Author: John Stanley

  • Interview: James-Andrew Davis

    Interview: James-Andrew Davis

    James-Andrew Davis, the 2014 European Champion, has officially retired from competition. Based in the USA for a number of years, he spoke to BF just after returning from the USA Nationals where he was coaching athletes from the Massialas Foundation, known as Mteam. He spoke to BF in July.  You’re calling time on your career…

  • Oliver Lam-Watson: a family story

    Oliver Lam-Watson: a family story

    Wheelchair fencer Oliver Lam-Watson qualified for his second Paralympic Games in June 2024, after competing and winning two team medals at Tokyo 2020. “What’s different about Paris to Tokyo? God, everything, I guess, and also nothing at the same time. There’s gonna be a crowd this time. We didn’t have that in Tokyo. There’s almost…

  • Fencing For Change: Tsavora Mtaani

    Fencing For Change: Tsavora Mtaani

    Since 2021, in a poverty-stricken part of Nairobi, Kenya, the Tsavora Mtaani Fencing Club aims to deliver hope and change. Organised by Kenyan international Mburu “Faruq Brown” Wanyoike, who came from a tough background in Nairobi, the club offers direction for younger people and – just maybe – the chance of a very different life.…

  • Great Britain’s fencing team at Stockholm 1912: Unseen Photographs

    Great Britain’s fencing team at Stockholm 1912: Unseen Photographs

    British Fencing received an email from Carolyne Redmayne about a set of around 30 glass plates from the 1912 Olympics in Stockholm, which show the British fencing team in action and at rest. We have reproduced a selection of the 30 images below, with some of the team identified where possible (with thanks to Malcolm…

  • Cardiff 2024: Community & Legacy

    Cardiff 2024: Community & Legacy

    In January 2024, British Fencing hosted the Wheelchair Fencing World Cup at the National Centre in Cardiff. This was the first major international World Cup level event for over a decade, and a hugely prestigious event for UK fencing. As well as a sporting occasion, it represented multiple communities coming together and a solid legacy…

  • Muslim Girls Fence: Into 2024 And Beyond

    Muslim Girls Fence: Into 2024 And Beyond

      “I do think Islamophobia has affected young people’s mental health. I think that this is something that is rising sadly, we don’t feel safe, or listened to or understood, which kind of makes it worse. That’s why it’s so nice having this club, we can just be ourselves, say what we want to say…

  • Welcome (back) to The Sword

    Welcome (back) to The Sword

    Hello. Welcome to the new home of The Sword, British Fencing’s membership magazine. In comparison to five years ago, our members are now consuming our content in very different ways from before, engaging more with website news posts and articles. Some of our best performing news posts actually had more readers than any recent online…

  • Belbouab and Contractor Receive Sportaid’s Backing the Best Award

    Belbouab and Contractor Receive Sportaid’s Backing the Best Award

    Two young and talented British cadet foilists have received a SportAid Backing the Best award for their outstanding potential. Mohammed Belbouab and Khalam Contractor have received the award from UK Sport Aid because of their outstanding ability and now, thanks to the award, are able to compete in the Commonwealth Championships. The triennial (occasionally quadrennial)…

  • ‘Nobody’s Metaphor’: fencing documentary available to stream

    ‘Nobody’s Metaphor’: fencing documentary available to stream

    British Fencing’s ongoing project with Maslaha called Muslim Girls Fence produced a documentary film back in 2020. ‘Nobody’s Metaphor’, produced by Chouette Films, has not been previously available for streaming online. The film traces the experiences of four teenagers from West London as they participate in the Muslim Girls Fence initiative. Throughout the film, the…

  • “On The Edge” review: a startlingly good drama

    “On The Edge” review: a startlingly good drama

    A film about fencing that doesn’t involve Napoleonic uniforms, buccaneers or earnest young aristocrats defending a lady’s honour – surely not? Well, sorry to disappoint you, but yes. We all know that the Russians have always taken their fencing very seriously (just ask Jim Fox and Boris Onischenko!) and they just love to watch films…

  • Pilates for fencers: Linking it together

    Pilates for fencers: Linking it together

    Victoria Enaut is a Body Control Pilates teacher with over 10 years’ experience of teaching movement. She took up fencing as a hobby and quickly became interested in applying her knowledge of movement to the requirements of the sport, so as to help her fellow fencers with injury prevention and rehabilitation. She spoke to The…

  • Amelie Tsang: I just said to myself ‘keep going’

    Amelie Tsang: I just said to myself ‘keep going’

    On the 5 April 2023, British foilist Amelie Tsang did something no other British woman had ever done by claiming the world title in Plovdiv, Bulgaria, aged just 16. I had the pleasure of talking to her at the beginning of September when, as she said, it was “only just sinking in”. It was clear…