Fencing

The drama that unfolds in a fencing hall can be captivating. The sport is compelling viewing and the competition in Singapore will be no different.

Fencing has evolved from an ancient form of combat to one of the most technical and tactical sports of the Olympic Games. It is one of only five sports to continually feature at the Olympics since Athens in 1896 – the others being athletics, swimming, cycling and gymnastics.

Qualification

A total of 78 athletes (39 boys and 39 girls) will compete in the seven Fencing events at the Youth Olympic Games.

The best ranked fencers of each continent at the Cadet World Championships held in April 2010 qualified to participate in the Youth Olympic Games, respecting the following distribution:
a. Asia/Oceania: 2 places per event
b. America: 2 places per event
c. Africa: 1 place per event
d. Europe: 4 places per event

There is a maximum of one fencer per weapon per NOC (total of 6 athletes).

Age Group

Athletes competing in this sport must be born between 1/1/93 and 31/12/94

Rules / Competition Format

The Youth Olympic Fencing competition comprises three Cadet Male individual events,
three Cadet Female individual events and one team event including both genders and all weapons.

Individual Events
Each individual event consists of two phases: a pool round and a direct elimination phase All fencers will be allocated into pools according to his/her ranking based on the 2010 Cadet World Championships’ final ranking and with a maximum of seven fencers in each pool.

Fencers will compete against all others in their pool. A pool ranking will then be calculated based on standard FIE rules. This overall pool rank will be used to seed fencers into the direct elimination bracket. The direct elimination phase in the individual events is divided into the following rounds:
round of 16, Quarter-Finals, Semi-Finals, Finals (Gold and Bronze Medal Matches).

Each individual bout continues until 15 hits or until the total bout time of three times three (3 x 3) minutes has elapsed. Winners of the Semi-Finals will compete for the Gold Medal, and losers for the Bronze. The final ranking of the other fencers will be determined by their overall pool ranking.

Mixed Team Competition
The Mixed Team Competition will consist of 10 continental teams of six competitors each (three Men and three Women) which will be chosen on the basis of the individual rankings.

The team event consists of a direct elimination competition phase.

In a team match each fencer weapon specialist will compete against the fencer weapon specialist from the other team of the same gender. A match between two teams therefore consists of six bouts.

A team match is finished either after 30 hits or after the sixth bout. Winners of the Semi-Finals will compete for the Gold Medal, and losers for the Bronze Medal. The final rank of the other teams will be determined by the classification matches that will be organised before the final matches.

Venue - International Convention Centre (ICC)

The ICC has hosted some of the world’s biggest meetings, exhibitions and conventions. With 25,000 square metres of space, the convention and exhibition halls at the ICC will be converted to an excellent venue for the wrestling, judo, boxing, taekwondo, handball and fencing competitions.

Located in the heart of Singapore’s business district the ICC is also conveniently located near the IOC Family Hotels, of which the Ritz Carlton Millenia Singapore is just a 10-minute walk away.

Australia and Olympic fencing

Australia has not yet won a fencing medal at the Olympics. The best-placed performer has been Greg Benko, who finished 6th in the individual foil in Montreal in 1976. More recently, the men's epée team placed eighth in Sydney in 2000 and Evelyn Halls finished 12th in women's epée in Athens in 2004. Ivan Lund, a four-time Olympic fencer, carried the Australian flag at the Opening Ceremony in Tokyo in 1964.