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.
A sabre is a type of backsword with a curved blade associated with the light cavalry of the early modern and Napoleonic periods. Originally associated with Central European cavalry such as the hussars, the sabre became widespread in Western Europe during the Thirty Years' War. Lighter sabres also became popular with infantry of the early 17th century. In the 19th century, models with less curving blades became common and were also used by heavy cavalry.
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.
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.
Ulrich Robeiri is a French right-handed épée fencer, two-time team European champion, six-time team world champion, 2014 individual world champion, and 2008 team Olympic champion.
Bohdan Serhiyovych Nikishyn is a Ukrainian right-handed épée fencer, 2015 team world champion, and three-time Olympian.
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.
Ana Maria Popescu, formerly known as Ana Maria Brânză, is a Romanian left-handed épée fencer.
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.
The European Fencing Championships is an annual top-level European fencing competition organized by the European Fencing Confederation.
Andrea Cassarà is an Italian left-handed foil fencer, two-time individual European champion, 2011 individual world champion, and three-time Olympics medalist.
Richard Kruse is a former British right-handed foil fencer and four-time Olympian. In 2015, he was part of the Great Britain team that shocked Olympic champions Italy to win the first European Games gold in team foil, the first British gold medal in a team fencing event at World or European level for fifty years. He retired in 2021.
Aleksandra Anna Socha Shelton is a Polish sabre fencer, bronze medal in the 2003 World Fencing Championships, European champion in 2004, and European team in 2008. She represented Poland at the time.
Violetta Vitalyevna Kolobova is a Russian right-handed épée fencer, 2012 team European champion, two-time individual European champion, two-time team world champion, two-time Olympian, and 2016 team Olympic bronze medalist.
The Russian Fencing Federation is the governing body for the sport of fencing in Russia. It was created proper in 1992, but its previous incarnation was affiliated to the Fédération Internationale d'Escrime (FIE) in 1914. FFR is a member of the European Fencing Confederation and of the Russian Olympic Committee.
Simone Vanni (ITA)
Adam Krzesiński (POL)
Ralf Bißdorf (GER)
Attila Juhász (HUN)
Vitaly Zakharov (BLR)
Pavel Kolobkov (RUS)
Kaido Kaaberma (EST)
Julien Pillet (FRA)
Mihai Covaliu (ROU)
Belgium 
Ukraine