We have a small army of sword wielding children at Reading, all keen to improve their skills.

JUNIOR COMPETITION

There is a vast array of competitions available for the younger members of the club. These range from internationals (when you are good enough) to the British Youth Championships to county competitions. All of these providing valuble competitive experience for the aspiring epeeist.

The youth ranking schemes are miriad, complex and ever changing, but as a general rule if you do well in the competitions desctibed below then you (or your off spring will do well)

COMPETITIONS

Elite epee

Leon Paul Junior series

British Youth Championships  

English youth championships

GB cadet epee website

JUNIOR AGE GROUPS

Youth fencing is usually divided up by age bands. The age of a fencer is normally taken as at Jan 1st in the current year, so if a fencer had not reached their 14th birthday on Jan 1st they are considered Under 14 for the whole of that year.

Some schools competitions use a similar system, but based on September 1st, in keeping with the school calendar.

Fencers under 17 are referred to as Cadets (see the cadet's website) and those under 20 are called Juniors. Lots of competitions also use other age-groups, like under 11 or under 13, but these don't have specific names.

PARENTS GUIDES

Two highly informative guides on fencing, aimed at least in part at parents, have are available on the web.

Southern Fencing's guide to competitive fencing

Neil Brown's guide for what to do as a fencers parent