The Cupertino Courier
Community
Young fencers waste no time in getting right to the point
By Erin Hussey
What do Neil Diamond, Prince Albert of Monaco, Andrew Jackson and hundreds of Bay Area students such as Sunnyvale resident Ambrish Amaranthan and Cupertino native Stephen Chou have in common?
No, they aren't all in love with a woman named Caroline. They are all fencers.
But, unlike the choreographed bouts from the movies where characters like Zorro swing from chandeliers or leap from balconies, the athletic sport of fencing is quite different.
"Fencing challenges the mind and body," says Valerie Rosenblatt, founder and head coach of the Elite Musketeer Fencers' Club (EMFC). "It's a game. A great strategy game, just like our life is. It helps one see how to plan their moves ahead of time and see what effect those moves will have, just like chess."
In the fencing community, it is not uncommon to hear the sport referred to as "physical chess." While similar in regards to trying to read the next move of an opponent, fencing is obviously more physically demanding.
"It's a fast-paced sport which is good exercise for the body," says Ambrish, an eighth-grader at Harker School who started fencing last year. He is now coached by Rosenblatt at the EMFC.
"It puts momentum, running and endurance all together."
In addition to the technical training, fencing students must run sprints, jump rope, practice leg lunges and do various upper body and balance exercises.
Most fencers, including Ambrish and Stephen, practice two to three times a week for three hours.
"It takes discipline and commitment," says Connie Yu, head coach at The Fencing Center in San Jose. She has coached Stephen and his younger sister Jessica for close to two years. "Because it is such a unique sport, the skills aren't natural. You have to train and learn the moves."
But the hours of practice seem to be paying off for both Ambrish and Stephen. Both boys finished in the top eight out of close to 50 fencers in the Youth 14 Men's Foil Division at the United States Fencing Association Regional Youth Circuit and California Open School Cup held Feb. 3 and 4.
The foil sword is one of the three sword types used in competitive fencing. It is considered the modern version of the court sword and has a flexible, rectangular blade approximately 1 yard in length and weights slightly more than 1 pound.
"Essentially you have to stab your opponent five times before they do," says Stephen, an eighth-grade student at Kennedy Middle School. With foil, each fencer wears a metallic cloth vest called a lamé over his or her white uniform. To score a point, the fencer must hit his or her opponent on the area of the lamé.
"The only targets are the chest and back," explains Stephen. "It's harder because the target area is smaller."
The other two sword types in fencing are epeé and saber. The epee is a descendent of the weapons used in duels and has a stiff, triangular blade about 1 yard in length and weighs close to 2 pounds.
The target area is the entire body, from the tips of the toes to the top of the head.
The saber sword, on the other hand, is similar to the slashing and thrusting cavalry sword of the past. It also has a triangular blade and is 1 yard in length but weights less than the epeé.
Points in saber are scored by slashes as well as with the tip of the blade. All touches must land from the bend of the hip up, like a cavalry solider mounted on a horse.
Whatever sword students decide to compete with, they must wear protective head and body gear. Their uniforms are made from ballistic fabrics such as Dyneema, which are similar to those used in bulletproof vests.
The mesh facemask, including a protective bib for the neck, can support more than 12 kilograms of force.
Female fencers are also required to wear a plastic chest protector.
"The risk of injury is very low," says Yu. "I have gone all of my life without an injury and I have been fencing for 30 years."
Although Yu and Rosenblatt work for different fencing clubs, they both noted the growth in the sport's popularity.
"Many kids nowadays are into strategy games on computers," says Rosenblatt, "but sitting in front of the computer, although fun, is not very good for their health, so we offer a healthy alternative."
Competitive fencing is a sanctioned National Collegiate Athletic Association sport, and many universities offer full-paid scholarships. Both Stephen and Ambrish say they hope to fence in college.
Even if the boys don't make it that far, they will have learned some valuable lessons.
"Fencing is really a philosophy for life," says Rosenblatt. "It teaches kids how to deal with life challenges, how to set goals and work hard to achieve them."
