March 2004. In March 2004, St. Petersburg, Russia, hosted a Grand Prix World Cup for foil. With the Olympics fast approaching, this tournament was a chance for fencers to qualify, or at least finish the season strong. The overall fencing talent represented hundreds of world cup placements, and the "last-train-to-Athens" feel generated enough performance pressure that a deep-sea fish would implode in a succulent red mist.
Walter Flaschka reviewed the proposed foil timings and previewed his thoughts on what would happen to foil once they were implemented. We've now witnessed a few junior level events and finally our first Division I NAC event and can put the observations together. Are these timings good, bad, or just ugly for foil?
Recently, the Italian foilists have been doing very well internationally,
winning competition after competition. To win these competitions, they have to
win a lot of bouts, and to win a lot of bouts, they have to score a lot of
points. So let's talk about how they are getting points and what we can learn
from them.
In this analysis, Brandon Smith investigates the mysteries of "Italian
tempo."
2nd Lt. Seth Kelsey is the top ranked men's epee fencer in the United States and a member of the 2004 Olympic Team. He trains as a member of the United States Air Force's World Class Athlete Program. He recently took some time between world cup travels to talk to Fencing.Net.
Jim Carpenter was a fixture in the US epee standings during the 1990's, with a long career that saw him as a member of the 1996 Olympic Men's Epee team in Atlanta, a two-time medalist in the Pan Am games, a three-time US Team National Champion, three-time member of the US World Team. Retiring from fencing in 1996, Carpenter just couldn't stay away. He is now building the next generation of épéeists as head coach at the Grapevine Fencing Center in Grapevine, Texas. Michael Aufrichtig (of Fencing Footage) interviews Jim Carpenter on his involvement in the sport.
2nd Lt. Seth Kelsey is the top ranked men's epee fencer in the United States and a member of the 2004 Olympic Team. He trains as a member of the United States Air Force's World Class Athlete Program. He recently took some time between world cup travels to talk to Fencing.Net. 
Jim Carpenter was a fixture in the US epee standings during the 1990's, with a long career that saw him as a member of the 1996 Olympic Men's Epee team in Atlanta, a two-time medalist in the Pan Am games, a three-time US Team National Champion, three-time member of the US World Team. Retiring from fencing in 1996, Carpenter just couldn't stay away. He is now building the next generation of épéeists as head coach at the Grapevine Fencing Center in Grapevine, Texas. Michael Aufrichtig (of Fencing Footage) interviews Jim Carpenter on his involvement in the sport.
