If I had any slim hope of changing May NAC when I started reaching out to USFA 10 days ago, before Apr NAC, that hope certainly disappeared quickly with each day passing by.
I am still glad I tried; at least they started thinking about how to make June NAC better for everybody. Had we started next week, the answer is probably another quick no.
I still encourage everybody to reach out to USFA with ideas, suggestions; they are probably too swamped with all the re-scheduling, venue, healthcare protocol etc
Not to be a bubble burster, but USA Fencing isn’t trying to make it better for everybody. They are looking to make it better for USA Fencing, which likely means maximizing revenue where possible without to much change. Right now they are going to cater to the elite level fencers and make sure they have the opportunities to compete. The rest is going to be a crap shoot as to who gets in. I hope I’m wrong but I don’t see them doing anything radical for June (like adding extra days or splitting venues).
Doesn’t maximizing revenue = adding more fencers? After all, this discussion is coming up because Virginia is loosening restrictions due to falling case numbers, such that allowed numbers are going from 30% of maximum capacity to 50%. This means more people allowed in the same space, thus no need for extra days or splitting venues.
I agree on the adding more fencers, I;m sure they will increase numbers if allowed. Where are you located? Lots of fencing going on here in NJ, last weekend we had the NJ state HS championships
Saw that there are starting to be some good regional events in NJ and PA. Along with filled NACs, hopefully shows things are getting back to normal.
Any update on Brown’s women’s squad since the demotion to club and subsequent reinstatement to varsity.
Are they in it for the long haul or is their status still in jeopardy? Is the coach actively recruiting? Does the coach have a customary relationship with admissions? Pre-reads, Likely Letters etc…
Our youngest daughter is a fencer.
Well according to the Supreme Court of Rhode Island they are secure for at least the next 4 years.
Any indication on the number of seniors returning next year for the extra year of eligibility?
Do you think it’s a fait accompli that Brown’s team will be demoted again in 2024?
I don’t think you will see Brown do anything in the short term on their own. But I’m not sure about the stability of the current collegiate fencing structure. If you were in a growth mode, you would see universities with strong club teams making the move up to Div 1-3. Instead we have seen teams sliding down from Varsity to Club status.
Hi all. If you are a USFA fencing member (many parents have supporting memberships), you will know that board elections are happening. I have heard some information about one of the candidates that is unsettling (just to be clear, not about safe sports or anything like that) but I don’t want to get off track from the purpose of this site so if you are interested in hearing more, please PM me off line (don’t reply to the thread).
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Stanford just reversed their decision to drop the varsity squads.
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Great news for Collegiate Fencing. Hopefully it brings a blueprint for other programs to follow, to make them more self sustainable.
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Does anyone know how they are organizing weapons check during June NAC? Are there specific days/ times that you need to go depending on weapon, etc?
Looking at the NCAA Championship selection I saw one fencer, the most two, who would qualify for WE if all the schools competed this year. I’m not sure it was necessary to have Championships this year.
A few responses to the watered down championships post:
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Why should the fencers who competed this year be penalized because of those who didn’t? The Ivy League chose to sit out the season. OSU chose to self impose a post-season ban in fencing. I feel sorry for those fencers who had no season in 2021 - especially those who will not be able to take advantage of their extra year of eligibility. However this season was a far cry from normal for those who did compete.
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The collegiate fencers I know, and especially the seniors, would gladly trade an “easier” route to the NCAAs to get back a normal year of their college life (and to allow the 2020 seniors to have had a graduation ceremony).
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While I don’t disagree that some of the qualifying fencers would not have made it had every team been available for post-season play, I do think your numbers of only 1 or 2 are quite a bit off.
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@saharafrog Well, there was a pretty good reason for the Ivy’s to cancel the season IMO. I don’t see canceling the Championships as penalizing anyone if the overwhelming majority of the competitors wouldn’t have qualified under normal circumstances. Just my opinion. I respect yours though. In regards to the 1 or 2 from WE who would’ve qualified, I was honestly being generous when I said 2. I don’t know enough about the other weapons. But, going through that list I see one who could’ve possibly qualified if the normal fencers competed this year.
Not sure how you’re seeing only 1, maybe 2 (with claims of 2 being generous) WE names who might have qualified in a “normal” year. Looking no further than at the names of who qualified in 2021 and comparing them to 2020 and 2019, I find 5 fencers who were selected both in 2021 and in one of those previous years. (Yes, I know there were no 2020 championships, but the NCAA did announce their selections for the tournament)
I’m sure with a little more digging and analysis (maybe looking at top regional finishers in 2020 who just missed the cut, looking at school trends of how many fencers they traditionally send, adjusting for how many NCAA championship debuts there are each year, adjusting for OSU’s post-season ban) I could come up with 2 to 3 times as many fencers who would be worthy of qualification.
Was the field watered down? Yes, of course it was. But I find your claim that “the overwhelming majority of the competitors wouldn’t have qualified under normal circumstances” to be a bit dubious.
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I don’t want to say any names here. I didn’t see what you saw, it could be my mistake. Perhaps I didn’t see the entire list. I would love to know names you saw who qualified in the past. Perhaps you can PM me.