Morehouse Fencing Gear - Buy Fencing Equipment

Although all three of the modern disciplines are very different, they all share the same basic rules and principles. For example, regardless of weapon, fencing bouts are fenced to either five or fifteen touches (modern youth fencing also fence to ten touches). In addition, fencers of each weapon compete at tournaments in the same fashion. They begin with the pool round, where groups of six or seven fencers fence to five touches. Based on their pool performance, fencers are ranked for the direct elimination round. In this round, fencers fence fifteen touch bouts until everyone but one fencer is eliminated.
In the sword fighting schools of the 18th century, the swordsmen practiced with foils, but dueled with heavier, more substantial blades. This dueling sword is the earliest ancestor of the epee as we know it. Modern epee fencing’s rules, similar to modern foil fencing’s rules, have not changed much since its origins. In duels during the Renaissance, fencers were allowed to hit their opponents anywhere on their body in order to draw "first-blood" and win. The same principle applies to modern epee fencing, minus the actual blood, of course. Fencers can score touches anywhere from the head to the toe, mostly commonly opting for the torso as it is the largest target. Touches can only be scored in a thrusting motion just like foil. However unlike foil, the right of way system does not apply. In other words, both opponents score a point in the event of a simultaneous touch, which reflects what would happen if two duelists drew "first-blood" at the same time: both are considered victorious.

Most of today’s fencers specialize in only one discipline, but commonly begin Fencing mask with foil. This is a tradition that dates back to the Italian Renaissance, where sword fighting schools hosted duels for the training of knights and the leisure of nobility. In order to prepare for these duels, swordsmen needed to practice in a non-lethal manner - this is where foil emerged, as a lightweight, blunt-tipped version of the dueling rapier. Opponents wore safety equipment that covered their torso and their head, early versions of the mask and lamé. Despite the emphasis on safety, early foil fencing,'s main purpose was to simulate a real duel to the death, where opponents would aim for the crucial organs in the stomach and chest.

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