Fencing Rules
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FENCING RULES 1995 Edition United States Fencing Association, Inc. © United States Fencing Association, Inc. 1995 FOREWORD This American version of the international rules governing fencing competitions is translated and adapted from the 1994 French edition published by the FIE and incorporates changes made by the FIE Congresses through 1995. Unless otherwise noted here or in the USFA Operations Manual, these rules apply to fencing competitions in the United States. Two appendices are included with this 1995 edition: Appendix A – The Fencer’s Publicity Code is part of the FIE Rules for Competitions. Appendix B – The FIE has published a number of “Temporary Provisions” concerning competition formats and certain other rules. The complete, updated text is included in Appendix B; notes are also located in the text in appropriate locations. The USFA, Inc. (founded as the Amateur Fencers League of America in 1891) is a not-for-profit, tax-exempt organization primarily engaged in increasing participation in the sport of fencing. Membership in the USFA, in an appropriate category, is open to anyone who has an interest in fencing. The USFA is the official governing body for amateur fencing activities in the United States, and is so recognized by the United States Olympic Committee and the International Fencing Federation (FIE). Accordingly, the authority to enact, amend, and repeal the rules governing amateur fencing in the United States rests solely with the Board of Directors of the USFA. As a matter of policy, the USFA normally follows the technical rules enacted for the sport by the FIE, with occasional minor exceptions that are duly announced. The rules for fencing, as set forth in this book, therefore apply to all USFA championships and nationally-rated competitions, and, unless exceptions have been announced in advance by the appropriate authorities, apply also to all events scheduled by any Section or Division of the USFA, or held under USFA auspices. United States Fencing Association, Inc. One Olympic Plaza Colorado Springs, CO 80909-5774 TEL: 719/578-4511 FAX: 719/632-5737 E-mail: [email protected] World Wide Web: http://www.usfa.org PREFACE This American edition incorporates the most recent FIE rules changes, using terms commonly used in American fencing. Some changes of form have been made to increase the clarity of the text, without altering the original intent. The Table of Contents and Index have been extensively revised in an attempt to improve their usefulness. The ongoing publication of an American version of the FIE Rules has been carried out under the auspices of the USFA Fencing Officials Commission. Our British and Canadian counterparts have been consulted regarding translations from the French text. A number of USFA members have been involved in the publication of this book. I would like to offer special thanks to Mary Frye for her assistance in updating the sample DE tables (in case anyone is wondering, there are no characters from Star Trek: Voyager because they couldn’t be seeded into the table – they’re always in the wrong quadrant). For those interested in such things: The text has been through many electronic incarnations and now exists in IBM PC format. Editing and formatting are currently performed using Adobe PageMakerTM 5.0, Microsoft WordTM 7.0, Microsoft ExcelTM 7.0, CorelDRAW!TM 6.0, and Corel PHOTO-PAINTTM 6.0. Ann McBain Ezzell, Editor Bloomfield Hills, Michigan April 1996 Rules for Competitions – USFA 1995 – i ABBREVIATIONS USED IN THE TEXT Cf. (followed by a number) = see article number f. (after a number) = and the following article ff (after a number) = and the following articles Please note the difference between “327f.” - Articles 327 and 328 and “327f” - section (f) of Article 327 NUMBERING OF ARTICLES The articles are numbered without continuity from one part to the next. The number of each part of the Rules corresponds to the first digit of each article it contains. Part I GENERAL RULES begins at Article 1. Part II FOIL begins at Article 201. Part III EPEE begins at Article 301. Part IV SABRE begins at Article 401. Part V ORGANIZATION begins at Article 501. Part VI DISCIPLINARY RULES begins at Article 601. Part VII SCORING EQUIPMENT begins at Article 701. 1995 – ii Rules for Competitions – USFA Table of Contents PART ONE: GENERAL RULES AND RULES COMMON TO ALL THREE WEAPONS ..................................................................................... 1 Chapter I – HISTORICAL NOTES ................................................................................................ 1 Chapter II – APPLICATION OF THE RULES .............................................................................. 1 Chapter III – GLOSSARY .............................................................................................................. 1 A) Referee............................................................................................................................................. 1 B) Competitions ................................................................................................................................... 1 C) Explanation of some technical terms commonly used in the judging of fencing ............................ 1 Chapter IV – THE FIELD OF PLAY (Cf. 201ff, 301ff, 401ff) ...................................................... 2 Chapter V – THE FENCERS’ EQUIPMENT (Weapons – Equipment – Clothing) (Cf. 205ff, 306ff, 404ff) ............................................................................................................ 3 A) Presentation of equipment for inspection ........................................................................................ 3 B) Organization of the inspection office .............................................................................................. 4 C) Inspection equipment and staff ........................................................................................................ 4 GENERAL PROVISIONS ..................................................................................................................... 6 Chapter VI – BOUT........................................................................................................................ 8 Chapter VII – DIRECTION OF A BOUT AND JUDGING OF TOUCHES............................... 12 A) OFFICIALS ................................................................................................................................... 12 B) JUDGING BY A JURY................................................................................................................. 14 C) JUDGING WITH A SCORING MACHINE .................................................................................................................................... 15 Notes ............................................................................................................................................. 15 PART TWO: FOIL........................................................................................................................ 16 Chapter I – HISTORICAL NOTES .............................................................................................. 16 Chapter II – FIELD OF PLAY (Cf. 14ff)...................................................................................... 16 Chapter III – FOIL EQUIPMENT (Weapons – Equipment – Clothing) (Cf. 16ff) ...................... 16 A) WEAPONS (Cf. 16ff, 22ff) ........................................................................................................... 16 B) CLOTHING AND EQUIPMENT ................................................................................................. 18 Chapter IV – CONVENTIONS OF FOIL FENCING .................................................................. 19 A) METHOD OF MAKING TOUCHES ........................................................................................... 19 B) VALID SURFACE......................................................................................................................... 19 C) CORPS A CORPS AND FLECHE ATTACKS ............................................................................ 20 D) NUMBER OF TOUCHES – DURATION OF A BOUT .............................................................. 20 E) JUDGING OF TOUCHES IN FOIL ............................................................................................. 20 Notes ............................................................................................................................................. 23 Rules for Competitions – USFA 1995 – iii PART THREE: EPEE ................................................................................................................... 24 Chapter I – HISTORICAL NOTES .............................................................................................. 24 Chapter II – FIELD OF PLAY (Cf. 14ff)...................................................................................... 24 Chapter III – EPEE EQUIPMENT (Weapons – Equipment – Clothing) (Cf. 16ff) ..................... 24 A) WEAPONS (Cf. 22ff) ................................................................................................................... 24 B) EQUIPMENT ................................................................................................................................ 26 C) CLOTHING ................................................................................................................................... 26 Chapter IV – THE CONVENTIONS