Over the course of terms two and three, a group of around thirteen students have been meeting every Monday at the Gordon Scout Hall to learn and practice the sport of fencing.

 We began in term two, introducing a bunch of new students to our sport. Eager to learn, they began training straight away, with the help of Ross Shepherd, our coach from the Fencing Midsouth. Over the course of the term we introduced them to the basics of swordplay; the Lunge, the Parry, the Riposte. This prepared our class for the competition season that started in Term Three, where events were held almost every weekend all across Christchurch.

This year we have experienced a variety of competitions such as ‘Games Of The Future,’ which were held at the Midsouth Fencing Institute. These smaller competitions allowed our newer fencers an access point into the wider Christchurch fencing community. Supplementing these were multiple regional and national events such as National Secondary Schools. Held in Christchurch this year, it was one of the largest competitions in New Zealand and a great opportunity for our fencers to meet those from other cities and clubs. As well as this, we had Fencers travelling to Dunedin and Auckland to compete in other competitions across the country. One of our students even competed in the Australian Cadet Competition in the term two holidays, placing in the top half of the group.

Ultimately Burnside Fencing has had a very successful year, with many incredible placings and a large group of eager new fencers!