Fencing is a combat sport that features sword fighting. The three disciplines of modern fencing are the foil, the épée, and the sabre ; each discipline uses a different kind of blade, which shares the same name, and employs its own rules. Most competitive fencers specialize in one discipline. The modern sport gained prominence near the end of the 19th century and is based on the traditional skill set of swordsmanship. The Italian school altered the historical European martial art of classical fencing, and the French school later refined that system. Scoring points in a fencing competition is done by making contact with an opponent.
Historical European martial arts (HEMA) are martial arts of European origin, particularly using arts formerly practised, but having since died out or evolved into very different forms.
The Fédération Internationale d'Escrime, commonly known by the acronym FIE, is the international governing body of Olympic fencing. Today, its head office is at the Maison du Sport International in Lausanne, Switzerland. The FIE is composed of 157 national federations, each of which is recognized by its country's Olympic Committee as the sole representative of Olympic-style fencing in that country.
Maria Valentina Vezzali is an Italian politician and retired fencer. As a fencer, Vezzali won six Olympic gold medals and was a 16-time World Champion in foil. She is one of only five athletes in the history of the Summer Olympic Games to have won five medals in the same individual event.
Margherita Granbassi is an Italian foil fencer.
Irina Embrich, née Zamkovaja is an Estonian left-handed épée fencer. Embrich is a two-time team European champion and 2017 team world champion. A two-time Olympian, Embrich is a 2021 team Olympic champion.
Giovanna Trillini is an Italian foil fencer. She is a 4-time Olympic champion and she won an additional silver and two bronze medals in individual Olympic competitions.
Imke Duplitzer is a German épée fencer. Imke is a four time Olympian where she placed 10th, 5th, 5th, and 29th respectively. She also fenced in three team events at the Olympics, and at the 2004 Summer Olympics she won the silver medal in the team épée competition with Britta Heidemann and Claudia Bokel. During the 2006 World Fencing Championships, she won the bronze medal after beating Romania in the épée team event together with her teammates Claudia Bokel, Britta Heidemann and Marijana Markovic. She is also a two-time European Champion in the individual event as well as being a part of the Gold medal-winning team in 1998.
Sergey Aleksandrovich Sharikov, also known as Serguei/Sergei Charikov, was a left-handed Russian Olympic champion sabre fencer. In the Olympics he won two gold medals, a silver medal, and a bronze medal.
The World Fencing Championships is an annual competition in fencing organized by the Fédération Internationale d'Escrime. Contestants may participate in foil, épée, and sabre events.
Laura Gabriela Badea-Cârlescu is a retired Romanian foil fencer, world champion in 1995, olympic champion in 1996 and european champion in 1996,1997, 2004. After her retirement she became a fencing coach, then a sport administrator with numerous roles. She served as President of the Athletes Commission (2001-2005) for the Romanian Olympic and Sports Committee, Member of the Rules Commission of the International Fencing Federation, Director of Olympic Education of the Romanian Olympic and Sports Committee (2005-2012), Director of Romanian Olympic Academy(2011-2017), Romanian Ambassador for Sports, Tolerance and Fair-Play at the Council of Europe (2004-2011), Member of the Science and Sports Council in Romania (2006-2009), Member of the Romanian Anti-Doping Agency, Vice-President of the Romanian Fencing Federation (2005-2011), President of the Romanian Fencing Federation (2017-2018), Member of the Culture and Olympic Heritage Commission at the European Olympic Committee, Member of the Executiv Committee at the Romanian Olympic and Sports Committee.
The European Fencing Confederation is an international body created in 1991, charged with the promotion and development of fencing in Europe. It organises the European Fencing Championships annually at several levels: cadets (U17), junior (U20), under 23, seniors and veterans.
Andrea Cassarà is an Italian left-handed foil fencer, two-time individual European champion, 2011 individual world champion, and three-time Olympics medalist.
Małgorzata Wojtkowiak is a Polish foil fencer, team world champion in 2003 and 2007 and individual bronze medallist at the 2008 European Championships. She represented Poland at the 2008 and 2012 Summer Olympics.
Rossella Fiamingo is an Italian left-handed épée fencer and two-time individual world champion. A three-time Olympian, Fiamingo is a 2021 team Olympic bronze medalist and 2016 individual Olympic silver medalist.
The fencing competitions at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo featured 12 events, the first time that both team and individual events have been held in all three weapons for both men and women.
Carlos Soler Márquez is a Spanish wheelchair fencer who has represented Spain at five Paralympic Games. Following the 2012 Games, he retired from the sport. He is also a fencing administrator and coach, having organized a World Cup event at the fencing club where he is president.
Fencing at the 2014 Summer Youth Olympics was held from 17 to 20 August at the Nanjing International Expo Center in Nanjing, China.
Julien Mertine is a French right-handed foil fencer, four-time team European champion, 2014 team world champion, and 2021 team Olympic champion.
The World Cadets and Juniors Fencing Championships are an annual international fencing competition held by the International Fencing Federation.
Salvatore Sanzo (ITA)
Sławomir Mocek (POL)
Javier Menéndez (ESP)
Márk Marsi (HUN)
Remy Delhomme (FRA)
Pavel Kolobkov (RUS)
Wiradech Kothny (GER)
Victor Găureanu (ROU)
Yelena Jemayeva (AZE)