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In the broadest possible sense, fencing is the art of armed combat involving cutting, stabbing, or bludgeoning weapons directly manipulated by hand, rather than shot or thrown. Example weapons include swords, knives, pikes, bayonets, batons, clubs, and similar. In contemporary common usage, fencing tends to refer specifically to European schools of swordsmanship and to the modern Olympic sport that has evolved out of them. Fencing is one of the four sports that has been featured at every modern Olympic Games. The modern weapons for sport fencing are the foil, épée, and sabre. The term 'Fencing' derives from the expression, "The Art of Defence", meaning the art of defending one's self in combat. This article is predominantly about Olympic fencing.
There are three forms of competitive fencing in practice. Variations make each of them a distinct game. All three approach the activity as a sport, with varying degrees of connectedness to its historic past.
Russian Ivan Tourchine and American Weston Kelsey fence in the second round of the Men's Individual Épée event in the 2004 Summer Olympics at the Helliniko Fencing Hall on August 17, 2004. |
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