No Longer (Just) a Shakespearean Innuendo

A guide to fencing in time for Paris 2024

Photo by Nathanaël Desmeules on Unsplash

The opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics yesterday means we’re officially in that time of year again (well I guess more like “that time every four years.” Or two if you count Winter Olympics). The best part of the Olympics has always been the sheer number of sports on display at once. But the sudden influx of choice can be incredibly daunting, especially when the era of streaming means you no longer need to rely on the networks to choose which ones to watch for you. That being said, just because there are 32 sports to choose from over the next few weeks does not mean all 32 are equally deserving of attention.

Summer Olympic sports usually fall under one of the following categories:

Category 1: the ones that will find their way in front of your face even if you actively try and avoid them

These are the sports that draw the most coverage because they’re the ones the networks will definitely air. Even if you don’t follow these sports, chances are you’ll end up watching them anyway. Luckily, there’s a reason these are the ones the networks will broadcast without fail: they are entertaining enough that you won’t feel like you’ve wasted your time by watching them. Examples include: athletics, swimming, and gymnastics.

Category 2: the ones you can miss because the Olympics are not the pinnacle of the sport

Sure, the Olympics are the world’s biggest sporting event. Anyone will tell you that winning an Olympic medal is a big deal and representing your country is something amazing to be proud of. That’s all true. But in some sports, the Olympic Games are just not the competition to win. So you’re better off watching these athletes compete in another tournament they definitely care more about winning. Examples include: golf, soccer football, and tennis.

Category 3: the ones you do for fun—but athletes take seriously

You look at the sports in this category and think: “I do this for fun with my friends, how hard can it be?” And then you watch and realize yes, these sports are much more intense than your weekend sessions make them out to be. Examples include: cycling, table tennis, and weightlifting.

Category 4: the niche ones

Some people in some parts of the world might know about a sport in this category, while some people in other parts of the world will hear that same sport and ask you if it’s made up. Sports in this category are arguably what make the Olympics truly special. Once every four years you get to watch these sports that, outside of the next few weeks, you wouldn’t even begin to know where to watch or follow until the next Olympics comes around. Examples include: handball, sport climbing, and starting this year, breakdancing (yes, you read that last one correctly).

Category 5: modern pentathlon

You could watch modern pentathlon. But why? I know I said Category 4 was the niche category, but modern pentathlon is in a category by itself because it is beyond niche. An athlete competing in modern pentathlon tells you two things. First, they likely grew up in an East Egg mansion and took up the five sports that make up modern pentathlon at their country manor during summer family “getaways” (as in “let’s get away from these plebeian tourists from West Egg and beyond while they invade our town”). Second, they’re very much the flying squirrels of athletes. They can do a lot of different things, but they can’t exactly do any of those things particularly well. I’m sure defenders of modern pentathlon would prefer the terms “well-rounded” or “renaissance humans.” I suppose from a normal viewer’s perspective they have a point. But you watch the Olympics to see the best of the best compete. So if you’re going to watch one of fencing, equestrian show jumping, cross-country running, pistol shooting, or swimming, just watch one of those specific events. You’ll get more value out of your time than if you decided on the five-for-one scam offered by modern pentathlon.

That last point is an important one to remember. Because while you should not watch modern pentathlon, you should definitely watch fencing.

Centuries ago, fencing (or at least the predecessor to modern fencing) was probably best known as either the activity people unwisely used to settle old scores or the source of a Shakespearean innuendo. Modern fencing is luckily much less lethal. Judging by the guttural screams fencers let out when they score a hit, the jokes have also flown out the window. It’s definitely a sport that falls squarely within Category 4. However, just because it’s niche doesn’t mean you should write it off: fencing offers thrilling excitement that rivals, if not surpasses, Category 1 sports.

The basic scoring rules are simple: each bout consists of three periods that are each three minutes long (sabre only has two periods, but more on that below). Whoever is the first to score 15 points or has more points at the end of all the periods is the winner. If there’s a tie, a one minute sudden-death period is played where one player is randomly assigned “priority.” This means if there are no hits at the end of the extra period, the fencer with priority wins. What counts as a point and how those points are scored brings us to the three different weapons in modern fencing:

Épée, or the one to watch if you just want to understand what’s going on

Épée is often the fencing weapon people use to introduce newcomers to fencing because it’s far and away the simplest to understand. The entire body is a target, points can only be scored with the tip (you can see how Shakespeare’s mind fell in the gutter), and double hits (when both fencers hit at the same time) are allowed unless the score is tied at 14-14 or in the sudden-death period. Beyond being easy to understand, the wide target area and double touches mean you also get an easy, if cagey watch. Scores often don’t reach 15 because fencers are waiting for the right time to launch an attack while making sure they don’t get hit at the same time. The lulls in an épée bout might make it seem boring at times, but the bouts are short enough that they pass quickly and you won’t get a headache from trying to follow the action. And if you do find yourself falling asleep, chances are you’ll be woken up by the scream someone lets out once they do score a hit.

Sabre, or the one to watch if you want to be equally excited and confused

Unlike the other weapons, you can score points in sabre with both the point and the cutting edge of the weapon, meaning there is no premium on accuracy. Simply hitting the target area, which in sabre is any part of the body from the waist up with the exception of the hands, means that you end up with bouts that are fast and furious. It’s why there are only two periods in sabre: the bouts are over so quickly that you’d never reach the third period without someone already scoring 15 points.

But the attacking nature of sabre also makes it very confusing. Unlike épée, double hits don’t count. This is where right of way rules come in. If both fencers land a hit at the same time, the referee awards the point to whoever they deem initiated the attack first. This normally happens three ways: you stick your weapon out in your opponent’s target area, you beat (think hit) an opponent’s blade, or your opponent’s attack fails to land and the right of way transfers to you. It sounds simple enough, but in sabre everything happens in the blink of an eye. To the untrained eye, the point is long over before you’ve even identified who initiated the attack in the first place. And it’s still not uncommon even if you know what to look for to disagree when it comes to determining right of way. On top of it all, the referee isn’t technically even forced to award the point to someone if both fencer’s register an attack: they can simply call a simultaneous attack and the point is replayed. Do you feel a headache coming on yet?

Foil, or the potential goldilocks fencing weapon

Perhaps I’m biased when I call foil the goldilocks weapon. But I do think you get the excitement, tension, and confusion that make fencing such an exciting watch all rolled into one when it comes to foil.

Like sabre, right of way exists in foil. To make up for the confusion and chaos that establishes, foil has both the smallest target area (just the torso) and only allows scoring with the tip. This means that while the emphasis is still on attacking, fencers are much more careful about when those attacks are launched. The end result: you get both fast and furious fencing as well as cagey fencing in the same bout. If you’re into seeing the strategy part of fencing play out in real time, foil is your weapon of choice. And if you’re feeling overwhelmed by the action in the middle of a duel, chances are you’ll get a reprieve: foil has a white light that goes off and stops play if an off-target hit is registered. It’s important when it comes to scoring (an off-target hit takes priority over a simultaneous hit that lands on target if the the off-target fencer had the right of way), but if you’re just starting to watch fencing it’s also a moment for a quick blink or two so your eyes don’t hurt from watching all the action closely.

No matter which weapon you choose to watch (though I would certainly recommend you try and watch all three), you’ll be treated to a sport that’s unlike any other you’ll see in Paris this summer. Even if you end up not enjoying fencing, hopefully you’ll at least feel like you made the most of the opportunity offered by the Olympics to dip your toes in a sport you otherwise would have never considered giving a shot. Just remember to watch actual fencing and not the fencing portion of modern pentathlon.