In an article posted on 4/19/23, USA Fencing shared an update on their recent April board meeting and the decisions that were taken during that board meeting.

Of note to athletes, coaches, and parents was this section about strip coaching: 

In another decision, the board voted to remove a USA Fencing-specific exception to FIE Rule t.109, regarding strip coaching. At FIE tournaments, and at tournaments operated by most other national fencing federations, strip coaching — the act of a coach verbalizing instructions during a bout — is not permitted. 

The USA Fencing Rulebook has made an exception to this rule to allow this kind of strip coaching, but, beginning Aug. 1, 2023, USA Fencing will remove this exception. The change is designed to mitigate the bullying behavior of coaches, parents and spectators against referees, while also restoring civility to fencing. It will also ensure that U.S. athletes are better prepared for the rules they’ll encounter at the international level.

The Board asked the Referees’ Commission to meet to discuss next steps regarding this change, and we’ll announce more details to members before the change becomes official on Aug. 1. 

What stands out is the reason for this change — The change is designed to mitigate the bullying behavior of coaches, parents and spectators against referees, while also restoring civility to fencing. 

 

What is the purpose of strip coaching in competitions? It allows an athlete, who is on their fencing learning journey, to benefit from input from his/her coach during a bout. Strip coaching is a conversation between the coach and the athlete. The referee is in no way involved in the conversation. 

If USA Fencing would like to achieve the goal of mitigating bullying behavior towards referees, what they should implement is a rule or guideline preventing any parent, coach, or spectator from speaking to a referee during a bout. A coach speaking directly to their athlete has nothing to do with a referee, and therefore should not be banned. 

Instead of accomplishing the goal, the proposed change will

• damage the performance of the athlete
• reduce the role of coaches
• remove an important revenue stream from coaches

This change, in fact, will dramatically reduce the role of coaches, many of whom are the most recognized athletes at the very top of the sport of fencing. And sadly, at the same time, this proposed change will do absolutely nothing to address the issue of treatment of referees by non-athletes. 

 

As parents, coaches, and athletes, we urge USA Fencing to reconsider this change. We recommend that USA Fencing implement rules that will actually improve the lives of referees:

• One such change that USA Fencing could consider is only allowing the athletes on the strip to talk to the referee during the bout. This will, in effect, prevent coaches, parents, and spectators from talking to referees during a bout.
• Another change that would improve the lives of referees would be for USA Fencing to pay referees significantly more than they are currently paid. It is our understanding that referees are paid $125 per day, a rate which has not changed in over twenty years.

The referees who serve the community deserve our respect. There is no argument about this.  No tournament could be successful without referees. The same is true for the other constituents — athletes and coaches. 

 

We sincerely hope that USA Fencing thinks about all constituents and assumes the best of all constituents. We are the larger fencing community — every group within it needs to thrive for the whole to thrive. Constituents should not be pitted against each other. Instead, what is good for one group is, in fact, good for all groups. This means that instead of punitive measures, USA Fencing should think about guidelines for building a more collaborative, respectful, inclusive, supportive, and thriving community for all. 

We respectfully urge USA Fencing to reconsider this decision.