FenCen

Information about the Fencing Central region.

Fencing Central 2022 Notices

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The Fencing Central Committee is excited to welcome you all to the 2022 season! This is set to be a very exciting year for fencing in New Zealand, with the new COVID-19 Protection Framework helping us to run events safely, including a number of new and returning national tournaments and training camps, and the 2022 Commonwealth Fencing Championships in London.

As we look forward to the new season, there are a number of notices we would like to share with you.

Fencing Central Annual General Meeting

The 2022 AGM has been scheduled for Sunday 27th February 2022, in collaboration with the Trefoil Competition hosted by VUWSC. Details of timing, venue, and an agenda will be released prior to the scheduled date of the AGM.

If you would like to make a nomination for an Officer for the Management Committee, a notice of motion, or item of general business, you may submit these using the form below, or by emailing secretary@fencingcentral.org.nz.

2022 AGM Nomination Form

National Affiliations

The Fencing Central Committee encourages all fencers, coaches, officials, and other members of the fencing community to register as a Fencing New Zealand Member affiliated with Fencing Central for the 2022 season. Membership for the 2021 season expires on 31st December 2021.

Becoming an affiliated member of Fencing New Zealand entitles you to participate in competitions, training camps, AGMs, and other events. This annual contribution is critical to the success of fencing in New Zealand. The affiliation fee helps fund the structure and network that connects clubs, regions, national, and international fencing organisations. Fencing New Zealand shares a percentage of the annual affiliation fees with Fencing Central to provide funding to support the region.

Affiliation Information

2022 Event Calendar

The preliminary Fencing Central event calendar has been published on our website. This includes Fencing Central and National events that may be of interest to our fencers. For full details, visit the calendar below:

Event Calendar

COVID-19 Safety

As with previous years, maintaining the health and well-being of our community remains a top priority for the committee going into 2022. We encourage all fencers to ensure that they are fully vaccinated in line with Government recommendations and scan-in at all fencing training and events to ensure effective contact tracing is possible.

If you are feeling unwell, showing any symptoms of COVID-19, have visited a location of interest, or have been a close contact of a positive case, we ask that you please do not attend any fencing events until you have returned a negative COVID-19 test, and completed any Government mandated isolation.

NZ COVID-19 Site

Fencing Central Awards 2021

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The fencing year is rapidly drawing to a close and the Fencing Central team is planning a fun and sociable event to celebrate the year’s successes.

The Awards Event will be in the form of a lunch at 1pm followed by an awards ceremony on Saturday, 11 December 2021 at the Butcher and Brewer, 175 Jackson Street, Petone, Lower Hutt 5012.

Due to the current restrictions in place, we need to get numbers for this event as soon as possible.

Please RSVP via the form below by Saturday, 27 November 2021.

RSVP now

Fencing Central 2021 Award Nominations

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At the end of every year, we Fencing Central comes together to celebrate success both on and off the piste at the Fencing Central Annual Award Evening.

While some awards are determined by competition results, there is also several awards that you can nominate members of the Fencing Central community for to acknowledge their contributions to the sport.

  • You can make nominations for some or all award categories.
  • For all nominations, please briefly state your reason for the nomination.
  • Nominations close on Sunday 21st November.
  • Please only complete this form once.

The 2021 Fencing Central Award Evening will be held on Sunday 5th December. Full details, including venue and registration form will be released as these become available.

Nominations Form

En Garde!

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Swords flashing in the spotlights, brilliant white jackets, a duel of wits – the sport of Fencing is the ultimate athletic spectacle, and you can be a part of it too!

With its roots in 15th Century military training, Fencing has been in every Olympics since the 1896 Games in Athens. New Zealand’s national federation has been active since 1938, and now has over 1000 active members.

There are nine active fencing clubs in the lower North Island, ranging from Wellington, to New Plymouth and Hawke’s Bay, making up the Fencing Central region. These clubs cater for fencers of all ages and abilities, so there’s nothing stopping you from having a go!

Foil

An elegant weapon, Foil relies on both speed and cunning, with fencers engaging in heated exchanges to score hits on a reduced target area.
Learn more about Foil.

Épée

The ultimate dueling weapon, Épée is a game of tactics and precision, with fencers waiting for the opportune moment to strike, and no room for error.
Learn more about Épée.

Sabre

The fastest of the three weapons, Sabre is the only discipline that lets you use the full edge of the blade to score points against your opponent’s upper body.
Learn more about Sabre.

Why we love Fencing

Ask any fencer what it is they love about Fencing – they’ll all give you a different answer! Once you step onto the piste, there’s nothing else quite like it – everything else falls away as you focus on the white-clad opponent in front of you. A bout brings with it adrenaline, challenge, victory, heartbreak – as you face off against your opponent in a battle of speed, agility, and wits.

Fencing in New Zealand is a tight-knit community, made up of both competitive and social fencers, coaches, referees, and many other volunteers. Fencers and coaches support one another so that we can all strive to improve, and work to fulfil our potential.

Check out this video to get a feel for the excitement and passion we have for our sport!

Want to get involved?

With clubs throughout the lower North Island, and no limitation on age or experience, it’s super easy to get into fencing! Most clubs will loan you all of the equipment you need, and many offer a free trial session, or even a full beginners program.

Check out the map of all local clubs to find one close to you, see our register of all affiliated clubs, or get in touch with us on social media or by email below.

The North Island Championships is being held at Wellington High School on 7th and 8th August. You are more than welcome to come along and spectate at no cost to learn more about Fencing.

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Our People

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Management Committee

The Fencing Central Management Committee is elected at the annual general meeting, typically held in February. The Committee consists of three executive officers, and up to seven general executive members. The responsibilities of the Management Committee are described in the Fencing Central Constitution.

The 2025/2026 Committee and Executives are:

Name Role Contact
[Currently Vacant] President president@fencingcentral.org.nz
Rebecca Witteman Secretary secretary@fencingcentral.org.nz
Robert Clement Treasurer treasurer@fencingcentral.org.nz
Liam James General Committee Member
Nathan McKnight General Committee Member
Nicole Martin General Committee Member
Russell Johnson General Committee Member
Una Johnson General Committee Member
Stephen Peterson General Committee Member

Patron – Roger Hayman

Roger was born, bred and brained in Wellington. He graduated with an LL.B. from Victoria University in 1972 and was admitted to the Bar in 1973. That same year he joined the long-established Wellington legal practice of Luckie Hain (then called Luckie Hain Kennard & Sclater). Roger has fenced for a number of fencing clubs in Wellington including VUWSC, Wellington Swords Club, and Toa Rangatira.

Support Crew

In addition to the Management Committee, Fencing Central is supported by a team of volunteers, who ensure the smooth running of fencing activities in the region.

Name Role Contact
Nicole Martin Head tournament organiser tournaments@fencingcentral.org.nz
Jonathan Couper-Smartt Webmaster webmaster@fencingcentral.org.nz
Liam James Health & safety coordinator
Liam James Referee development
Russell Johnson Coach development
Nathan McKnight Grants Officer

Committee Minutes

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Meetings of the Fencing Central Management Committee are held regularly during the annual fencing season, approximately every six weeks. In addition, the Fencing Central Annual General Meeting is held every February, and Special General Meetings may be convened as required. Below is a record of past minutes from Management Committee Meetings. To request archived meeting minutes not available here, please contact secretary@fencingcentral.org.nz.

202520242023202220212020
AGM MinutesAGM minutesAGM minutesAGM minutesAGM minutesAGM minutes
President’s reportPresident’s reportPresident’s reportPresident’s reportPresident’s reportPresident’s report
Treasurer’s reportTreasurer’s reportTreasurer’s reportTreasurer’s reportTreasurer’s reportTreasurer’s report
JanuaryJanuaryJanuaryJanuaryJanuaryJanuary
FebruaryFebruaryFebruaryFebruaryFebruaryFebruary
MarchMarchMarchMarchMarchMarch
Emergency meeting
AprilAprilAprilAprilAprilApril
MayMayMayMayMayMay
JuneJuneJuneJuneJuneJune
JulyJulyJulyJulyJulyJuly
AugustAugustAugustAugustAugustAugust
Special Meeting
SeptemberSeptemberSeptemberSeptemberSeptemberSeptember
OctoberOctoberOctoberOctoberOctoberOctober
NovemberNovemberNovemberNovemberNovemberNovember
DecemberDecemberDecemberDecemberDecemberDecember

Governance Structure

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Fédération Internationale d’Escrime (FIE)

The FIE was founded in 1913 and is situated in Lausanne, Switzerland. The FIE is a collective governing body with members from around the globe. Along with the executive committee, the are five zone confederations and 157 national federations, and various supporting commissions and councils. The FIE defines the rules for fencing, competition standards, and equipment safety, organise global competitions, including the World Championships, World Cup, and Grand Prix, and facilitate coach and referee training. The FIE may also provide funding or material support to national bodies.
Website: fie.org

Oceania Fencing Confederation

The Oceania Fencing Confederation (OFC) is a not-for-profit organisation responsible for the promotion and development of the sport of fencing in the Oceania Zone, and is affiliated with the FIE. The OFC Zone includes New Zealand, Australia, American Samoa, Guam, Samoa, and Papau New Guinea. The four other Zones are Asia, Europe, Pan-America, and Africa.
Website: oceaniafencing.moonfruit.com

Fencing New Zealand (FeNZ)

FeNZ, in existence since 1938, is a non-profit organisation run by volunteers, and is the national federation representing New Zealand at the OFC and FIE. The executive committee consists of elected officers and the regional presidents. FENZ enforce the rules of the FIE and regulate and develop fencing in New Zealand. As such they provide coach and referee training, select national teams to partake in international competitions, run national competitions, maintain NZ rankings, make available competition equipment and more.
Website: fencing.org.nz

FeNZ Regional Bodies

To support the administration of fencing in New Zealand, the country is divided into four regions; North, Central, Mid-South, and South. Each region has a committee elected by affiliated members of the region, who work closely with the clubs in their region to facilitate and support fencing events, disseminate important information, administer and maintain the fencing assets of the region, fundraise, provide training and development opportunities for coaches, fencers, referees, and well as represent the region’s members at a national level.

Contact Us

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NameContactContact for
Liam Jamesfencingcentralpresident@gmail.comEnquiries for regional President
Daisy Huttonsecretaryfencingcentral@gmail.com!Enquiries for regional Secretary
Robert Clementfencingcentraltreasurer@gmail.comAffiliations
Payments and fees
Jonathan Couper-Smarttwebmaster@spiderfan.orgUpdates to website
Social media queries
Mailing list updates
Event promotion

Social Media

Facebook Community
Official Facebook Page
Official Instagram

Affiliations

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Fencing New Zealand Affiliation

Fencers, coaches, officials and any supporters that wish to be a member of Fencing New Zealand are required pay an annual affiliation fee in addition to their regular club dues.

This annual contribution is critical to the success of fencing in New Zealand. The affiliation fee helps fund the structure and network that connects clubs, regions, national, and international fencing organisations.  Fencing New Zealand shares a percentage of the annual affiliation fees with Fencing Central to provide funding to support the region, including:

  • The maintenance and further development of integrity, authenticity and standards for the sport in NZ;
  • The provision and development of tournament controllers, referees and coaches;
  • The provision of pistes, scoring equipment and other infrastructure for competitions;
  • Maintenance of websites and Facebook pages to connect us and keep us informed;
  • Shiny medals, cups, awards & recognition of achievements;
  • Selection of national teams and participation of our fencers in the sport internationally;
  • Participation in the governance of the sport internationally.

To become an affiliated member of Fencing New Zealand, please visit the FeNZ Memberships Website and select the relevant membership category. Existing members can sign-in using their account to renew their annual membership.

Fencing Central is updating our affiliations period to align with the other FeNZ regions. From 2021, your affiliation will be valid for 1st January to 31st December, rather than 1st April to 31st March.

Fencing Central Membership Categories

Fencing New Zealand currently offers four membership categories for members from the Fencing Central region:

CategoryDescriptionAnnual Fee
Competitive – Over 18For adult members of the Fencing Central region, who intend to enter competitions and attend training camps.$85
Competitive – Under 18 and TertiaryFor under 18 or current tertiary student members of the Fencing Central region, who intend to enter competitions and attend training camps.$65
Associate MemberFor non-competitive fencers and non-fencers including officials and supporters, who want to be a member of Fencing New Zealand.$30
Recreational MemberFor casual fencers who do not want to enter competitions or attend to training camps.Free
Life MemberGranted at discretion of the Fencing Central CommitteeFree

About Fencing Central

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Fencing Central (FenCen) is the regional body of Fencing New Zealand responsible for promoting and supporting fencing for the lower half of the North Island. This includes:

  • Supporting the growth of our sport and the development of our fencers
  • Establishing policies and guidelines to ensure the health and safety of our members
  • Coordinating the annual regional competition and events programme delivered by affiliated clubs
  • Running designated national tournaments held within the region
  • Maintaining assets used to support the delivery of fencing in the region (including, for example, the pistes we fence on, scoring boxes and spools)
  • Supporting the development of coaches, referees, tournament controllers and other tournament officials
  • Promoting and celebrating the success of our members.
  • Representing our members at the national level and supporting the implementation of national initiatives within the region.

The management of FenCen’s activities is undertaken the Fencing Central Management Committee, who are elected by affiliated members at the annual general meeting, and hold the position for a one-year term until the next AGM. The powers and responsibilities of the Committee on behalf of the region are defined in the Fencing Central Constitution. The Management Committee comprises a President, Secretary, and Treasurer, and up to seven General Committee Members. The Committee meets regularly during the annual fencing season with minutes are recorded and made available.

The Committee may set by-laws, administer and maintain the funds of Fencing Central, set annual affiliation fees for regional members, administer and maintain the property of Fencing Central, appoint selectors for Fencing Central, enforce the laws set out in the constitution of Fencing Central, and any other actions allowed in the constitution of Fencing Central.

All fencing clubs within the Fencing Central region are individual entities, independently providing coaching, facilities, and other fencing services, and may be either managed by an elected committee, or privately owned. All clubs within the region are entitled to become affiliated with Fencing Central, and representatives from affiliated clubs are encouraged to stand for election at the Fencing Central AGM to hold Management Committee positions.