Every Opponent Different, Every Opponent The Same...

Yesterday was a beautiful morning here in Norfolk, the sun was shining, the air was crisp and clear and the trees and countryside had taken on their rich golden autumnal hue. Driving to the salle on mornings like this always puts me in a good mood and my spirits were further lifted by the fencing I saw. It was a ladder day and this afforded me a rare opportunity to just observe my students on the piste. As I sat on the floor in my usual cross legged pose (before the cramp set in – not as young as I was!) I listened to the sounds of the salle. A colleague presiding on the next piste, the buzz of the electric scoring boxes and the clash of blades; all was as it should be…..

As I observed the fencing I found myself registering many different things about each fight and each combatant. One particular point that I noticed was how the style of one of my students changed markedly when he fenced a friend. After this fight I asked him if he felt differently about this particular bout to which he replied “Well, yes..” (I sensed there was a hidden “Well Duuuh” in his reply) as if this was an obvious question. I then explained why I had asked.

In my opinion every opponent should be treated differently and every opponent should be treated the same. This paradoxical statement may sound counter-intuitive but by stating it I mean that every opponent you face will have different strengths and weaknesses, different motivations and distractions and it is this tactical aspect that must be analysed and dealt with in a unique way. However, each opponent should be treated the same in the sense that they are there to be defeated. Every bout should be treated as another day in the office, just another opportunity to overcome another opponent. If a fencer starts to treat an opponent as ‘special’ it is at this point that the emotions begin to outweigh the facts of the matter. Once an opponent has been identified as ‘special’ there is a danger that the desire to beat them will overwhelm technique, thought and control. That is why every opponent is tactically different but treated the same in terms of outcome; they are there to be beaten, do it and move on.