What do points mean...?

I was watching the Olympics the other day and happened to drift across the Women's Taekwondo. It got me thinking, you'll be no doubt not surprised to hear. I used to do Taekwondo many years ago (about 20 years ago actually) so whilst not totally qualified to comment I do have some knowledge of the discipline. It is Korean in origin and is primarily a kicking art (I remember my instructor telling us not to use our hands until our feet started bleeding). It contains some very powerful kicks and sweeps but also does include punches and hand strikes together with defensive blocks. Well, it used to. Judging by what I saw on the TV it is now simply a matter of swinging your leg and appealing to the judges after every attempt. I don't wish to denigrate the skills of the young ladies involved as they are obviously at the peak of the game as it is played now and are applying the correct style and technique for the times they are in but that to an extent is my point; it was just a game. It wasn't a martial art in any sense of the word and this arguably can be attributed to the introduction of points.
Now at this point you're thinking "Uh-oh here goes Dave off on his old fashioned hobby horse again.." but consider the argument. If points were being scored on style, or technique, would the two competitors constantly be shrieking at the judges? Would they be flailing desperately at their opponent in an attempt to hit whatever the cost? During the bouts I watched there were two strikes that I would consider stylish and well timed, the others were quite simply lucky hits as their opponent left an opening. If you throw enough eggs at a barn some will stick after all.
As a coach this continual 'sportifying' of a discipline causes problems; students (particularly young ones) want to win and if that means sacrificing some boring old technique then so be it. As a sport it also causes problems. In the Taekwondo at this event one of the competitors kicked the referee because he got disqualified for a rule infringement. The bronze medallist in the wrestling threw his medal down and stormed off the podium because he didn't win due to a penalty. How many times do you see tantrums at a fencing match due to points not being given? It seems more regular now to me.
It's a difficult one to call as any sport needs a winner and without that sporting element there probably wouldn't be that many participants. However, it must be remembered that although points may well mean prizes, they shouldn't mean forgetting the roots of form, technique and discipline.

Subtleties

Last week my Coach gave a group lesson on the engagement of sixte as a preparation to an attack. It's one of those simple appearing techniques that is actually harder than it looks. The fencer executes a clockwise circular engagement of the other person's blade. What could be simpler you cry? Well hold on there Dear Reader, there's a lot more to it than that. Firstly, you have to make the contact with your forte against the opponent's foible (your strength against their weakness) otherwise your blade will probably slip off theirs and leave you vulnerable to attack yourself. Secondly, this movement needs to be coordinated with your footwork, the engagement being completed as the back foot lands, otherwise your opponent can move away. Finally, the engagement must be done with exactly the right amount of pressure. This is key as without the right approach here you will not be able to sense how your opponent is holding their blade. Too heavy and you won't know; too light and you won't know either.
The whole thing about an engagement is that it is primarily a reconnaisance prior to an attack. If you want to go bashing away at your opponent's blade then use a beat to clear the blade out of the way. An engagement is a completely different beast though and calls for a lot more subtlety and artistry. That's one of the great things about fencing; it initially appears very straight forward but if you take the time to think about it the subtleties appear.....

The Sound of No Coach Coaching

I shan't be off to the salle tonight for various reasons; this always stresses me out slightly as I feel that I kind of have a duty to be there. I suppose this is pretty illogical really but that's the way I am. I always find myself wondering what will happen if I don't turn up; will there be chaos and disaster? I suspect that in reality the salle will trip along quite nicely and everyone will have a pleasant evening. It's possible that the vacuum will provide another coach an opportunity to have a go... maybe one of my students will fill the breach? (Or maybe not!) I hope that it will give someone the opportunity to take the initiative. That's the best option for me; if my students just get on with it and take their destiny into their own hands for an evening, demonstrating some autonomy and maturity. Perhaps they will flock to this blog to see what might be my latest post for clues (If so, the secret phrase for proof of your research next week is "The badger flies south for the winter..." So maybe having an evening without a coach is not a bad thing; chances are that I'll never know!

A catalogue of disasters...

Last night at the Salle I was the victim of three terrible errors.
Error One actually occurred last week when I left my gear in my bag after a particularly strenuous session of fencing. The results of this error were discovered when I opened my bag last night only to discover an aroma something akin to a dead badger wafting from it's depths.
Error Two was my half hearted attempt to mask this aroma with a liberal spraying of Lynk deodorant. Rather than making me irresistible to the Ladies as suggested by their adverts it simply served to make me smell like a dead badger wearing Lynx.
Error Three was discovered when I put my mask on for the first time; Don't leave smelly plastrons stuffed up in your mask for a week.
All of these errrors were compounded by the fact that my Coach then wanted to teach a lesson which involved me having to assume the position of prime. i.e. right arm cocked back and over my head. Lovely.
One thing this taught me is that being prepared also extends to what happens after you fence!

PS I know this wasn't the most serious of posts but the last one was pretty heavy so I thought I'd lighten the mood!

For want of a nail....

There is an old rhyme that goes "For want of a nail the shoe was lost; for want of a shoe the horse was lost; for want of a horse the rider was lost; for want of a rider the battle was lost; for want of a battle the kingdom was lost; and all for the want of a nail".
I guess this has been on my mind lately for a number of reasons; firstly in my fencing at the moment I feel I am not quite operating the way I should. Over the last few weeks there have been a number of occasions where for want of a fraction of an inch or an iota of more control I would have scored a valid hit. In some instances this might have meant me getting more points and maybe (just maybe) winning the match. That's the thing with sport; it's a constant succession of moments that accumulate into a result, sometimes quickly and sometimes gradually over time. I can't think of any sports where this doesn't apply in some way.
The second reason this is preying on my mind is that the Olympics are about to start in Beijing. This obviously doesn't directly relate to me but the thing is I have a very good friend who came within a whisker of qualifying to go as part of the fencing team but missed out by one result. To be honest I'm finding it difficult to deal with all the coverage and hoo-ha surrounding the team as I keep thinking that she should be there. But for want of a nail.... It's amazing to think that the smallest difference can create significant changes in the course of people's lives. Of course, this doesn't just apply to sport but life in general. This got me to thinking about what we get out of such experiences in our lives? And I don't think I have an answer. What I can say is that I think the impact of something depends on what we attach to it. Do I sit and dwell on all the things I could/should have done differently in that match? At work? That time ten years ago in the pub? That time twenty years ago at college? Etc etc etc. Those who know me will point out that I can be a bit of a dweller but I've got better at this over the years. What I have learnt is that there are degrees of attachment. There are the mechanics of the moment i.e. I should have made that move, should have gone there, should have hit that point etc; then there is the emotional luggage "it would have been so much better if..", "I would have been much happier if..." etc etc. This is the stuff that is pointless to go through. That moment has gone and it ain't coming back pilgrim. You can learn from it but you can never have it again. Take a resolution to do it differently next time but don't ponder over something that you can't change. Take pride in your efforts because by trying to attain something and learning from the experience you demonstrate your true character. I'm sure my friend will deal with her disappointment and return a stronger person and it's obvious that I need to take my own advice on this but I thought I'd share it!