College fencing 101: All you need to know about events, scoring and Duke's season

As winter sports are underway, The Chronicle is back with our breakdown of every sport, including key rules, terminology, tournament formats and more. Here is fencing:

Overview

Fencing, the sport of sword fighting, is played on a 14-meter-long metal strip known as a piste. A competition between two fencers is called a bout. Fencers earn points in a bout by scoring touches on their opponents that are registered by an electronic machine. An electrical impulse is transmitted to the machine when the tip of a sword makes contact with the opponent’s body.

Fencing is composed of three disciplines: foil, épée and sabre. Each discipline has its own unique set of rules, and most competitive fencers will specialize in only one. Foil is the basis of modern fencing and the most common discipline at the competitive level. Foil swords are lightweight and feature blunted or foiled tips. Épée is the heaviest of the three swords and has a stiff, V-shaped blade. Lastly, sabre blades are relatively shorter and more flexible.

Due to the differences between the three swords, the disciplines also employ varying techniques and strategies. For example, sabre fencing requires slashing motions that reward quicker reflexes and more precise footwork. Épée matches have a greater emphasis on defense and will frequently feature lengthly counterattacks. - Emily Wang

Engagement: Making contact between the blades of two fencers.

En garde: The position taken by fencers before the start of each bout.

Feint: A false attack to get a defensive response from the opponent.

Fleche: An explosive attack in the foil and épée disciplines.

Flunge: A combination of a lunge and a fleche in the sabre discipline.

Lunge: A common attack technique in which the fencer pushes off on their back leg to launch themselves towards the opponent.

Parry: The defensive action by a fencer to block the opponent’s blade.

Piste: A metal fencing strip.

-Dean Harder

Rules

Each of the three fencing swords are used to score points by hitting specific target areas on their opponent, which vary for each type of bout.

Foil: Foil is a thrusting weapon where points are scored using the tip of the blade. The valid target area is limited to just the torso, including the front, back and the bib of the mask. Hits to off-target areas like a fencer's arms or legs do not score points but stop the bout. Foil follows "right of way" rules, meaning the fencer who initiates an attack has priority, and only they can score unless the attack is parried or missed. This weapon emphasizes precision and control, making it a highly technical aspect of fencing.

Épée:  Épée is also a thrusting weapon but allows hits to the entire body, from head to toe. Unlike foil, épée does not use right of way, so both fencers can score simultaneously if they land valid touches within 40 milliseconds of each other. This makes épée a more defensively oriented discipline, as fencers must carefully time their attacks to avoid being counter-hit. Matches tend to involve more patience and strategy, with fencers relying on precise timing and awareness of their opponent’s movements.

Sabre: Sabre is a cutting and thrusting weapon where points can be scored with either the tip or edge of the blade. The target area is the upper body, including the head, arms and torso, above the waist. Similarly to foil, sabre uses right of way rules to determine who scores when touches occur simultaneously. Sabre bouts are typically the fastest-paced of the three, featuring aggressive attacks and rapid exchanges. The emphasis on speed and explosive action makes it the most thrilling discipline to watch for many.

Fencing matches, or bouts, follow a structured format. In preliminary rounds, fencers compete in pools, with bouts lasting up to three minutes — or until one fencer scores five points. In elimination rounds, matches extend to three three-minute periods with a one-minute break in between. The first fencer to reach 15 points wins. If the score is tied at the end of regulation time, a one-minute sudden death priority round determines the winner.

Modern-day fencing relies heavily on electronic scoring systems to detect the validity of touches, with referees present to ensure fair play and enforce the rules. In foil and sabre, referees apply the aforementioned right of way to determine who scores when simultaneous touches occur. In épée, simultaneous hits can result in points for both fencers. This careful adjudication maintains the integrity of the competition. - Dean Harder

Season format

There are 29 colleges currently participating in Division I fencing, five of which are in the ACC: Duke, North Carolina, Notre Dame and new additions Boston College and Stanford. The 2024-2025 season consists of eight regular-season events, which are a mix of invitationals and dual meets. In a dual meet, one school competes against another, while in invitationals multiple schools participate.

There are three postseason events: the ACC Championship, NCAA Regionals and the NCAA Championship. Due to the ACC’s small size, the Championship meet functions much like a regular season invitational, beginning with individual round robin matches, which set the stage for semifinal and subsequently championship bouts, and then holding team competition the following day.

Like in many other sports, the NCAA Regionals are the qualifying event for the NCAA Championship. From the competitions between the four regions, Northeast, Mid-Atlantic/South, Midwest and West, scores are determined to select the roughly 150 fencers who will compete at the championships. At the championships, four fencers from each event are determined from round robin competition to compete in semifinals and finals. Team rankings are deduced from point totals of the individual athletes. - Marissa Cotte

Coaching staff and recent trends

The Blue Devils’ fencing team is led by head coach Omar Elgeziry, who is now in his second year of the role. Elgeziry is aided by four assistant coaches: veterans Leslie Marx and Jacek Huchwajda, who have been in the program for 23 and 11 seasons respectively, and newcomers Ahmed Abdallah and Shaimaa Elgammal, who are both in their first season at Duke.

The 2023-24 season was one with many questions, largely due to it being Elgeziry’s first. After effective coaching, combined with powerful performances from both the men’s and women’s teams and fencers like current senior Allen Marakov and current sophomore Charlotte Koenig, the Blue Devils came out with a top ten finish. This year, the women’s team is poised for a continuation of last year’s strong performance while the men’s team, with 11 freshmen, will likely have some settling in to do. -Cotte

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