LA JOLLA, Calif. – UC San Diego fencing returns to the strips this Saturday and Sunday to host the 28th annual BladeRunner Tournament on Sep. 14 and 15 in Liontree Arena.
 
BladeRunner is a critical tournament for many high-level fencers in the area as it allows them to earn regional points in order to compete in national tournaments as part of the Regional Open Circuit (ROC).
 
Over 800 fencers are slated to take to the strips throughout the two days. All six weapons (men's/women's epee, men's/women's foil, men's/women's saber) will be contested at both the Division I and Junior levels.

Tritons' head coach Juan Ignacio Calderon is set to begin his seventh season leading UC San Diego, as the team features nine new additions to go along with 24 returning scholar-athletes. 

Competing in last year's BladeRunner Tournament, UC San Diego enjoyed numerous stand out performances, as they earned a total of 11 top eight finishes and six Triton scholar-athletes reached the podium. A pair of first year Tritons excelled in 2023 as both Neta Korol and Roger Wu earned second place finishes in the women's foil and men's saber respectively. 

Action begins at 8 a.m. PT each day. Fans can follow results from every duel live at FencingTimeLive.com.
 
THE SCHEDULE (all times Pacific and subject to change)
Saturday, September 14
8 a.m. – Division 1-A Men's Epee
8 a.m. - Division 1-A Women's Foil
9 a.m. - Division 1-A Women's Saber
2 p.m. - Junior Men's Foil
2 p.m. - Junior Men's Saber
2 p.m. – Division 1-A Women's Epee

Sunday, September 15
8 a.m. - Junior Men's Epee
8 a.m. - Division 1-A Men's Foil
8:30 a.m. - Junior Women's Saber
2 p.m. – Division 1-A Men's Saber
2 p.m. - Junior Women's Epee
2 p.m. - Junior Women's Foil
 

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by UC San Diego Fencing (@ucsdfencing)

THE WEAPONS
• Epee
Epee is the heaviest of the weapons. The target to score points is the entire body. It is the only weapon where points can be awarded to both sides if there is a double touch.
• Foil
Foil is the lightest of the three weapons and enacts a rule called right-of-way. Whoever is coming forward with the attack gets the point unless their opponent takes the right-of-way from them by parrying (deflecting/blocking) their blade. The target area for scoring points is the chest and the torso, marked by a light metallic vest called a lamé. 
• Sabre
Sabre also employs the right-of-way rule, but sabreurs and sabreuses slash instead of stab. Sabre touches happen so quickly that the referees won't even start the three-minute clock used to time the bout.

FENCING GLOSSARY
• Advance: Take a step towards one's opponent.
• Attack: Movement or series of movements by which a fencer tries to score a point. In foil and saber, the fencer who attacks first acquires the "right-of-way." In order to execute an attack properly (i.e. one that the referee will acknowledge), the fencer's hand must be clearly extending towards their opponent's valid target in a threatening manner.
• Beat: Sharp tap on the opponent's blade to initiate an attack or provoke a reaction.
• En Garde: Position taken before fencing commences.
• Feint: A false attack intended to get a defensive reaction from the opposing fencer, thus creating the opportunity for a genuine attack ("feint-disengage attack").
• Fleche: Explosive, running attack (foil and epee only).
• Flunge: Action unique to sabre – a combination of a lunge and a fleche. Evolved recently after the FIE modified sabre rules in 1992 to prohibit running attacks.
• Lunge: Most common attacking technique, in which the fencer launches themselves at their opponent by pushing off from the back leg (which generally remains stationary).
• Parry: Defensive action in which a fencer blocks his opponent's blade.
• Point-in-Line: Action in which the fencer, who is generally out of attacking range, points their weapon at their opponent with their arm fully extended. A fencer who establishes a point in line has right-of-way, and their opponent cannot attack until they remove the blade from line by executing a beat.
• Recover: The return to the en guarde position after lunging.
• Riposte: Defender's offensive action immediately after parrying their opponent's attack.
• Second Intention: A tactic in which a fencer executes a convincing, yet false, action in hopes of drawing a true, committed reaction from their opponent.
• Stop Hit, Stop Cut (sabre only): A counter-action made at the moment of an opponent's hesitation, feint, or poorly executed attack. To be awarded the point, the fencer attempting to stop hit must clearly catch their opponent's tempo. Hence, if their Stop Hit is not "in time," the referee may award the touch to their attacker.
• Strip: Fencing area, 14 meters long by 2 meters wide.
• Touch: Score a point.

BE SOCIAL
The UC San Diego Fencing Team can be found on Facebook, Instagram (@ucsdfencing), and Twitter (@ucsdfencing). 
 
About UC San Diego Athletics
After two decades as one of the most successful programs in NCAA Division II, the UC San Diego intercollegiate athletics program began a new era in 2020 as a member of the Big West Conference in NCAA Division I. The 23-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions II and III and helped guide 1,400 scholar-athletes to All-America honors. A total of 83 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 38 have earned prestigious NCAA Post Graduate Scholarships. UC San Diego scholar-athletes exemplify the academic ideals of one of the world's preeminent institutions, graduating at an average rate of 91 percent, one of the highest rates among institutions at all divisions.