Athletes

A lot has happened since I first picked up a weapon in August 2010 when I decided to 'have a go' at fencing at my local club, had I known that within 2yrs I would compete in my first international and within 6yrs, hold a World No1 ranking and a Paralympic Silver medal I am sure I would find it all rather unbelievable but the moment I started, I knew fencing was the sport for me and so as I continue to train and prepare for Tokyo 2020, I will do my best to share some of my experiences with...

Do Not Read This Article on Strip Coaching Fencing Team Relay Edition Pardon the interruption for a verbose warning that you, most likely, will ignore. Today’s warning will focus on why Not Reading about coaching concepts for the Team Relay Fencing Bout.  If you are a fan of fencing, and watch team bouts you have probably seen a team bout and scratched your head when you looked at the scoreboard and the team with the lead was not the team you predicted based on the individual player talent level or initial seeding.   If you are like many Americans or you follow politics you...

The Fencing Podcast was launched by two Scottish fencers/coaches/nerds in the immediate aftermath of the Rio Olympics. Sean Walton and Gavin McMenemy are the voices of the podcast, after a friend suggested they give the medium a try. Gav has a history of online fencing presence - maintaining the peace as a moderator on Leon Paul’s Fencing Forum (and the US-based fencing.net) for many years - and Sean has written fencing blogs, so a podcast seemed the logical next step. While there is a lot of online discussion and writing about fencing, there is little spoken-word output.

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It’s fair to say that most of the British fencing community left the Rio Olympic Games behind with a sense of mixed emotions. Richard Kruse coming fourth was an immense achievement but getting so close to a medal meant a slight sense of deflation. As time has passed, I’m sure we’ll all just remember how well he did. All I’ll say about the team event is that it didn’t appear to be our day! Now all we have to do is ponder the “will he, won’t he?” question – will Richard carry on to Tokyo? I do hope so. Last season he showed us that he’s still a major force on the World circuit and he demonstrated that in the toughest environment – Olympic qualification.

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There are few people in the fencing world who do not know who Richard Kruse is, representing Great Britain in the men’s foil Olympics. One of the most notable qualities of this man is his dedication to training. I have met few people who work as hard and as consistently as Richard, and the work seems to pay off.

When I get into work at 8AM (not 10), we often see the more dedicated fencers already beginning their warmups and practice drills. Among them is always Richard.

“Surprised to see you here so early.” – I would always say.

We always joke about his training effects his luck, and his response is always

“The more I train the luckier I seem to get”. Kruse

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Do Not Read This Article

Turn back now and Do Not Read This Article on strip coaching!

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