LENEXA, Kan. — As KSHB 41 News prepares for our exclusive coverage of the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, some members of our staff are trying their hand at the events.
Morning anchors Lindsay Shively and Taylor Hemness thought it might be therapeutic to try fencing.
They visited Kansas City Fencing Center in Lenexa for a private lesson with Executive Director Kelly Williams.
Williams is a four-time U.S. National Individual Champion, and led two teams to U.S. Women's Sabre National titles.
She represented the United States at the 1999 Senior World Championships in Seoul Korea, and was the No. 1 ranked female sabre fencer in the U.S. until retiring from competition to focus on coaching.
Olympic fencers compete with three different weapons: foil, sabre and epee. Each has a different set of rules that fencers must follow.
Lindsay and Taylor chose to learn about the epee, in which fencers must touch their opponent only with the tip of the weapon. The slashing you might picture in sword fights you've seen on film isn't what this weapon is about.
"It's not slashing," Williams said. "It's get the weapon in front of you and follow your weapon."
Lindsay and Taylor quickly learned that their height difference would play a massive role in this style of fencing — she's 5 feet, 1 inch, and he's 6 feet, 3 inches.
"I can't reach you," was a phrase that Lindsay repeated, loudly, during the course of the lesson.
But you shouldn't let your height keep you from Olympic dreams. Williams said there are definitely young fencers out there with real potential.
"It is possible," Williams said about reaching the games. "It is a lot of work, and it's a lifetime adventure. So learning the basics early, lay a good groundwork for being able to expand that as you go."
Click here to see the U.S. men's and women's fencing teams competing in the 2024 Olympic Games.
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