Round Rock Hosting Major Fencing Competition Allowing Participants To Compete Nationally

ROUND ROCK, TX — En garde! The city of Round Rock will be the stage for a national gathering of fencing enthusiasts next weekend with bolstered attendance reflecting the growing popularity of the sport.

The Austin Fencers Club will host a USA Fencing national competition — the Austin Challenge Super Youth Circuit (SYC) and Cadet Fencing Tournament — from Dec. 9-11 at the Round Rock Sports Center, 2400 Chisholm Trail. Attendance will be free and open to the public.

“Interest in the sport of fencing has grown significantly since the last Olympics, and we are so honored to host the Austin Challenge again this year in Round Rock,” said Nancy Yawn, director, Round Rock Convention and Visitors Bureau. “We are proud to see so many of our tournaments return year after year after a positive experience hosting an event in Round Rock.”

The tournament will gather youth fencers from all over the U.S. The event has grown by more than 100 participants and upgraded from a regional to a national tournament since last year, officials said. Approximately 400 fencers ages 8 to 16 will compete in 24 events for the second year in a row at the Round Rock Sports Center, according to organizers.
Fencing Master and Austin Fencers Club Head Coach Eric Mallet said working closely with city officials in Round Rock helps secure and plan the event.
“The support and collaboration of the Round Rock CVB (Convention & Visitors Bureau) and Round Rock Sports Center leadership staff was critical to Round Rock winning the bid for this fencing tournament two years in a row,” Mallet said. “The event last year was a huge success and allowed us to grow this into a larger tournament that now also allows fencers to earn national points toward the national championship in the summer.”
Fencers in the December tournament will be categorized by gender, age and weapon, and grouped into pools of six or seven that will fight against each other in five-touch bouts.

The sport of fencing is often described as akin to chess given its tactics of strategy yet an activity requiring physical athleticism as well. Three weapons are featured in chess: the epee, foil and sabre, each requiring distinct formats and techniques, yielding an exciting show for spectators watching the enthralling one-on-one bouts.

Individual competitions in all three weapons will be staged throughout the weekend from 8 a.m. to around 4 p.m. each day of the competition, according to organizers.
The Austin Challenge serves as a qualification path for USA Fencing’s National Championships, the largest fencing tournament in the world, which will take place July 1-10, 2017, in Salt Lake City.
About Austin Fencers Club
The Austin Fencers Club (AFC) was founded in 1992 to help people discover, enjoy and advance in the timeless sport of fencing. Some AFC fencers have achieved top results in national and international competitions; others simply enjoy fencing as a fun, fast-paced way to way to stay fit and exercise both body and mind. AFC trains in central Austin, providing group and private fencing lessons, summer camps and homeschool classes, as well as regularly hosting local and regional competitions for fencers of all ages.

For more information, visit www.austinfencersclub.com.

The competition also enables city officials to show off their state-of-the-art sports complex to visitors. The Round Rock Sports Center is a $14.9 million indoor sports complex with 82,800 square feet of indoor space, including 47,775 square feet of flexible, open, playable space. Featuring six basketball courts and 12 volleyball courts, the sports center offers seating capacity for up to 1,300 spectators and more than 500 parking spots. The venue includes locker rooms, a training room, LED scoreboard screens, and three large multi-purpose rooms that can be subdivided into nine smaller rooms.

The facility is also easily converted into a re-configured space for hosting expos, meetings, keynote speakers, formal banquets, dances, corporate brainstorming retreats and concerts, city officials noted. The venue regularly hosts volleyball, wrestling, baseball, basketball, table tennis, fencing competitions and more. To learn more about the complex, visit www.rrsportscenter.com.

>>> Photo courtesy City of Round Rock