Three musketeers for national duels

NELSON Mandela Bay is taking the South African Senior Fencing Championships by storm in the form of a team consisting of three women representing the windy city this weekend in Cape Town.

Varla King, Jane Kirk and Caroline Dix-Peek are all heading to the nationals that will be held on June 27 and 28 and the three could not be more thrilled at the prospect of possibly becoming national champions at the upcoming tournament.

King, who is a reptile curator at Bayworld, only started fencing three years ago.

She said competing on the national circuit motivated her to work harder and achieve more in the sport.

“I started fencing when the PE club first opened nearly three years ago because I have always wanted to try the sport and the appeal was the idea of that I would get to play with swords,” King said.

Kirk is a Theodor Herzl matriculant, making her the youngest member of the team at 18 years old.

She enthusiastically added that in the world of fencing, people sort out their conflicts by duelling with each other.

“There aren’t any politics or fighting involved and even if there’s an issue between two people, there is nothing better than a duel to sort it out,” Kirk said.

The three women, who are based at Excelsior Fencing Club, are the gold, silver and bronze Eastern Cape 2015 fencing champions. Dix-Peek credits the sport for her level of confidence.

“I have never been a sporty person but I found that once I tried fencing, I couldn’t leave.

“The atmosphere is inviting and allows for competitive or social fencers alike without any discrimination,” Dix-Peek said.

Eastern Cape Women’s épée coach at Excelsior Jessica Raper said fencing was “a technical sport that teaches people mental fitness.

“We have only been in the sport for two and a half years and it would be amazing if we could place on the national ranks. In any case, I’m just very happy with the women’s progress,” Raper said.

The trio will jet off to Cape Town together with two other teams consisting of three men each in the hopes of coming back to the Bay as national champions and being the first all-female team to win gold at national level.

ý For more information on fencing, contact Jessica Raper at coach.jessicaraper@gmail.com or visit Fencing Nelson Mandela Bay on Facebook.