#FENCING

[elmushterri]

How did you get into fencing? It seems so cool

Awesome question! I was at the Welcome Lecture for my university and a girl was there who I began speaking to, and she was like “Hey, at the other university I used to go to of this city there’s an introductory fencing session today at 6PM”. I was very hesitant cause I am not a sporty person, but I went and the people there and their vibes more than convinced me to join. They’re some of my closest friends now, and HEMA fencing is the most fun sport for me. Now, I can’t watch a movie or see sword drawings without seeing what’s wrong with it! 🤣

My favourite weapons are Longsword (what I’m holding, but these should be held with two hands during a fight) Dussack and Sabre. (I also like messers but they’re just sword-sized knives, technically!) I don’t like thrusting weapons like Sidesword and Rapier (these look like twins).

So if anyone ever has any more HEMA questions.. well, I’ve only been doing it for a year but I’m happy to answer!

[vintage-ukraine]

Fencing Team by Ihor Hryhoriev, 1971

[necromimetics]

people don’t understand how hard it is to be a fencer during the Halloween season. every time I go into a store I walk past costume swords and have to use every ounce of self control not to pick them up and get en garde.

[longsword-enjoyer]

My favorite bouts are the ones that last because of the respect between the fighters

[leavemeslowly]

The reaction of Polish fencer after winning the first Olympic medal in the history of Polish female fencing (epee), pure emotion:

[agnesdelmotte]

[freesiahubiga]

i started crying with her like

[we-are-knight]

I teach honourable fencing and chivalrous combat.

Yet somehow, I raised a dagger fighting rogue, that can beat swordsmen with her dagger.

[mactiir]

in HEMA (aka historical european fencing), much of the sport is done with fencing masks on, so identifying your clubmates during sparring or tourneys is just based on gear. you know, what color their jacket and pants are, what patches they have on it, how is their mask painted. If someone borrows someone else's jacket it's legitimately jarring, like having someone with an entirely different body type and way of moving stealing your friend's face.

Once i read about historical fishermen in the north sea and how they each had a specific hat pattern that their buddies would use to identity them while they were bundled up. It was so much part of their identity that they were often buried wearing those hats. The gear is like your name, a visual identifier of YOU when you do not have a face.

anyway, back when I was buying gear i got my pants in ELECTRIC blue. I figured i was gonna get a black or grey jacket. but HEMA gear is kind of expensive because it's all custom- or handmade, so instead of spending $400 on a new jacket I picked up one secondhand for like 20. Except the only jacket that fit me was bright, SCARLET red. And I already had my expensive, new, custom, BLUE pants. I look like a damn rocket pop or like, a mixed Icee. I was like, shit! I should switch my jacket before i become the rocket pop guy!!!

Long story short, not only am I now the rocket pop guy, the color scheme has bled into my entire wardrobe. Every-fucking-thing I own is red and blue. I look like a french revolutionary. I look like a founding father in a school play. I have become a northern fisherman in my stripey hat. Now, even if I DO get a new jacket, I feel like I GOTTA buy it in red, yk? Otherwise they won't recognize me. Maybe I won't recognize me. I'm the rocket pop guy!!!

[alnair-jpg]

Next up for Olympics AU: the indomitable Annabeth Chase

[marshmallow--boy]

People who say it’s unrealistic for heroes to unmask for the emotional finale of a movie have clearly never seen fencers rip off their masks in devastation every time they lose a point

[rgujuri]

[bethanythebogwitch]

Me: en gar!

Fencing opponent: it's en garde

Me: *holding an elongated fish* no

[sing-you-fools]

I think, in the Olympics, in addition to all the regular serious stuff, each sport should have one Goofy Event.

Divers get an event where they do three dives - a bellyflop, a canonball, and "freestyle" where they just run flailing off the diving board still in their regular clothes (yelling "COWABUNGA" is optional).

Swimmers have a dog paddle race.

Runners, get ready for some elementary school field day shit. One of those relays where you gotta carry an egg in a spoon the whole time. Three. Fucking. Legged. Race.

Fencers are going to reenact the swordfight from The Princess Bride. (Really, the event is to reenact a swordfight from a movie. They just all choose The Princess Bride.)

All of these events are scored as the regular ones are. The medals, however, are made of chocolate.

(feel free to add more in the tags! I don't know enough about sports to imagine what other sports might do)

[momosane]

Some of the Fencing masks from the Paris 2024 Olympics.

(Salim Heroui. Feres Ferjani. Olga Kharlan. Tufaha Uwihoreye. Aleksandra Jarecka. Kang Young Mi. Eleanor Harvey. Marie-Florence Candassamy. Rubén Limardo. Mohamed El-Sayed.)

[agnesdelmotte]

fencing. grand palais. paris 2024.