Organiser
Fencing North
Fencing North Inc. Committee Meeting – 03.02.2021
Meeting Opened: 7:00pm (via Zoom)
Present: David Elder (President), Ben Upton (Secretary), Maja Saran (Head of Tournaments), Rhys Greensill (Fund Raising), Matthew Houtman (Auckland High Performance Fencing Club), Judit Fliszar, Sunnie Sun, Peter Butler (Auckland Swords), Hanna Choi.
Apologies: Amanda Hopkins (Treasurer), Matt Stanley (Whangarei Swords), Mary Black (Tuatahi)
Confirmation of the Previous Minutes: Minutes approved.
Matters Arising – No matters arising. Constitution review not yet started - Ben Upton to progress.
Competitions
Take up of entries for Bubble Ensemble slow, but this will take place as planned.
Fencing Time Server Multi pack – Licence is $883. Need cloud space (available at $84 for 2GB or $132 for 10GB) or your own server. The multi pack will be required for larger tournaments. A privately owned licence (from Christchurch) is the other option.
Approved, pending confirmation that the $883 is not an annual licence fee (and rather a one-off payment), FN to purchase a Fencing Time Server Multi pack licence with cloud based server of 2GB capacity to a budget of no more than $1,000. Maja Saran at liberty to seek approval for a higher amount if needed.
Maja has the goal of training up some others to assist and to improve the registration system for teams in particular.
Above Competition Head report approved.
Provided a sufficient travel bubble is open, FN will host Oceanic Juniors and Seniors. Venues to be explored. If Oceanic status is not possible (due to lack of bubble) then this will just be a National Open tournament.
There was discussion around team numbers for team tournaments (especially schools). There is a need for clarity on this in respect of all tournaments. There is a preference for 4 + 1 reserve (total 5), but this may be difficult to accommodate within the Fencing Time programme. It would be possible to run events manually. Maja to explore whether Fencing Time can accommodate teams of 4 + 1 reserve events.
There is a need for some more medals – Gold and Silver in particular. Maja to perform a stock take and advise.
Treasurer’s Report
Amanda Hopkins provided the following summary report ahead of the meeting which was read out to those attending:
So looking positive.
Report accepted as outlined.
Delegated authority for payments was discussed. Agreed that two of President, Secretary or Treasurer can approve Opex payments of up to $6,000. Payments for capital items in excess of $5,000 will require Committee approval.
Fundraising
No new applications since last meeting. Active NZ has two new funds which will be looked at and applications for funding made if appropriate. There is a desire to purchase sectional pistes, although previous grant applications for such have been rejected.
Permanent Venue
Rhys Greensil gave a presentation in relation to Fencing North supporting a dedicated fencing centre in Auckland. This follows a long period of thought about this, but no action. The presentation was tabled.
Agreed that FN should continue to explore this option seriously. The idea needs to be socialised more widely within the FN region via all clubs. Few were in attendance at this meeting. A further Fencing North Committee meeting to involve all clubs is to be called for that purpose. It is to be held on Monday, 22 February 2020. David to formulate the necessary communication. It is important that all clubs that have an interest attend.
Health and Safety
Nothing to report.
FENZ News
Last meeting was in December 2020. $4,000 was provided by FENZ for the FN Camp. A one-day affiliation option to enable tournament participation is being furthered. The FIE position for the competition season was outlined. There is a new FENZ Privacy Policy in place.
Coaching Report
The recent Camp was reported on. It was a success. 70 participants and a good venue. The coaching development programme was held in combination. Hoped that this Camp idea can be repeated.
There is a First Aid course on 13 February. There are still 10 free spaces. A First Aid certificate is a prerequisite for the Fencing Coach qualification.
Confirmation of next meeting date – 22 February 2020 (see above).
Other Business:
No other business.
Meeting Closed: 9:08 pm
IF YOU HAVE NOT REGISTERED FOR THE FENCING NORTH BUBBLE ENSEMBLE - 2021 PLEASE READ THIS
What?: First fencing tournament of the year - All weapons
When?: 14 February 2021.
Where?: Trusts Events Centre
Standard registrations closed on 4 February 2020, but you can still register and we are looking for more entries to make it a successful opening event for the 2021 season.
So please register and tell your club mates and friends to do the same or pass on this email, if they tell you they don't know about it.
All of the details for the tournament and the link for registration can be found here:
https://www.registernow.com.au/secure/Register.aspx?E=42485
To register please ensure you go to the bottom of the first (details) page and then press the green "Continue" button.
Please note that you will need to register with Fencing North, through the FENZ website to be eligible to compete. Go to https://dev.fencing.org.nz/index.php
The FENZ fee is small and the Fencing North fee is $0 ... so no excuses! It is important to support the national fencing organisation.
If you have any questions, please get in touch with Maja on This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
AUCKLAND, New Zealand, Jan. 29, 2021—Fencing New Zealand recently hosted a “Get Back to Fencing Camp” to inspire and reinvigorate training and competition. The aim of the event was to bring the fencing community together after a tough year in 2020 – a comprehensive camp for all weapons – including “coaching the coaches” and referee seminars. The event took place over four days surrounding the weekend of January 23-24, drawing more than 60 fencers and coaches.
Coaches Anna Kamynina, Judit Fliszar, Kai Sang (Daniel) Chan, Kyle MacDonald and Yonggang (Ryan) Yan led the activities, with several other coaches contributing to the success of the camp. Included in the weekend were classroom instruction, coaching and referee training, on-piste practice in the large gymnasium and drills such as point-control target practice and more.
“We are lucky to be free of COVID in the community”, stated Amanda Hopkins, Fencing New Zealand Secretary-General. “While we are conscious of safety during the COVID-19 environment, New Zealand has been COVID-free for several months, so we were able to go ahead with the camp without any restrictions. With borders closed and with no national or international competitions during 2020, we have lost a lot of our youth over 2020, so we felt the time was right, just before the school year starts, to get the community back to fencing. It was great to see fencers and coaches taking the opportunity to participate and enjoy the event.”
Get back to Fencing Camp
Referee training with Anna Kamynina
Epee Classroom time with Coaches Daniel Chan and Kyle Macdonald
Coaching the coaches with Judit Fliszar and Anna Kamynina
Training with Sabre Coach Yonggang Yan - Ryan
Game time - get back to fencing
THE TOURNAMENT CALENDAR FOR 2021 IS NOW UP!
Take a look, put the dates in your diary and start training!
Meeting Opened: 6:50pm
Present:
David Elder
Amanda Hopkins
Katie Logan
Maja Saran
Ryan Yan
Sunnie Sun
Ben Upton
Mary Black
Peter Butler
Henry Mitchell-Hibbert
Ewa Siwacka
Hannah Choi
Neil Young
Vicky Fan
Rhys Greensill
Andi Liu
Apologies/Proxies:
None received.
Confirmation of the Previous Minutes: David moved that the minutes from 2019 be accepted. Maja seconded. Passed with all in favour.
President’s Report: David gave the President’s Report for 2020. Maja seconded David’s report. The report was accepted with all in favour.
The report will circulated to all members via email.
Following the report, David and Maja presented flowers, a card and a trophy to Katie and thanked her for all her work as secretary over the last three years.
Treasurer’s Report: Amanda presented and discussed the financial statements for 2020. The society has not lost money this year, although expenses are still too high compared to income. She acknowledged the excellent work done by Maja in increasing income from competitions and simplifying the accounting through RegisterNow, and Rhys’ very successful fundraising for new equipment.
Ben noted that our constitution requires the accounts to be audited annually, although this seems to have been done rarely if ever and may not be necessary. After discussion, the meeting raised an action point for the executive to look into Fencing North’s accounting processes, with a view to amending that clause.
Peter seconded Amanda’s report. The report was accepted, with one abstention.
Election of Executive Officers: One nomination was received for each executive position:
Neil moved that the nominees be elected as a bloc. Mary seconded. The officers were elected with all in favour.
Setting of Affiliation Fees for 2020: David proposed that the Fencing North affiliation fee remain at $0 for all membership tiers. Maja seconded. The motion was carried with all in favour.
Meeting Closed: 7:38pm
Fencing North
Sunday, 14 February 2021
Trusts Arena Henderson
Thursday, 11 February 2021 at 11:59 PM - (GMT+12:00) Auckland, Wellington
This is a standard Fencing North competiton. The ususal rules apply.
The decision of ranking points and how to apply them (or not) is still pending. Untill FENZ has made a decision, we will run all our events with the ranking rules and procedures.
You need to be affilated to enter this regional tournament.
Please contact us first before entering multiple weapons.
NEW NEW NEW: we will use weights and gauges
Standard Registration ends 23.59 04/FEB/2021 and remains at $25
Late Registration ends 23.59 11/FEB/2021 and remains at $35
Out of town FN members are offered a free standard registration. Late is at $35.
Timetable
Please note this totally depends on numbers. The earlier you register, the earlier we can say.
Epee men start: check in at 8.00-8.15am ( followed by set up and warm up)
followed by Foil women (if we have enough fencers)
Sabre, late morning
Lunchtime Epee woman (if we have enough fencers)
Foil men finish
A more detailed timetable closer to the event.
Please read carefully. Rules are changing, don’t assume: know.
COVID UPDATE
DEPENDING ON THE LEVEL WE ARE IN AT THE TIME OF THE COMPETITION PLEASE CHECK AND CHECK AGAIN AND DOUBLE CHECK AND READ YOUR EMAILS
WE ARE CURRENTLY AT LEVEL1. WE STILL ARE CONTACT TRACING. EVERYBODY COMING TO THIS EVENT MUST REGISTER. IDEALLY THROUGH THIS WEBSITE. THERE WILL BE LIMITED OPTIONS ON THE DAY. REGISTRATION FOR OFFICIALS, COACHES, SPECTATORS AND VOLUNTEERS IS FREE.
ALL INFORMATION COLLECTED HERE WILL BE ONLY USED TO RUN THIS EVENT AND TO COMPLY WITH GOVERNMENT RULES.
BE SAFE. ANY SYMPTOMS OF FEELING SICK: STAY HOME.
This is a competition with no age groups, but a minimum age of 13. For exceptions please contact us directly.
You are entering a mixed tournament, unless we have enough registrations to separate the poules by gender.
We will consider running separate gender poules with a minimum of 6 fencers per poule. Anything less is at the discretion of the DT on the day, as is the poule format, which depends on numbers.
The earlier you sign up the earlier we can say.
No responsibility is taken by Fencing North if the server slows down because you left it until the last minute.
There are no refunds unless we cancel the event. If you wish to apply for a discretional refund please contact the DT who will forward it to Fencing North. Refunds can be given in case of injury or crisis. We have been quite lenient in the past and will continue to do so if it is not abused. Remember we have to plan and pay for your event whether you fence or pull out.
Please check on Friday before the event to see if the timetable has changed. Please let us know if you are late for the event. We can help, if we know.
Every fencer is expected to help with set up and taking it down at the end. We fully understand that that is disruptive for competitors, so we do accept family members and friends helping instead.
Affiliation:
To compete in Fencing North competitions you must be affiliated with Fencing New Zealand as a full competitive member. The membership starts on the 01/JAN/ and lasts a calendar year. Please always sign up with the same name as in your passport, otherwise we cannot accredit ranking points.
You can sign up to Fencing New Zealand here.
Any questions re your FeNZ affiliation should be directed to
FeNZ Secretary General - Amanda Hopkins
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
See T&C's and Minimum Equipment Requirements here
By entering the competition you agree to these terms and conditions.
Breeches must be worn or you will have to sign a waiver. Please make a reasonable effort to borrow breeches. Contact us before the event if you don’t have any or speak to your coach.
Photography:
Photography is allowed at all Fencing North competitions. The competition venue is considered a public space.
Non public spaces with full respect of privacy are the changing rooms and the toilets. No photography is allowed in there.
Please do not change in public spaces. If you do, you waive your right to privacy.
Pictures taken at the event can be published on social media, the internet and printed media by Fencing North, spectators and competitors.
See nzlaw.co.nz for more details.
All the information collected here is for the sole use of running this event and for contract tracing. We may need to contact you with updates.
Thanks for you understanding and thanks for reading this
IMPORTANT:
For the 2021 Fencing North Calendar, all weapons must comply with the FIE rules, and Weights and Gauges will be used at the start of every bout!
This rules can be found on the FIE website https://static.fie.org/uploads/24/123991-book%20m%20ang_july%202020.pdf
Foil: m.6 -13 (especially m.11)
Epee: m.14-2120 (especially m.19)
Sabre: m.21-24
Failure to comply to these rules will result in an automatic yellow card.
If in doubt please check with your coach BEFORE the event to ensure your weapons are compliant, and to avoid a nasty shock on the day.
Fencing North Inc. Committee Meeting – 07.12.2020
Meeting Opened: 7:10pm
Present: David Elder (President), Ben Upton (Secretary), Amanda Hopkins (Treasurer), Maja Saran (Head of Tournaments), Rhys Greensill (Fund Raising), Mary Black (Tuatahi), Matthew Houton (Auckland High Performance Fencing Club), Matt Stanley (late)(Whangarei Swords).
Apologies: Peter Butler
Confirmation of the Previous Minutes: Minutes approved.
Matters Arising
Rhys gave a report on fund raising. Venue opportunities outlined –Sub-committee (Rhys and Peter) to continue the search. Trusts is an adequate tournament and storage venue for now.
Treasurer’s Report
Treasurer presented her report which was approved. There is current balance of $49,000. Of that, $12,000 (from Auckland Council), has to be spent on fabric pistes.
Audit of accounts
The AGM discussion led to agreement not to have an audit. The Constitution needs a general review. On-going audit requirements can be addressed as part of that.
Appointments
Maja Saran appointed Head of Tournaments for 2021.
Rhys Greensill appointed Fund Raising Office for 2021.
Competitions
Bauble Ensemble
This was a success with 72 separate entries with a number of first-time tournament fencers. $2,430 revenue gained. There will be some profit. Could be a good event going forward and a good format (with novice and expert options making it more accessible to more).
Report of Head of Tournaments for 2020
Maja presented her report which was accepted. There are some important learnings in this report and it is attached.
There was discussion with purchase of a Fencing Time Server Multi pack to be progressed. Maja to present a budget for this at the next meeting.
Tournament programme
David outlined the draft 2021 Tournament Programme. This will be finalised following confirmation around venues. Dates suitable for a Whangarei tournament will be discussed further. There are also FENZ supported training camps in January. See below.
Health and Safety
Maja Saran advised of a reported incident (bruise) at the Bauble Ensemble. David (as Health and Safety Officer) will report in to FENZ. No further action required.
FeNZ News
There are to be a series of camps, run by regions, which will be supported by FeNZ financially. The Fencing North camp will take place in late January 2021 for 4 days. There will be a Fencing Central camp in early January. Affiliation fees (to include a one-event fee) is an on-going discussion. The National Tournament Calendar for 2021 is set. How and what team selections there will be for 2021 is under discussion.
Other Business:
Goals for 2021
There was a discussion about setting goals. The next meeting will look at everyone’s ideas.
Committee Meeting dates
Last Monday of each month at 7pm. Zoom as the default option. In person meetings can be held by agreement.
Constitution project
Ben to develop a draft, updated Constitution. This with a view to introducing it at the next AGM.
Massey University sabre tournament
20th December 2020 (Sunday). Massey University Recreation centre from 10am-4pm. The entry fee remains $50 with a free complete Sabre for the first 20 entries. Further details will be released soon on MUAFF Facebook page.
Meeting Closed: 9:00pm
Please see the below from the FIE President on 2021 International Competitions
1. 2021 Junior and Cadet Zonal Championships
The Junior and Cadet Zonal Championships gather a relatively large number of athletes,
many of whom are minors. The current situation linked to COVID-19 (including flight
fluctuations and restrictions, border access, health measures) is making participation in
these Championships very difficult, and some organisers had to renounce.
Therefore, after consulting the Presidents of the Confederations, the FIE Executive
Committee has decided to cancel the 2021 edition of the Junior and Cadet Zonal
Championships.
In the near future, the Executive Committee will review the issue of points and rankings for
juniors.
2. Resuming competitions
Several organisers had to cancel the competitions that were scheduled to be held in
February and others have indicated their willingness to organise competitions. But the
various current restrictions do not allow solutions to be found that are equitable for all
federations. The Executive Committee has therefore decided not to hold competitions
before March 2021.
3. Qualification competitions of March 2021 for the Tokyo Olympic Games
Following on from discussions and work with a number of federations and as some
organisers had to renounce, the Executive Committee has decided to optimize the
organisation of these events and to minimize the travels for federations. As a result, each
weapon (both men and women) will be held in one country and the dates have been slightly
revised.
These competitions are therefore planned as follows:
- Sabre World Cups (men and women): Budapest (HUN), 10-14 March
- Epée World Cups (men and women): Kazan (RUS), 19-23 March
- Foil Grand Prix (men and women): Doha (QAT), 26-28 March
We will monitor the situation very closely as it develops. If necessary, decisions and arrangements
will be made, and you will be immediately informed.
4. FIE outline of risk-mitigation requirements for national fencing federations and
competition organisers in the context of COVID-19 (FORMIR- COVID-19)
The Executive Committee has approved the attached updated FIE outline of risk-mitigation
requirements.
All amendments in the document have been highlighted.
This document is also available on the FIE website: https://fie.org/fie/documents/other-documents,
as well as a brief summary of the outline.
The document’s amendments include provision for a safety plan before and during the competitions, as
well as one PCR test, in the host country of the competition, for all participants.
Alisher Usmanov
President