advance to close the distance and finish with a beautiful close in 6 to a lunge. 7-6. Eldeib comes towards Simmons a little faster and more aggressive than usual and baits Simmons into infighting once again, closing out Simmons with a parry-riposte to tie at 7-7. Simmons responds quickly with a feint 6 preparatory action under the guard with advance, this time hitting Eldeib cleanly with the preparation to go up 8-7. The touches begin to come out a lot faster. Eldeib pushes Simmons and launches a long lunge with last second disengage into Simmons’ advance before Simmons can close him out in 4. 8-8.

Simmons responds by feinting 6, making Eldeib think he is going for the short action under the guard once again, and Eldeib falls for the trap and launches into the preparation to be met with a strong 8 from Simmons. Within three seconds, Simmons launches a feint 6 disengage lunge to Eldeib’s body, but Eldeib uses his long arm to counter Simmons for a single light before he can get close. 9-9. The two fencers take the last 23 seconds to back off and kill the clock, with the 1^st period ending at 9-9.

Period 2:  Simmons begins to push Eldeib with much smaller steps than he began the first period with, and does a small flick remise over the top of Eldeib’s guard to take the 10-9 lead. Eldeib pauses in quiet contemplation for a moment, but then gives the thumbs up, because when you have a name like “Ace,” you have to be positive and shit.

Simmons doubles out Eldeib. 11-10. And finally: the turning point of the bout. The entire bout thus far had been a back and forth between Simmons scoring, followed by Eldeib scoring, followed by double touches. Neither fencer held more than a one touch lead at any point during the bout. Simmons begins to pull Eldeib in and does a flick in preparation, then closes Eldeib out in a deep 6 to take a 12-10 lead.

In the “I swear to God Eldeib can cover an entire strip with an advance-lunge” moment, Eldeib covers a lot of ground with an advance lunge but is met with Simmons who does some kind of a  creative squat-down 8 counter-attack in response. 13-10 Simmons.

Simmons slaps his thighs, as if to say, “Hey guys, I got this.” Or maybe he was in pain. I don’t know. Simmons goes for his deep infight quickly, but Eldeib takes a large retreat and counterattacks before Simmons can continue. 13-11. Once again, Simmons flicks to draw Eldeib out and goes for the deep 6 once again. 14-11. Eldeib goes for a deep toe touch into Simmons’ advance, misses, then goes for it again to be met by Simmons’ point. 15-11, final score.

Overall: This bout was an excellent case study in how to manage an opponent with freakishly long arms and long attacks when you’re not quite his size, which is what Simmons managed to do. Simmons’s marquis action was the use of a flick to draw Ace out and to finish with a deep 6 at the last second, which he landed somewhere between 5-7 times.

This bout ended in 229 seconds; yet, if you subtract the 23 seconds at the end of the first, there were roughly 206 seconds of active fencing in the bout.

The bout had a total of 26 touches scored, roughly 5 of which double touches, which means that there were a total of 21 halts in the action due to a touch scored. What this means is that there a touch scored once every 9.81 seconds—a very fast pace for an epee bout. Simmons chose to fence an aggressive bout, and it paid off for him.

Both have many more years in Juniors, and are not only quality fencers, but great people as well. It will surely not be the last time they meet up!

For more Breaking Down the Film Series, click here.

When I began my fencing career at Brandeis University, there was one benchmark for fencing success that every fencer strove to match: Tim Morehouse.

“We live in Tim Morehouse’s shadow,” our captain used to say.

Morehouse cast a large shadow after a storied career at Brandeis, which featured three all-American titles—a feat no fencer has accomplished since. Morehouse’s success at Brandeis only grazed the surface of what has become one of the most storied fencing careers in American history. Morehouse would go on to win an Olympic Team Silver Medal in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, two individual national championship titles in 2010 and 2011, and a top eight finish in the 2012 London Olympics.

Between his successful careers as a sabrist, writer, motivational speaker, E! News correspondent, and his new “Fencing in the Schools initiative,” Morehouse is seemingly able to squeeze 48 hours into one day.

He recently released a must-read autobiography, titled American Fencer, and he is gearing up for a March 13 launch of his new Fencing in the Schools program. We sat down with Morehouse to discuss his unofficial role as American fencing’s goodwill ambassador, his array of fencing initiatives, and what the future holds for his caree

Read more: http://communities.washingtontimes.com/neighborhood/fencing-coach/2013/feb/15/interview-olympic-silver-medalist-tim-morehouse/#ixzz2KzdmBpHy
Follow us: @wtcommunities on Twitter

The 2013 NCAA Championships are scheduled to take place in over a month from now in San Antonio Texas, but it’s never too early to make predictions.

This championship will feature an array of 2012 London Olympics, ten reigning or former NCAA champions, and dozens of fencers ranked at the top of the United States points list. Assuming the regional qualifications go according to expectation, this could shape up to be one of the most competitive tournaments in NCAA fencing history.

For those unaware of the format—the tournament is divided into six events: Men’s Epee, Men’s Foil, Men’s Sabre, Women’s Epee, Women’s Foil, and Women’s Sabre. Each event is comprised of 24 competitors who fence each other in five-touch, round robin format over the course of two days. At the conclusion of the round robin fencing, the school that has earned the most victories will be the NCAA team champions.

Once the round robin is complete, the top 4 fencers in each event compete in 15-touch single elimination bouts for the right to be crowned NCAA individual champion. The individual title is independent of the team championships.

My predictions cover the fencers I believe will be in the top 3 of each event, and my overall national champion predictions:

An important flowchart to assess your decision to fence or not.