D’Artagnan Competition for Novice Fencers

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Start your competitive fencing journey in your club!
Our intramural D’Artagnan Challenge Series is a great way to start competing for novice fencers ages 8-14

 

The D’Artagnan Challenge Series is a series of in-house competitions held at Olympia designed for children ages 14 & under.
We provide all the fencing gear for beginners, including the weapons!
The top three in each age-group/genre earn medals; the top eight earn ribbons.
This is a SERIES event that rewards points after each session. At the end of the series, a boy and a girl in each category are crowned the season’s WINNERS and receive a customized trophy to take home!

 

The 2026- 27 season is posted on AskFred!
2026: August 30, September 20, October 18, November 8, December 6
2027: January 24, February 21, March 14, April 4, and May 2.

2025-26 (last season) Rolling Point Standings and winners.

D’Artagnan Y8 Series
D’Artagnan Y10 Series
D’Artagnan Y12 Series
D’Artagnan Y14 Series

Congratulations to the 2025-26 Series Winners!
Y14 Men’s: Connor Yong                                Y12 Men’s: Avirat Agarwal
Y14 Women’s: Ava Solgi                                 Y12 Women’s: Francesca Farias

                 Y10 Men’s: Frank Xie                                 Y8 Men’s: Nirvaan Bonthapally
Y10 Women’s: Varvara Popova                               Y8 Women’s: Sarah Li

Next season’s point standings

D’Artagnan Y8 Series
D’Artagnan Y10 Series
D’Artagnan Y12 Series
D’Artagnan Y14 Series

Olympia’s most successful students have started their competitive fencing career with D’Artagnan! Our club was the first in the country to offer these in-house competition series for novice fencers as young as seven years old!

These are some benefits of starting fencing competitions at a young age:

  1. Skill Development: These competitions emphasize learning and practicing fundamental fencing techniques.
  2. Experience Gaining: They offer a platform for beginners to understand the dynamics of a real competition.
  3. Sportsmanship and Camaraderie: Competitions encourage new fencers to interact, share experiences, and develop a sense of community.
  4. Confidence Building: Participation helps novices build confidence and overcome the initial apprehension of competing.
  5.  Practical Experience: Fencers get a firsthand experience of the competitive environment, which is invaluable for their growth in the sport.
  6. Identifying Strengths and Weaknesses: Real-time competition enables fencers and their coaches to pinpoint areas that require improvement.
  7. Motivation and Goal Setting: Success and feedback from these competitions help set future goals and motivate continuous improvement.
  8. Networking and Friendships: Novice competitions are an excellent way for beginners to meet peers who share their interest in fencing.

All events at Olympia are currently “unsanctioned,” meaning no ratings or USFA-related points (see appendix for more information on how classifications work in fencing).

Medals/ribbons are awarded to the top 8 at each event.

 

2026-27 Age Eligibility for Events

Y8: 2017-2020
Y10: 2015-2018
Y12: 2013-2016
Y14: 2011-2014

Registration: via askFred.net
At least an “Access” type USFA membership is required.
Here is how to prepare for this event:

  • We recommend starting in your age bracket, especially if this is your first competition.
  • Register via askfred.net: find the event you plan to attend, click on registration, and create a fencer record (see the steps below).
  • D’Artagnan doesn’t require a USFA competitive membership or a weapon. We will provide the weapons (for our club members only).
    All fencers from other clubs must bring proof of age, their own weapon (two are recommended), and body cords.
  • Please arrive at the door at least fifteen minutes before the event and check in at the office.
  • Our coaches will explain the competition rules.

How to create a profile on askfred.net

For new AskFRED users
  1. Find a tournament. On the AskFRED homepage (askfred.net), click on the Upcoming Tournaments tab to browse for an event you want to register for.
  2. Start registration. After finding your tournament, click the Preregister button next to the event you wish to enter.
  3. Search for an existing record. The site will ask you to enter your last name to check whether you already have a fencer record. If you are a new fencer, you won’t appear on this list.
  4. Create a new record. If your name is not in the dropdown menu, select Create a New Fencer Record.
  5. Enter your information. Fill out the required registration form. The site will ask for your first name, last name, date of birth, gender, and fencing information, including your club, division (New England), and weapon ratings (none for new fencers).
    • USA Fencing members: If you have a USA Fencing membership number, you can enter it, and AskFRED will automatically import your information.
  6. Complete registration. Follow the prompts to finish your tournament registration. This will also save your new fencer record in the AskFRED database.

Things to consider

– Don’t wait until you’re 14 years old to “be ready” for these competitions!
In fact, our Y14 events are marked E & Under and open to all clubs, unlike the other age groups (Y8-12), which are for our club members only.

D’Artagnan is a “practice competition” where fencers and parents will learn the rules of competitive fencing and prepare to compete outside the club.
– For our parents’ convenience, we put together a short description of the USFA regulations to watch during your child’s fencing and help them when needed (see the QR code, or read our short Parents’ Guide to D’Artagnan).
– Olympia staff doesn’t allow coaching during these private events, when two clubmates fence together.
We aim to give everyone equal chances and provide a good experience for all.

Remember that winning isn’t everything! Good sportsmanship, fairness, and building character for life are some of our other goals.
After a season of D’Artagnan, we think your fencer will be ready to take on the sanctioned competitions outside of the club. For more information on how to start, follow this link.
See you on the strip!!

 

A Very Short Guide to Fencing Competition

 

1. Pool Play (Preliminaries)
    • Structure: Fencers are grouped equally into “pools” and fence everyone else once.
    • Bout Goal: First to score 5 touches, or 3 minutes, whichever comes first.
    • Purpose: To establish rankings for the second round (Direct Eliminations) based on winning percentage (indicator), measured by the touches received versus touches scored.
    • Beginner Tip: Even if you lose a pool bout, keep fighting; every point improves your ranking for the DE round. [1, 2, 3, 4]

2. Direct Elimination (DEs)
  • Structure: A single-elimination bracket (similar to March Madness) based on pool rankings—seed #1 vs. last seed, etc.
  • Bout Goal:
      • Y10/Youth: 10 touches (two 3-minute periods).
      • Y12/Y14/Senior: 15 touches (three 3-minute periods).

  • Elimination: Losing one DE bout means you are out of the competition.
  • Promotion: In most sanctioned, beginner/regional tournaments (e.g. RYC, SYC), 100% of participants advance from pools to DEs, meaning no one is eliminated after the first round.