Michael Desfossés Memorial Cup

Equipment:

Foam Sabre 

• Foam Sabres will be provided by the Kings historical Fencing
• A 350 N Fencing mask or greater.
• Groin protection (optional for women but recommended)

Steel Sabre and Broadsword

• All steel sabres and broadswords are to be presented at check in.
• All steel sabres and broadswords are to be from reputable makers.
• All steel sabres and broadswords are to be in good repair, free of protrusions and relatively clean.
• All steel sabres and broadswords  are to be affixed with a safety tip.
• All steel sabres and broadswords are to have a blade length of no more than 36 inches.
• All steel sabres are to be between 750 grams and 950 grams. Steel Broadswords will have a weight between 850 and 1300 grams.
• The tournament director reserves the right to refuse a steel sabre or broadsword that they deem unsafe due to unexpected factors not listed, for instance a broadsword with too heavy a blade.
• A 350 N Fencing mask or greater.
• Back of the head protection
• A medium glove – Red Dragon, Thokk, Lacrosse, etc.- Fingertip protectors are recommended on the pinkie and thumb but not required. We will be accepting padded kevlar gloves with full cup sabres and broadswords, provided that the fencer understands and accepts the risk.
• A throat protector or gorget.
• Elbow guards.
• Knee and Shin guards.
• Groin protection (optional for women but recommended)
• A HEMA specific jacket or gambeson.
• A forearm protector on the sword arm is required.
• A fencer may wear a mitt glove (SPES, Superior Fencing, Sparring Gloves, etc.)  if they have an open guard and a heavy glove is recommended for the off hand.
• Groin protection (optional for women but recommended)
• Hard chest protection
• A HEMA specific jacket or gambeson with a 350N patch or higher from a  reputable producer.
• HEMA specific pants or skirts, with a 350 N patch or higher from a reputable producer are recommended.

The Ring:

The ring will be circular and 20 feet in diameter. There will be a red corner and a blue corner which each fencer will retire to between exchanges.

Staff:

The majority of the staff will be provided by KHF, but we are happy to use side judges or head judges from other clubs provided they have been trained by their club runner on the ruleset.

In pools each ring will have one side judge and a head judge.

In eliminations each ring will have one side judge and a head judge.

Each judge is responsible for watching their side of the ring.

The tournament director’s role is organizing all staff, making decisions for ‘buys’ in the event of unforeseen circumstances, ensuring the tournament proceeds in a timely fashion and making rulings in any disputes that are brought to them

All Red cards (automatic losses)  or disqualifications (removal from the tournament) disciplinary actions brought by the head judge must be brought to the director for approval before it is carried out.

All disputes are to be brought to the head judge first, and in the event of that dispute being unresolved or in extreme cases not satisfactorily resolved, the director will make a ruling.

Each head judge is responsible for all challenges, awarding of points, or disciplinary actions and can only be overruled by the tournament director in extreme, unforeseen circumstances, or in the event where they are unable to, or uncomfortable with, making a decision. The exception being an automatic loss or disqualification disciplinary action. Each head judge will respect and trust the observations made by each side judge, unless they have clear reason not to.

Sabre and Broadsword Scoring:

Steel Sabre and broadsword will not use weighted scoring.

All touches will require sufficient speed, rotation and proper edge alignment to be judged as quality actions and award a point. This criteria is subjective to the fencers in the ring, as well as the perception of both the side judges or head judge.

All thrusts in Steel Sabre, Longsword, Single Rapier and Women’s Steel Sabre must result in clearly visible blade flex to be scored.

Slices are scoring actions but must target the wrists/forearms or neck.

In the event of a double, no points will be awarded to either fencer.

Afterblows will not affect the outcome of the exchange. An afterblow will be considered any hit that requires preparation after the initial hit. We use a very narrow afterblow timing window. In the event of a late afterblow, the original point will stand.

An in time afterblow will count as a double.

All scoring actions must be performed on targets that are not prohibited. The entire body minus the prohibited areas are the target. Prohibited targes are listed under Prohibited Actions and Targets.

All scoring actions must take place after the head Judge calls ‘Fence’ and before the Head Judge calls ‘Hold’.

A fencer can score by exhibiting control and restraint when not striking a prohibited target – an example – A successfully controls B’s sword arm with a grab above the elbow. B turns their head and faces the ground, exposing the back of their head, fencer A holds in stick over the exposed area, displaying they could clearly strike it.

No points will be awarded strictly for grabbing an opponent’s sword arm or sword, but will be awarded for a disarm.

A fencer can score by forcing both of their opponent’s feet out of the ring. We are specifically looking at fencers who run from exchanges here, and will not be allowing a sumo style push out of the ring.

Prohibited Actions and Targets:

All prohibited actions can result in a warning, a point reduction, throwing out an exchange, awarding the opponent the point, an automatic loss or even ejection from the tournament. All possibilities are available to the Head Judge or the Director and are to be used at their discretion in proportion to the severity of the infraction.

• Grappling to the take down is prohibited.
• Repeated charging or rushing is prohibited. Fencing aggressively can be valid, but we are looking for disregard for the opponent’s safety, repeated disregard for your own defence as you close and repeated  body-to-body contact as a tactic to unbalance or bully an opponent.
• Grappling to a joint lock is prohibited.
• Pommel strikes are prohibited.
• Striking with the hands, elbows, head, knees, feet, etc are prohibited.
• Striking with the hilt or crossguard is prohibited.
• Striking the groin is prohibited.
• Striking to the back of the head or spine is prohibited.
• Striking the ankle and feet is prohibited.
• Striking after hold is called is prohibited.
• Excessive celebration is prohibited.
• No points will be awarded if a third point of the attacker’s body touches the ground before or during the scoring of the prospective point, The exception is the offhand in the executing of historical technique.
• Excessive force is subjective and prohibited. With the divisions being mixed weight classes and skill levels, there is an expectation of restraint when one fencer clearly outclasses another. There is a clear expectation of regard for your opponent’s safety.
• A fencer, corner person or coach can challenge a point, but must abide by the ruling of the Head Judge or Director.
• Each fencer will have three challenges to be shared among all of their pool matches and 1 in each eliminations or finals match.
• Any discussions with the Head Judge or Director are to be done in a constructive, non-confrontational manner.
• All fencers, coaches or entourage must conduct themselves in an honourable, respectful way.

Penalties

The Head Judges and Director are empowered to use their own judgment when encountering dishonourable or inappropriate actions not covered in the above list. We will be booking for any gamesmanship or dishonorable conduct not covered in the above rules We expect all fencers to enjoy themselves, fence clean and be respectful.

Egregious, excessive or repeated disregard for the rules, most particularly for the safety of the opponent will result in a Red or Black card.

Yellow cards and warnings can result in re-doing the exchange, point reductions to the perpetrator, or points awarded to the aggrieved party. These will mostly be reserved for actions that are relatively minor, or an early infraction. Repeated offences of the same offence could lead to a Red or Black card.

Bout Structure

The tournament will comprise three rounds: pools, eliminations and finals.

Some numbers and ladder structure might be subject to last minute changes in order to reflect the number of fencers we have who are ready and able to fence at any given time. For instance if a fencer drops out between pools and eliminations the fencer without a partner will score an automatic win.

Wheel of Foam

Weapons will be provided and assigned based on a spin of the wheel.

Required Equipment

• Mask
• Chest protector encouraged
• Groin protection (optional for females)