During the COVID lockdown, the team at Leon Paul wrestled with the age-old question, what are the barriers to fencers in the UK to achieving results at national level and...

In March 1923, George Mallory was asked by the New York Times “Why did you climb Mt. Everest?” to which he replied “Because it’s there”. Probably the most famous three...

As Ben Paul mentioned in his blog ‘Cooking with Swords’, we have a Lunch Club at Leon Paul with only one simple rule… You never talk about Lunch Club! Ben...

As I mentioned in a previous blog post, I was due to run the London Marathon at the end of the month (April 2020). Due to the COVID19 Pandemic, all...

The 2020 European Cadet & Junior Fencing Championships took place in Poreč, Croatia, during the backend of February and start of March this year. I was selected as one of...

What does an international fencer do when they retire? I stopped fencing in June 2012 with the European Championships in Italy being my final event. Barring a few little fun...

"Oh sweet coffee, I adore thee". At one point or another (Monday mornings, we're looking at you!) in our lives we've probably all been there and thought that thought. But, on a scale from zero to caffeine-junkie, how deep is the love between fencers and coffee? And even more interesting: is there a correlation between your intake of the magical black brew and the weapon you fence? We've called in an expert in the matter, our very own Jon Willis, to share the results of many years of (semi)-serious study with you. Are you ready for the results ;)? Then read on!   Continue reading →

December 2016, Emily & I were chasing the Northern Lights on a holiday in Iceland when I asked her to marry me. While the aurora borealis might have escaped us, she said yes. We had to wait to set the date, I didn’t want any clashes with the European or World Championships but following the publication of the international fencing calendar a suitable date was found and the challenge of finding a venue was next. Continue reading →

Following a seamless journey to Copenhagen via Heathrow, Francine Robb and myself boarded the train to Gentofte where this season's Copenhagen Cadet Epee EFC tournament was taking place.  We had been asked by our friends at the Hellerup Club to head up the DT for 6th edition of this fabulous event. Continue reading →

By Jon Willis Last year, after I had run a cadet competition, I overheard a fencer refer to me as ‘the man who organises competitions’.  Initially, it dented my ego to think that I’m known more for running competitions than my exploits with an epee.  I only retired a few years ago! However, I’m delighted to have been able to remain in fencing, to use my competitive experience to improve the standard of events in the UK and help the sport grow. Continue reading →