I received an invitation for fencing in Basel. My heart rate increased when I saw the invitation. Do I still know how to fence?
20 years ago I was fencing at the universities in Prague and Zurich. The fencing equipment in Prague was very old. Only once I was fencing with the electric system. The fencing hall in Zurich however was the most brilliant fencing hall one could imagine. It was on the very top in a tower and to warm up we ran around the tower on the balcony with view on the Alps and the lake Zurich.
All this was 20 years ago. I am excited. In Basel it soon turned out that the learnt and hours-long practiced movements are carved-in and I haven’t forgotten them. Much worse it was with weaponry. Hardly anything was left of my former knowledge in this field. Even the currently pretty good fitness could not compensate. I collected one defeat after the other. I was sweating, fighting and it felt exactly the same as 20 years ago. As a gift I carried home a diploma, various bruises on my tights (also just like 20 years ago) and terribly sore muscles in my right leg (I am right hander). Big thanks to the Basel fencing association for the reminiscence of my youth.
The most important lesson which I learnt through fencing dates almost 30 years back. In the first week, when I had registered for the fencing club, a competition took place on Saturday. There were not enough female participants and the coach invited me to come with them. I did not know anything. Not even how to hold the weapon. The coach explained to me in short, what to do with the floret and what part of the body I am allowed to touch in order to get points. His instructions took perhaps five minutes. Then I was standing on the piste, the floret in my hand, with very old equipment and coloured knee stockings (a real colour sin at a fencing competition!!). My opponent was a Polish girl with modern equipment. Elegant and graceful in white, just as fencers are expected to be. We began and I gave my best; we had just started to move when the light went on and signalled a hit. I was disappointed by how easy I was to beat. But since I am a fighting nature, I continued to fight, even more determined. And the light flashed again and again. After five minutes the fight was over. I was very disappointed. Not even one hit I had achieved, I thought. In that moment the coach came to my side and gave me a pat on the back and said that I had done great. I thought, well sure, one has to compliment people in order to motivate them but that was too much. I told him “Please stop, I know that I lost, what’s so great about it??”
He looked at me confused. “What do you mean by lost, girl?” You won 5 to 0. For a complete beginner you could not have done better.”
“What? I won?” I asked puzzled.
“Yes, sure”, he confirmed calmly. “You won 5 to 0. The Polish girl was pretty bad but it is still a great result. And by the way, if the green light flashes, it means you have hit her, I forgot to tell you that before”, he continued and hurried away. I had not even realised that I had won.
No, I am not a hidden fencing genius. The Polish girl was really bad and I had beginner’s luck. All other fights that day I lost. I learnt that one should never underestimate one’s opponents; however one also should not overestimate them, whatever great equipment they have. I stick to that device until today.
Michaela Merz 