The
history development, the present, changes and developments made in the fencing
sports
Butti
Ahmed Almazrouie
CIQ
Final
project
Table
of Contents
HISTORY OF THE FENCING SPORT
The history of sword fighting is as old as mankind
which has been introduced when a swing of a club has been blocked by an
opponent fencing was born. In existence fencing has been regarded probably as
one of the oldest games as it is always considered to be an intrinsic part of
life. The Fencing sport began its origin in either 15th or 14th
century as a sport and has been a form of military training initially. The
history of the fencing has its origin from ancient Egypt and Rome and then
continues to the barbaric Dark Ages and from there to the fast and elegant
Renaissance and now it became popular to the modern world and has been
practiced in various form of culture since then. The sword fighting did not
list as a sport since the 15th century (Borysiuk, & Waskiewicz, 2008).
Fencing has always been considered as more than a sport as it is regarded as a
form of an art from the ancient symbol of power and glory and has a deeply
personal and individual form of expression.
The Fencing is a competition among the two athletes
that strongly focuses on the techniques, tactics, and coordination. The fencing
sport has been played for thousands of years by using a variety of weapons
which includes quarterstaffs and backswords. With the prescribed rules of the
game the basic object of the sport is to hit the opponent in the game. In past
the individuals participating in the sword fighting tremendously focuses their
efforts on the martial systems of combat and dueling developed for the earlier
weapons so to make an attempt to practice as flawlessly as possible by mostly
preferring on the replica or antique
blades of fencing weapons (Bottoms,
et, al, 2013).
Changes
Developed In Fencing Sport: -
The fencing sport is a regulated game which does not
only mean to simply fighting for hits but it is traditional game that have been
transmitted through generations hence making fencing a truly educational sport
as certain conventions have been remained intact despite the expansion of
fencing from combat to sport. In fencing sport at the beginning there has been
the use of the long sword but gradually it continued to decline throughout the
Renaissance period and eventually in 18th century the civilian
swords were evolved which are also known as the "cut and thrust"
swords and also certain changes has been made in the shape of the swords making
the thicker, tapering swords (Lee,
2012).
In sword fighting this new weapon was basically used for protecting the street
and as well as a tool in the duel, but in fencing sport it found
little success on the battlefield. In the late 19th century and 20th
century after the demise of the civilian sword the backsword became the last prominent
battlefield of sword fighting. Recently the fencing sport had a purpose to
serve for both the reasons that is the competition and the duel which is the
type of fencing which has been taught in modern sport fencing . The changes
developed in sport fencing are intended to train the participants to do
competition in the most effective manner within the rules and regulations of
the sport. As the fencing sport is continues to make advancement it results in
the skills and techniques being increasingly removed from their martial roots (Roi, & Bianchedi, 2008).
Development
that has been made in fencing today:-
Today on the end of the
twenty-first century, the huge and tremendous fencers mainly participate in
fencing which known as the also Olympic fencing, competitive fencing, or
electric fencing. Recently the development that has been made in the fencing
sport does not result in amendments to the rules that have been
introduced over the history but the modifications are rather made to make
the refereeing uncomplicated and more objective by introducing the new
technologies and through the modernization of equipment. In fencing sports the
development has been made in new metal alloys which are practicable and more
attainable weapons have become possible as it give speed and coordination and
applies little advantage to sheer strength (Sinclair, et, al, 2010). The new type
of fencing has been introduced by French which was effective, precise and more
deadly than before as the action was mainly about the involvement of wrist and
fingers which need quickness rather than muscular vigor.
The modern fencing is
directly descended from the Renaissance and the heyday of dueling through the
constant changes and refinements made in the swordsmen of the thrilling and
highly skilled fencing sport. In fencing sport the developments that have been
made in the equipments include electronic gear, a buckler, a cloak, electric
foils, the saber, the epée, lames in multiple sizes, electric jackets, supporting
body mask, wires and scoring machines. Fencing sport is now an Olympic Sport
and since from its creation it has been in every modern Olympiad. In this
modern era the changes in the swords and rules of fencing have changed
remarkably from the past the developments made in the sword fighting was due to
fencing being a sport with the great emphasis on athletics instead of honor.
The changes that have been made in the fighting styles of fencing sports result
in the development for the small sword which is directed from ancestors of
modern fencing techniques (Van
Creveld, 2008).
Importance of fencing as sport
Fencing is a classic art and is the part
of the history since the idle ages the sport is basically about a
sword-fighting without the probability of dying or any severe injury. Fencing
is a skillful sport which has the ability to improve lower body strength and speed,
as well as hand-eye coordination. The fencing is considered as an aerobic
activity for health as it strengthens hearts and lungs through increasing the stamina and
also burns calories. It is a good for gaining
flexibility and coordination as it is not only related to physical challenging
it's a workout for the mind too. The physical
benefits of fencing include
coordination, balance, agility,
strength and also flexibility. Following
are the improvements that had been made in the fencing sport:-
·
Modernized the fencing sport and fencing entirety,
modernization had been made in the tools and equipment but also by making
amendments in the rules which have been developed in fencing sport for many
centuries (Lee, 2012).
·
Improvements in
the visual appeal of fencing, hence making it easy-to-understand for the
spectators.
·
Effective
balance is applied in both attacking and defensive actions mainly through the
improvement of tools and equipment.
·
The
basic fencing practices implemented to improve the skills with minimal risk of
injury.
·
In recent years
certain attempts have been made to introduce fencing so to easier mainly to the
younger audience, by utilizing and manipulating foam and plastic swords, which
require much less protective equipment.
·
The advanced
training of fencing sport mission is by using the weapons that were mostly
difficult to lift than those which have been used in early days of sword
fighting.
References
Borysiuk,
Z., & Waskiewicz, Z. (2008). Information processes, stimulation and
perceptual training in fencing. Journal of Human Kinetics, 19(1),
63-82
Bottoms,
L., Sinclair, J., Rome, P., Gregory, K., & Price, M. (2013). Development of
a lab based epee fencing protocol. International Journal of Performance
Analysis in Sport, 13(1), 11-22. http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/uwic/ujpa/2013/00000013/00000001/art00003
Lee,
A. (2012). Fencing. http://www.gateshead.gov.uk/Leisure%20and%20Culture/sports1/activities/GoingforGold/SportoftheMonth/Fencing.aspx
Roi,
G. S., & Bianchedi, D. (2008). The Science of Fencing. Sports Medicine,
38(6), 465-481.
Sinclair,
J., Bottoms, L., Taylor, K., & Greenhalgh, A. (2010). Tibial shock measured
during the fencing lunge: the influence of footwear. Sports
Biomechanics, 9(2), 65-71. http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/14763141.2010.491161#.U5Ld23KSzfI
Van
Creveld, M. (2008). Sword and the Olive: A Critical History of the Israeli
Defense Force. PublicAffairs.
