Fencing

The tense, testing sport of Fencing has featured at every Olympic Games of the modern era.

Key facts

Venue: ExCeL
Dates: Saturday 28 July – Sunday 5 August
Medal events: 10
Athletes: 212

Although sword fighting dates back thousands of years, Fencing as we now understand it really came of age as a sport in the 19^th century. A tense, compelling battle of wits and technique, the sport is one of the few to have featured at every modern Olympic Games. 

The basics

Three types of weapon are used in Olympic Fencing. In bouts using the Foil and the slightly heavier Epée, hits are scored by hitting an opponent with the tip of the weapon. However, in Sabre, hits may also be scored with the edge of the weapon. Epée allows both fencers to score at the same time while Foil and Sabre have rules of right of way and timing that mean only one fencer can score a hit at a time.

Individual Fencing bouts last for three rounds of three minutes each, or until one fencer has scored 15 hits against their opponent. In the Team events, teams of three fencers compete against their opponents over a series of nine bouts, with the aim of accumulating a maximum of 45 hits.

All 10 medal events on the Fencing programme will be run in a knockout format. Players and teams will progress through the draw until the finals, which will decide the winners of the gold medals.

Olympic Fencing, past and present

At the first modern Olympic Games of 1896, the Fencing programme consisted of men’s Foil and Sabre events, with the Epée making its debut at Paris 1900. Women’s Fencing first featured at the 1924 Games.

At London 2012, the Fencing competition will be held at ExCeL, a multi-purpose events venue that will also host a number of other Olympic and Paralympic sports.

Fencing
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