Advanced Foil Coaching Session

Written by Craig Harkins
Tuesday, 16 June 2009
This foil lesson is a must see. This video is provided by Rolando Balboa and was taken at the foil coaching clinic in April. Gia Kvaratshelia is the Varisty Foil Coach at the University of Notre Dame. This is a 10 minute warm-up portion of a two hour presentation he made for advanced foil coaches on modern foil techniques and training methods. The lesson starts out with a warm-up that focuses on hitting with extension from every angle within extension distance. The warm-up develops creativity in the fencer since the "problem" being solved is how to hit within the confined space with the current lockout timing. Gia shows how to adapt the warmup with parries and then moves onto the next phase of the lesson. Gia's lesson then moves onto attack in preparation. He takes frequent breaks to explain to the coaches why he is showing the cues and how to perform the openings to the student. The great thing about this lesson is that the timing is so tight. He doesn't let the student (Nick Kubik) get away with being late on any action. The video clip is right at 10 minutes. A great time investment for any competitive foilist.