New York Times Article

[Craig]

Would-Be Olympians Gather in New York
By GLORIA RODRIGUEZ (NYT)
With the 2004 Athens Olympics rapidly approaching, the New York City Fencing World Cup is carrying added significance.


June 12, 2003

http://www.nytimes.com/2003/06/12/sp...13FENCING.html

Requires registration to the NYT site.

[veeco]

These guys do it purely for the love of the sport,” said Eric Rosenberg, president of the Fencers Club. “They’re not going to get rich fencing. If anything. they are going to lose money.”

Translation: If you are into fencing, you are either very rich or you want to lose all your money.
That's not the kind of thing which is going to get more people interested in fencing. People please think before you say something to the media!!! If fencing is to be more popular you should not say things like this. You should say things like: the level at which these guys are with less training than the european fencers shows that they still have a lot of untapped potential. This wouldn't necessarily get sponsors attention but it would be a better start, since it would not be a deterrent for people who want to try fencing.

Also, the article says that Iris was an Olympic medalist, I don't think that's the case yet...

[Marcos]

From what little I know, Rosenberg has built a pretty awesome club in NYC..you're right tho, the quote can be construed negatively in what is otherwise a good article

Whoever gave the story to the paper deserves some credit

[epeemike81]

"Sada Jacobson, No. 2 in the world in women’s sabre, is the highest-ranked American women in any fencing event ever."

While I love the sentiment, and it is accurate, this is rather sloppy writing for the NYT....

-m

[jeff]

Eric may have been asked if you can get rich fencing, and answered it honestly, or, he may have been trying to emphasize the "love of the sport" aspect. We shouldn't try to get people into fencing on the false claim they'll get rich off it. Heck, we shouldn't get people into (insert name of any popular sport here) since only a vanishingly small percentage of athletes ever make it into the pro ranks there, either. Eric's done a great job with the club, and has put in endless hours for it and the Westbrook foundation.

It is a drag seeing a typo or grammar error in a newspaper, especially a good one like the NYT. With the NY Post you expect that, but, on the other hand, you're kind of expected to move your lips when you read it.

[veeco]

Far from me the idea to discredit Mr Rosenberg's work and achievements, I was merely pointing out that even when pointing out the love of the sport aspect and the interest of fencing it is better to think twice when you are saying something to a widely published magazine.

I don't think his quote will have too much on a negative aspect of fencing, but I guess I was just trying to point out a PR work that could have been better done.

[jeff]

Next time I see Eric I'll tease him over it. "Eric, you're supposed to say that fencing makes you rich and irresistable to man, woman and beast" Oh, I'd better be careful, this could drift over the religious thread in the water cooler!

Seriously, I agree this won't hurt - and the article overall (IMHO) will help.

[edew]

Originally posted by Marcos
From what little I know, Rosenberg has built a pretty awesome club in NYC..you're right tho, the quote can be construed negatively in what is otherwise a good article

Whoever gave the story to the paper deserves some credit

You might be knowing just very little. NYFC had been and has always been a formidable club, before and during Eric Rosenberg's presence. I believe that Rita Finkel is currently the club president. She is the mother of two fencers who train at the FC.

I agree with Veeco about what Eric Rosenberg said. His comment, while intending to be self-deprecating, was completely unnecessary. Where's Ari Fleischer when you need him?

"Fencing is a wonderful sport."

"Our fencers are doing fine, competitively, socially, and financially. They're doing fine. Next question...Helen?"

[Dragonfly]

A nice article. The pressure of being interviewed can lead to mis-statments. Being interviewed twice on camera for local news, I found it very difficult to keep serious, friendly and accurate. Then they edit the stupid thing to the point where the whole thing is sort of meaningless anyway.

The trauma of having womens foil removed from the competition is enough to drive the entire sport into a tailspin. I simply cannot believe they would take an entire team out to 'make room for women's saber' and at the same time all of the mens teams are able to compete. There's absolutely no rationale for it, beyond the simple fact that there are just many detractors who can only seem to function if something is penalized. [don't quote me!]