Sabre or Epee for 7y.o. girl?

[vanilla]

Hello,
I really need your advice: we are signing up for fencing next month. I am wondering which weapon is good for a girl? The head of club said "either one".

She is good athlete (soccer, basketball, tennis, softball - coaches indicated she is better than others ). She has vivacious personality and very bright (top half percent iq). She is quite competitive. She is tall for her age.

I have a feeling she will succeed in any sport. But she has to choose a weapon Now.

(I don't think about foil since it is very popular and could be more difficult to get on a team -if I am wrong please tell)
Thank you,
Mills

[Fencergrl]

7 is a little young. Height and athletic ability is helpful in most cases, however at 7 she doesn't have the fine motor skills for the sport. I coach kids. I've had 8 year olds with the same issue... it's just frustrating for them when they can't keep up to the 9 year olds.

If you find a club, make sure that the other kids are close to her age. It doesn't matter what weapon as they will be playing mostly games at that age.

I suggest that you let her enjoy other sports for now. When she turns 9 (and she's still interested) sign her up for a 3-weapon beginners class and let her decide what she likes. Most kids start with foil because it's light. Sabres are also light, however most 9 year olds can hold a kid's epee although some find it heavy.

[TBean]

I have to agree with fencergrl that seven is young, but if your club runs a program with children in that age-group then you will probably be okay. Just be sure that the children in her group are all close in age.

As for picking a weapon, I struggle with trying to give you guidance. Why not learn the basics of the sport - footwork, basic bladework - and then try each of the weapons and see which one she likes. I don't understand having to pick so early in the learning process. If I had to recommend, I default to foil to begin with - mostly because that is how the system I trained in works - and often for a little-person they are easier to handle. But truthfully it does not matter as she knows nothing about fencing and the choice is somewhat arbitrary on both your parts. Maybe you could watch some fencing at your club and she can pick from that.

[lindajdunn]

Sabre. Fewer breakable parts on the weapon. Less work maintaining your gear.

[the ancient one]

At age 7 I would worry more about finding her a setting that will encourage her to stay with it.

My twins at age 7.5 couldn't keep a high interest level for lack of access to a physically and developmentally similar group of kids (apart from each other).

At age 10 their interest is re-kindling as a peer group is beginning to take shape.

All of the weapons are fantastic and it is not that hard to switch--just don't set her up with the one weapon nobody fences.

[Adler]

Personally I think 7 is a bit young to start and certainly too young to be worrying about teams and competition.
I would suggest letting her join a group with the highest number of kids of her own age regardless of weapon and see if she actually enjoys the sport.

Adler

[lindajdunn]

I think whether or not 7 it is too young depends upon the child and the environment in which she is fencing.

[Adler]

Environment and the child’s level of development are, of course, important factors however any training at this stage should be geared toward ensuring fun and laying down the coordination and energy abilities as well as the technical foundations needed for fencing, all of which are easily transferable to each weapon.

My main objection was to the emphasis put on teams and competition both of which have a very minor role in the introductory stages of training. My experience has been that if competition is overly emphasised in the first stage of training the child will either give up entirely or develop serious flaws in their technique which are next to impossible to eradicate.

[vanilla]

I got it! - I will sign up her with the group where she will have more peers close to her age, regardless of the weapon.

Anyway, competition and teams are irrelevant at this point, i was just throwing it in in case it helps to make a decision.
Thanks a lot - you are great group of people!
Mills

[kmwong]

Just make sure that she is 100% into picking up fencing, or at least 100% into trying it out. It's an expensive and time consuming sport, but can be very rewarding.

A bit of light competition would be okay to introduce maybe a year or two after she has had lessons, but I think you understand how important it is not to emphasize it at first.

As for the weapon, I agree at her age it's best to just let her learn the basics and experiment with different weapons.

[TodG]

I have 9 year olds in my beginners class who have trouble with a #5 foil. I can't imagine a 7 year old finding an epee manageable.

[InFerrumVeritas]

There's nothing wrong with starting at seven, if the club you fence at has a class specifically designed for young children.

As for which weapon, don't worry about which is easiest to get on a team. What I would highly recommend is to have her try a three weapon class, try all three weapons. The one that will be easiest for her to get on a team for is the one that she enjoys most. You said yourself that you think she will suceed at any sport she plays.

Basically, she should try all of the weapons. If she prefers saber, she should fence that, if she prefers foil, etc. Make sure that she fences each weapon for a decent amount of time, though. I, initially, wanted to fence saber but learned foil because that was what the club taught at first. I had no interest in epee. After fencing saber for a bit, I realized that I enjoyed the bladework phrases of foil more. After being forced to fence epee for a bit (two weeks of only epeeists showing up for practice), I almost picked up that weapon.

[whiteandbluefencer]

I have 9 year olds in my beginners class who have trouble with a #5 foil. I can't imagine a 7 year old finding an epee manageable.

Um, isn't this why they make #2 and #0 blades? I've seen both foils, and epees... of each size. The #0 epees with bell guards almost smaller than my fist are the cutest things ever!

[TodG]

We have #0 blades for the younger kids. Who carries a small sabre?

[TodG]

Never mind. They're right here on FdN. Cute.

I'm not a sabre fencer, and have never seen a 'kid' sized sabre before.

[Reima Ransu]

Hi,

Little Musketeers camps are for boys and girls 7-12 years old. Level 2 is the continuation of Level 1, students will learn some more basic fencing moves and are introduced to electric fencing bouting.Visit this site for more information: askfred.net/Clinics/index.php?FREDSID=2jnvjuh5q1siuk9mm1gncku1o0&page_ id=4