Chance to try fencing
Top international fencing comes to the Hutt Valley this week and anyone interested in the Olympic sport can ‘‘Have a Go’’.
New Zealand Fencing is holding the three-day Oceania under-20 Championships in the Hutt Valley for a first time, at the Walter Nash Centre in Taita from Friday.
More than 120 exponents will be on display, including local college fencers who delivered outstanding results in the Secondary School Championships.
Fencers from Australia, Tahiti, Samoa and New Caledonia will chase titles in the sport’s foil, epee and sabre disciplines, Fencing Central president Sarah Rusholme said.
Fencing Central is promoting the Oceania event with free ’’Have a Go’’ sessions on Saturday and Sunday.
‘‘We are doing this it to grow the sport. If people saw fencing at the Olympics recently and thought it looked interesting than they should come and try it out,’’ Rusholme said.
‘‘We will have top coaches on hand. We won’t be letting people people loose with metal weapons, we’ll use plastic swords which will be wired to register when the target area of an opponent is hit,’’ she said.
Anyone trying the sport is asked to wear long trousers and trainers.
Several Hutt Valley fencers come to the international play after strong performances in the New Zealand Secondary School Fencing Championships at Auckland early in September.
Forty schools took part with the the Hutt Valley represented by 16 fencers from six schools.
This included a five-strong St Bernards side.
Hutt International Boys’ School, with three experienced competitors in Jonathan Carruth, Russell Johnson and Isaac Rusholme-Cobb, returned as the top performing school.