Fencing in the News

[LongBlade]

National team arrives in Manila ready to do battle
The Jakarta Post
Jakarta, Indonesia
November 27, 2005

www.thejakartapost.com/misc/PrinterFriendly.asp

As the main group of national athletes arrived in Manila on Thursday for the 23rd Southeast Asian (SEA) Games, a leading national sports official stressed that only athletes with a strong chance of medaling would compete.

"I have evaluated the reports from each sport's officials. Based on the latest condition of the athletes during the training buildup, I can say that the athletes are ready to fight to win and succeed," chef de mission Djoko Pramono was quoted as saying by Antara news service after 180 athletes and officials arrived in the afternoon.

Djoko, who is also deputy chairman of the National Sports Council (KONI), refused to set a target for medals at the 10-day Games that officially open on Sunday.

In September, however, he conceded that Indonesia -- a nine-time overall medal winner of the regional sporting showcase but with its last victory in 1997 at home -- would be unlikely to usurp powerful Thailand.

Thursday's group is part of the total national contingent of 779 athletes and 404 officials; another five batches -- including representatives of badminton, wrestling, wushu and table tennis who are scheduled to touch down on Friday -- will arrive on a staggered schedule through Tuesday.

Competition is already under way in the Games -- held in the Philippines for the third time in its 46-year history -- in water polo and soccer.

In Los Banos, Laguna, outside Manila, the national water polo team finally recorded a win after three losses, beating Malaysia 6-4 on Thursday.

Undefeated Singapore are assured the top spot on the podium when the Games' first gold is handed out on Friday, but Indonesia have a slim chance at a medal from their final game against Thailand.

"A win will probably earn us a bronze. Let's try and pray for that," team manager Andreas Legawa told Antara.

In Bacolod City, the national U-23 soccer team was held to its second straight goalless draw, with goalkeeper Samsider forced to fend off the spirited second-half attack of Singapore in Group B. The team, who drew with Myanmar on Tuesday, next play undefeated Vietnam -- who beat Singapore 2-1 and Laos 8-2 -- on Saturday.

In Marikina City, where women's soccer is making its debut as a medal sport, the Indonesian women suffered a 0-5 mauling by Myanmar.

"We have to acknowledge that our team lost on the mental front," women's team coach Hamdani Lubis said of the team, which also fell 1-2 to Thailand on Tuesday.

"If they already feel down, then their play will be erratic."

On Sunday, 15 gold medals will be up for grabs in six sports: karate (4) diving (3) athletics (3), chess (2), dancesport (2) and billiards and snooker (1).

Meanwhile, national fencing manager Suhartono Suratman said his athletes' performance should peak next week following training in China.

"I have carried out my job in giving them the chance to improve. Now it is all up to their aspirations and ambition to win. Fate also intervenes at times because fencing is a sport based on judging," he said upon the team's arrival from Guangzhou, China.

[LongBlade]

Men's Fencing Picks up Pair of Weekend Victories
Bente, Bernacki, and Goun lead the way [/b] [/color]
SollegeSportsTV.com
Nov. 22, 2005

www.cstv.com/sports/c-fenc/stories/112205aac.html

POUGHKEEPSIE, NY - The Sacred Heart men's fencing team earned two victories at Vassar College on Sunday, defeating the club program from Marist 17-10 and beating host Vassar 15-12.

In the foil competition, the Pioneers walked away with wins in eight bouts wins over Vassar and six against Marist. Freshman Jeremy Goun had a record of 3-0 against Vassar. Junior Lucas Bernacki finished the day with a record of 5-1. Juior Kris Singhaviroj closed the foil competition with a total of 4-2.

In the saber competition, senior Alex Bente shut out Vassar 3-0, while senior Manny Calderon helped clinch the competition against Vassar and Marist with a records of 2-1.

In epee, senior Adam Constantine faced off against both Marist and Vassar, finishing with four wins and suffering just two defeats.

[LongBlade]

Women's Fencing Splits Pair of Bouts
Defeat Marist, Lose to host Vassar[/b] [/color]
CollegeSportsTV.com
Nov. 22, 2005

www.cstv.com/sports/c-fenc/stories/112205aad.html

POUGHKEEPSIE, NY - The Sacred Heart women's fencing team defeated Marist 18-9 on Sunday, but were unable to beat host Vassar College, dropping a 21-6 decision.

In saber, senior Christie Zeleznik went 2-1 against Marist and 1-2 against Vassar. Sophomore Elise Valerio faced off against both schools, taking a 3-0 record against Marist and 1-2 against Vassar. Rounding out competition was junior Liz Mordecai with a 6-0 shutout against both schools.

In women's foil, senior Nicole Juba beat out all Marist fencers, finishing 3-0 for the day. Freshman Alysson DeTroy and sophomore Deidre DeSilva both walked away with 2-4 records against both schools.

[LongBlade]

Women's Fencing Completes Competition at Haverford 3-1
Knights defeat Haverford, Drew and UVA to improve to 3-2 on the season.[/b][/color]
CollegeSportsTV.com
Nov. 22, 2005

www.cstv.com/sports/c-fenc/stories/112205aae.html

HAVERFORD, PA - The Fairleigh Dickinson University women's fencing team went 3-1 on Sunday at Haverford with wins over host Haverford (17-10), University of Virginia (22-5) and Hunter (22-5). The Knights fell to Drew University (17-10) to make their record 3-2 on the season.

The epee squad went undefeated against Hunter and were led by freshman Jasmine Cooper, who was 11-1 on the day. Sophomore Erica Kuehn went 10-2 and junior Zena Coulombe was 9-3.


Erica Kuehn

Freshman Rebecca Kellogg led the foil squad with an 11-1 record. Sophomore Erica Galarza posted an 8-4 record while classmate Lauren Hutcherson completed the day 2-10.

In sabre competition, freshman Amanda Hauck notched a 10-2 record and junior Jen Cheng recorded a record of 4-7. Freshman Alison Luckhardt was 5-7 and sophomore April Semilla went undefeated against UVA.

In addition, Kuehn won the Under-20 Division of the Junior Olympics in Long Island, NY in epee, despite fencing as a foilist for the Knights.

The Knights are back in action in individual competition at the NIWFA Christmas Invitational at Drew University.

[LongBlade]

Blue Jays Win Four of Five Duals at Stevens Tech
Hopkins men's fencing defeats Hunter, NJIT, Army, and Yeshiva
CollegeSports.com
Nov. 23, 2005

www.cstv.com/sports/c-fenc/stories/112305aaa.html

HOBOKEN, NJ - The Johns Hopkins men's fencing team won four of five duals at Stevens Tech, defeating Hunter, NJIT, Army, and Yeshiva, and losing only to the host Ducks. The Blue Jays outscored their opponents 89-46.

Sophomore Tom Fellows went 3-0 to lead the epee squad to a 6-3 win against Stevens Tech. The Hopkins saber squad also defeated Stevens Tech, 5-4, but a shutout in foil gave the Ducks the 15-12 overall win. It was the foilists, however, who carried the Blue Jays to a 17-10 win over Hunter. Freshman James Einsiedler's 3-0 mark led foil to a 7-2 victory, while saber won 6-3 and epee lost 5-4.

Johns Hopkins routed New Jersey Institute of Technology 25-2 behind a 9-0 shutout win in epee as Fellows, freshmen Dane Schiro and Sean DiStefano, and sophomore Patrick Meany all finished undefeated. Saber and foil both went 8-1 in the victory. The Blue Jays also picked up a lopsided win over Yeshiva, 21-6, as epee finished 8-1, foil went 7-2, and saber posted a 6-3 victory. Fellows and Schiro each went 3-0 in epee for Hopkins.

A 7-2 win in saber and 5-4 edge in foil compensated for a 7-2 loss in epee, as Johns Hopkins slipped past Army, 14-13. Senior Jason Park and freshman Geoff Chu both finished 3-0 in saber against the Black Knights.

Stevens Tech Invitational: Johns Hopkins Results
Stevens Tech - D, 15-12
Hunter - V, 17-10
New Jersey Institute of Technology - V, 25-2
Army - V, 14-13
Yeshiva - V, 21-6

[LongBlade]

Cal State Fullerton Posts .500 Record at Northwestern Tourney
CollegeSportsTV.com
Nov. 23, 2005

www.cstv.com/sports/c-fenc/index.html

Cal State Fullerton came away with 10 wins and 10 losses at the Northwestern University Tournament over the weekend in Evanston, Illinois.


Rachel Liebing

Rachel Liebing had the second best indivdual record of any Titan at the Northwestern Tournament, posting a 26-4 record in women's sabre.

The Titan men went 6-4, beating Cleveland State, Detroit-Mercy, Wayne State, Michigan State, Northwestern and Lawrence while the women were 4-6, beating Cleveland State, Detroit-Mercy, Michigan State and Lawrence.

[LongBlade]

RP Gets 2 Golds in Fencing
By JP Abcede
Phillippine Daily Inquirer
Nov. 29, 2005

news.inq7.net/breaking/index.php?index=6&story_id=58176

SOUTHEAST Asian Games veterans Walbert Mendoza and Veena Tessa Nuestro hacked out similar victories against their Thai rivals on Tuesday to give the Philippines two more golds in the continuation of SEA Games fencing action at the San Juan Gymnasium.

Mendoza survived an emotion-ridden men's saber finals against Wiradech Kothny, 15-14, while Nuestro won in sudden death, 10-9, against Nunta Chantasuvannasin in the women's foil match.

Mendoza scored the last two points of the duel to snatch the victory out of Kothny.

[LongBlade]

Take your best shot
Fencing, boxing, tae kwon do exercise both body and mind[/b][/color]
Mary Beth Faller
The Arizona Republic
Nov. 29, 2005

www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/arizonaliving/articles/1129oneonone1129.html

It's common knowledge that working out with a buddy can provide motivation and encouragement for your exercise goals.

But how about working out against your buddy?

Three sports - boxing, fencing and tae kwon do - not only offer the chance to spar with someone else, they require more practice and concentration than a session on the exercise bike.

Harwood Hamilton, a trainer at the Central Boxing Gym in Phoenix, started offering white-collar boxing at several locations in the Valley a few months ago.

"We take actual boxing techniques and teach them to the person who's looking for a break from the monotony of going to a conventional gym," he says. Participants in the class at the gym can train in the ring where professional boxers train.

For the first part of his class, Hamilton's students work out hard to the strains of music from the movie Rocky. Then they put on the boxing gloves.

For now, the boxers throw punches at Hamilton, who wears large padded mitts called focus pads. In white-collar boxing in other cities, participants spar with each other. Hamilton says his students will do that eventually.

"My goal is to make them feel confident. If they're getting beat up, they're not feeling confident," he says.

Beating up on Hamilton is empowering, the class members say, but not easy.

"Punching the air is easy. Punching Harwood is like hitting a brick wall," says Wendy Sobelman, 39, who takes the class at the Valley of the Sun Jewish Community Center in Scottsdale. "But then you feel like you can do anything."

Beginners in fencing and tae kwon do must master the basic skills, both physical and mental, before sparring with other people.

"Of course, the training will make them more fit - that's a byproduct," says Mack Newton, owner of Newton Fitness & Taekwon-do in Phoenix. "But they're learning an art that will be with them forever."

Herman Serignese, 58, of Mesa has been training with Newton for a few months.

"The mental part of it is as tough as the physical part of it," he says. "And I also have to find time to practice at home. You have to do the techniques a certain way."

Fencing also is precise, and that's what drew John Keegan, 53, who has been learning the sport at the Phoenix Falcons Fencing Club.

"It's fun to get back into doing something of an athletic nature that requires coordination," says Keegan, mayor of Peoria. "The degree of precision is much more than if you're just running or lifting weights. If you step with the wrong foot first, you trip."

Competition is also a draw, says Kevin Craig, 37, of Phoenix, who has been fencing for four years: "You can do it at a high intensity without your knees and back failing."

[LongBlade]

Fencing group is growing
Bellingham Bay Fencing Association teaches skills, fun[/b][/color]
By MICHELLE NOLAN
The Bellingham Herald
Bellingham, WA, USA
November 29, 2005

www.bellinghamherald.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051129/SPORTS/511290351

Scott McEniry didn't stick with fencing after his first two exposures to it, even though he enjoyed it.

Now, though, he finds he thrives on teaching the finer points of the often misunderstood sport. The 40-year-old Bellingham resident doesn't even mind the constant puns he must duel with when people learn of his love for fencing.

Just don't call the foil, epee and saber "swords." They are properly termed fencing's three "weapons" in what he stresses is a safe sport for both youngsters and adults in the Bellingham Bay Fencing Association.

McEniry and fellow Western Washington University graduate Rance Bayman, 36, guide the club with equal responsibility. As two of the most experienced fencers in Bellingham, they are protégés of former club coach Charlie Collier, from whom they took over about four years ago.

McEniry, who moved to Bellingham 22 years ago from Bellevue, first learned of the sport when he became intrigued by equipment left over from the fencing days of his father, Mike McEniry.

"I was not an athlete at Interlake High School, but I did fence when I was 10 years old," said McEniry, also an enthusiastic sailor and pianist. "I didn't stay in fencing for more than a few months, but I did love learning how to fence the right way before I moved on to other things. I remember I had an excitable Frenchman for a coach who couldn't speak English too well."

That's one disadvantage the Bellingham Bay fencers don't face. Both McIniry and Bayman are articulate, passionate advocates for the sport.

McEniry moved to Bellingham for a job offer out of high school, then encountered fencing a second time when he decided to attend college in his early 20s.

"They had this fencing class at Western taught by Robin Foster, and I found I loved it," said McEniry, who works as sales operations manager for Blue Sea Systems, a manufacturer of marine electrical products.

That dovetails nicely with fencing, in which scoring is done with electrical hookups on both weapons and clothing. Forget the overly stylized blade action of Zorro and Robin Hood in the movies, McEniry says. That isn't what fencing is about at all.

"I took Robin Foster's class repeatedly and wound up teaching it at Western after he left," McEniry said. Again, though, he didn't stick with the sport as he plunged into the world of work.

"I was out of fencing for a few years when I stumbled onto a notice for this fencing club in The Bellingham Herald's Leisure Guide in 1994," he said. "Charlie Collier was the coach, and I had fenced with him through the club at Western. I had been feeling I wanted back into fencing, and this was a great chance."

The result has been the growth of the Bellingham Bay Fencing Association, which took that name about two years ago. McEniry said he's gratified the club has 35 to 40 members, ranging in age from 8 to about 60.

"About one third of the club is 8 to 13, about one-third is 13 to 17 and about one-third is adults," he said, pointing out the club is about 70 percent male and that more fencers of both sexes are always welcome. "About 20 of us are competitive fencers in tournaments."

Bayman, a warehouse coordinator for International Marketing Access, has stayed involved in fencing since first being exposed to it at Mariner High and Shoreline Community College.

He laughs when asked if he or McEniry is the better fencer.

"It depends on who had the better night's sleep and who had dinner," Bayman said. "I do know I love it. I'll do it as long as my body lets me."

McEniry stresses that fencing is a wonderful sport for women.

"It is interesting that although they have separate competition in the Olympics, females can be very competitive with males in the top levels of fencing," he said. "They call it 'physical chess' because you're having to make multiple moves in advance mentally. I frequently get creamed by experienced female fencers. Women tend to be a little more controlled, a little more intellectual about it. Men tend to be more physical and more aggressive.

"Fencing is a sport of short bursts, which tends to equalize things," he said. "Strength doesn't do you any good. It's all about leverage. Fencing is about distance, timing, speed, controlling the line, and beating your opponent mentally. Fencing can be exhausting. I know I'm drenched and absolutely exhausted after a highly competitive three-minute bout. It's total body expenditure."

Bayman says fencing is "a good, safe sport for kids to explore. It's safer than football or soccer. And at the club, we keep it fairly low-key."

The two coaches say that with enough work, the average mentally adept person can be become a fencer good enough to become reasonably competitive.

"Scott and I are not what you'd call physical specimens, but we're about in the 70th percentile of competitive fencers," Bayman said.

TOOLS OF THE TRADE
• The foil is the weapon on which fencers learn as well as compete, since it was originally developed as a practice weapon. The target of foil fencers is the torso area.
• The epee is the closest thing is fencing to a genuine sword. The entire body can be the target. If the tip was sharp on an epee, it would resemble a small sword of the 19th century.
• The saber is an edged weapon. The body from the waist up is the target of the saber, which originated with warriors on horseback.
• All three weapons have blunt points.

[LongBlade]

Angeles swipes first RP gold in fencing; Franquelli silver
By JP Abcede
Inquirer News Service
INQ7.net - Philippines
11/28/05

news.inq7.net/breaking/index.php?index=6&story_id=58046

MELLY Joyce Angeles gave the Philippines its first medal in fencing defeating Nguyen Thi Nhu Hoa of Vietnam in the women’s individual epee finals, 15-13, at the San Juan Gymnasium.

Angeles snatched the victory when the Vietnamese went low while she attacked high and got the hit to the delight of the crowd.

Meanwhile, Joanna Franquelli grabbed the silver medal after surrendering to Nguyen Thi Le Dung in a close women’s individual saber finals, 13-15.

Franquelli was on her way to the gold and was ahead by two, 12-10. But Nguyen slowly ate away the gap and led 14-12 despite being tagged with a yellow card in the onset.

[LongBlade]

FENCING SIGNS NATIONALLY RANKED A’SHA BRUMANT AND CHRISTINE GRIFFITH
OwlsSports.com
Temple University Athletics
11/28/2005

www.owlsports.com/sports/wfencing/releases/release.asp?RELEASE_ID=16599

PHILADELPHIA---The Temple women’s fencing team capitalized on the early signing period by signing sabre standouts A’Sha Brumant (South Orange, NJ) and Christine Griffith (Roseville, CA) to National Letters of Intent. Both Brumant and Griffith will be freshmen at Temple in 2006-07 and compete in sabre.



Both women are currently ranked nationally. Brumant is ranked No. 27 and Griffith is ranked No. 28 in junior women’s sabre in the United States.

“This is the first year that the fencing team at Temple has used the early signing period and we are definitely looking forward to the addition of both A’Sha and Christie to our program,” said sabre coach Bradley Baker.

Last season Brumant was the #2 ranked women’s sabre fencer in New Jersey high school competition and was named First-Team All-State. She was a member of the bronze medal team in Division I Women’s Sabre at the 2005 US National Championships, where she competed alongside Temple alumna fencer Aziza Hassan (’04). She competes for her high school, Columbia, and the Fencers Club.

Griffith currently trains at the Sacramento Fencing Club. Last year, she was the Junior Sectional Champion for the Pacific Coast Section in women’s sabre and has competed in North American Cup and Junior Olympic tournaments. In 2004-05 she earned a world junior ranking as high as 97th while competing in the Junior World Cups.

“It’s exciting to add two undeniably talented and hard-working fencers to the team,” said Baker. I’m expecting them to provide their nation-level experience and demonstrated excellence to the already solid nucleus on the squad.”

Temple returns to action this Sunday (Dec. 4) at the NIWFA Christmas Invitational at Fairleigh Dickinson University in Teaneck, NJ beginning at 9 a.m. The team will then kick-off the new year by hosting its Alumnae Meet January 8 at McGonigle Hall.

[LongBlade]

Fencing Match Started It All
Rex Arcadio R. San Diego, II
The Manila Times
Manila, Philippines
December 01, 2005

www.manilatimes.net/national/2005/dec/01/yehey/top_stories/20051201top2.html

At the center of the furor over allegations of rigging by the host team in the 23rd Southeast Asian Games is Walbert Mendoza’s thrilling win over Thailand’s Wiradech Kothny in the gold-medal individual saber competition on Tuesday.

Kothny, the Athens Olympiad bronze medalist, needed only a point to end the battle. With the score tied at 14-apiece, the 6’1” Thai lunged as he went for the clincher; Mendoza then parried Kothny’s move, which the Korean director ruled in favor of the Filipino.

The final score: 15-14 in the Filipino’s favor.

Many observers said the match could have gone either way; the two protagonists were evenly matched, although Mendoza has beaten Kothny twice in the two times they had squared off.

As the referee ruled the point for Mendoza, Kothny fell on his back on the piste, stunned by the call—and his defeat. He then grabbed a Thai flag and paraded around the San Juan Gymnasium, as if he had won the match.

He later apologized to the local officials in the crowd, before returning to the center of the court for his final bow.

The move earned him the respect of many spectators, including those who had jeered him during the tightly fought match.

[LongBlade]

State girls win fencing title
The Sangai Express
E-Pao.net
Manipur, India
11/30/05

Manipur girls team wrested the overall team championship title while the boys secured runners-up position in the November 14-19 13th Junior National Fencing Championship held at Jammu, informed Manipur Fencing Association.

Out of 29 fencers and officials that represented the State in the championship six gold medals were won in individuals and team events while the silver and bronze medal tally totalled three each.

Individual gold medals were won by M Usharani in foil, L Samashakhi in epee and N Harina in sabre disciplines.

[LongBlade]

Men's Fencing Falls to NYU 17-10
by Tynan Granberg
Yale University Bulldogs
New Haven, CT, USA
Nov. 29, 2005

yalebulldogs.collegesports.com/sports/m-fenc/recaps/112905aaa.html

Michael Pearce led Yale to a 6-3 victory in epee, but the men's fencing team fell in foil and sabre and lost to NYU 17-10 in Payne Whitney Gym.

Pearce won all three of his bouts, combining with two victories from Johnny Beski and one from Steve Miller to take home a closely fought epee competition.

Yale fell 6-3 in sabre and 8-1 in foil. In sabre, Chris Peterson won two bouts and Brad Broadhead took one. Kawing Cho was the only bulldog to salvage a win in foil.

Yale travels to Waltham, MA this weekend to compete in the Brandeis Invitational.

[LongBlade]

Fencing Opens 2005-06 Season With Weekend at Haverford
Leopards go 1-3 with decisive win over St. John's
CollegeSportsTV.com
11/29/05

www.cstv.com/sports/c-fenc/stories/112905aaa.html

The Lafayette fencing team kicked-off the 2005-06 competitive season with a 1-3 weekend at Haverford College. Lafayette fell to William & Mary, Virginia Tech and the University of Virginia, while the largest margin of defeat was a slim three points. The Leopards rebounded, toppling St. John's 22-5 with eight individual victories.


Lafayette's fencing team finished a 1-3 weekend to start its season.

Lafayette was just a few points away from finishing a perfect weekend, with one-point duals against William & Mary and Virginia. With the score knotted at 13-13 going into the final bout, Lafayette came up just short and fell 14-13 in both matches.

The Leopards fell 15-12 to a solid Virginia Tech squad before dominating St. John's 22-5 in Lafayette's final match-up of the weekend. All but one fencer outdid their respective St. John's opponents, while the foil squad led with a decisive 8-1 victory.

Mark Lodato and Brendan O'Dea opened the 2005-06 season in style, as the duo went undefeated to lead the foil squad. Lodato was a perfect 4-0, while O'Dea won all three of his rounds.

Lafayette did not fence host Haverford, but will duke it out with the Fords later this season.

William & Mary
Foil: L 3-6
Epee: W 5-4
Sabre: W 5-4
Total: L 13-14

Virginia Tech
Foil: L 4-5
Epee: L 3-6
Sabre: L 4-5
Total: L 12-15

University of Virginia
Foil: W 6-3
Epee: L 2-7
Sabre: W 5-4
Total: L 13-14

St. John's
Foil: W 8-1
Epee: W 7-2
Sabre: W 7-2
Total: W 22-5

Individual:
Robert Boguski, 2-2
Luigi Camilleri, 3-1
John Christian, 2-2
Kristen Irace, 1-1
Christopher Jacoby, 0-1
Andrew Kopelman, 2-2
Nate Landis, 1-2
Mark Lodato, 4-0
Annalese Maddox, 2-1
Brendan O'Dea, 3-0
Ellen Rose, 1-3
Constance To, 2-1
Mike Zboray, 0-1