MIDDLE ATLANTIC
COLLEGIATE
FENCING ASSOCIATION
FENCING FOR SPECTATORS
THE BOUT
Fencing competition between two individuals is called a bout.
Bouts are fought for 5 hits --- that is, the first fencer to hit his
opponent 5 times wins.
Fencing competition between two teams is called a match.
There are 27 bouts in a match --- 9 fought with each of the 3 fencing weapons.
A team needs to win 14 bouts to win the match.
During the bout, the action is confined to a long mat know as the strip.
Fencers may not go off the strip in any direction without being penalized.
There is a time limit to the bout --- usually 3 minutes.
If, at the end of this time, the score is tied, the bout continues until
a "sudden death hit" breaks the tie.
THE JURY
The referee runs the bout. He starts and stops the action,
interprets rules, awards hits, and explains the sequence of play.
His is the final word.
The judge assists the referee by watching the fencers to see
if one gets hit, signifying this by raising his hand. One, sometimes
two, judges watch each fencer. In bouts fought with electrical scoring
apparatus, the judges watch the strip in order that a hit thereon will
not be counted. Otherwise, judges are used mostly to look for "covering"
the target (in foil).
THE WEAPONS
FOIL
This is a light, flexible weapon designed for thrusting purposes
only. Hits may be scored on the torso --- that is, the trunk
of the body, front and back, excluding the head, arms, and legs.
Speed and strategy count for much with the foil.
EPEE
A rigin, longer, and less flexible thrusting weapon, whose ancestor
was the dueling rapier of bygone days. As in the duel, hits may be
scored anywhere on the body, from the to to the mask; also, if both
fencers are hit simultaneously, a hit is registered against each, on the
theory that in an actual duel both men would be dead. Coolness and
cunning are necessary to fight well with the epee.
SABRE
The descendant of the cavalry sabre, this is a weapon which (theoretically)
has both a point and a cutting edge; hits may therefore be scored by cut
or
thrust, anywhere above the waist except for the hands. Mobility and
variety of footwark are important in sabre play.
RIGHT OF WAY
There are two conventions common to both foil and sabre: (1) a hit
off target automatically stops
the action and nullifies any subsequent good hits by either
opponent until the referee has regarted the bout; (2) the initiating
of an attack, or "right of way" as it is called, is of paramount importance.
When a fencer initiates an attack, the defender must parry; if he
does not, but instead thrusts out blindly in the hope of hitting his opponent
first, and if both men hit simultaneously,
the hit is scored against
the defender
because he did not defend himself. The idea is not to
hit at any cost, but rather to hit without being hit.
With the epee, there are no conventions, no invalid target, and no "right
of way."
The man who hits first scores.
ELECTRICAL SCORING
Recently, fencing has enlisted the aid of electronics in its scoring.
The weapons contain a spring tip
which, when depressed, completes the electrical circuit which runs
through the blade, up the arm, out the
back to a spring reel at the end of the strip, and thence to the scoring
maching, which registers hits by
means of lights and buzzers
In foil, the apparatus distinguishes between valid and off-target
hits: off-target with a white light,
valid with a colored light. The fencer wears a metallic vest
(lame) over his valid target to complete the
circuit.
In epee, the apparatus registers hits and also distinguishes
between hits made more than 1/25 of
a second apart, automatically shutting out the slower hit. If,
however, the hits are made within 1/25 of
a second of one another, both are registered (double touch).
In sabre, the apparatus indicates valid touches only. The
fencer wears a metallic vest over his
valid target, just as in foil.
WHAT TO LOOK FOR
When watching a bout which is being scored electrically, remember that
the colored light means
that the fencer on that side of the strip has scored a touch.
The white lights indicate off-target hits,
which automatically stops the action and annul any good hit immediately
following. Listen carefully to
the referee --- when awarding a hit, he will usually say "for the left"
or "for (name of the team)."
Individual bout scores are kept on the two poles flanking the electrical
apparatus.
SPECTATOR ETIQUETTE
Quiet should be maintained while the fencers are in action, since calling
or shouting can interfere
with the intense concentration required of players and officials.
Cheering and applauding should be
done only after the referee has awarded the hit.
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