We have a young champion in our midst and we are all very proud of her - here's Ellie's Kate's story so far ....
Last March I was given the opportunity to do a fencing taster course after school. The fencing course lasted 8 weeks and I loved it so much I decided to go to Skipton fencing club to see if I wanted to progress further.
This has led me to where I am today. I have only been doing it a year and so far I have competed in numerous different competitions all over the country and I have won 8 medals ranging from bronze to gold. I recently took gold and became the U12 Yorkshire Epee Champion. This victory has enabled me to qualify for the British Youth Championships which took place in May at the Institute of Sport in Sheffield. This is the biggest competition in Britain and I ranked 13th in Foil and 26th in Epee for the whole of Great Britain – this is my best achievement to date! Over the next few months I am competing in Durham, Scotland, Sheffield and London for the English Youth Championships.
I fence 2 different weapons. They are called Foil and Epee. In foil you have a lighter weapon and a special silver lame (jacket) to wear. Your opponent is only allowed to hit you on the lame to get the point. In Epee the weapon is heavier and you are allowed to hit anywhere on the body including the head. My preferred weapon is Epee.
I train twice a week with the club and also have private tuition with my coach, Jim Lockyer who I admire and listen to as he is a really great coach and gives me lots of encouragement but he also tells me when I need to try harder.
It is really hard to juggle schoolwork, social life and fencing training with competitions on top but this is what I really want to do. I am determined and focused to carry on, hopefully being picked for GBR and competing in International competitions. My dream is to become an Olympian.
Thank you to everyone who supports me in school
Ellie’s Fencing Competitions
- LPJS – Under 11
- 19th October 2014 Newcastle Epee – 5th
- November 2014 Wrexham Foil – 11th
- 9th November 2014 Packwood Epee – 3rd
- 7th February 2015 Aston Epee – 3rd
- 8th February 2015 Ashton Foil – 3rd
- February 2015 London Epee – 8th
- 25th April 2015 Brixton Epee – 5th
- 28th March 2015 Durham Foil – 3rd
- 29th March 2015 Durham Epee – 2nd
Currently ranked 1st in Epee and 7th in Foil in the Leon Paul Junior Series
Yorkshire’s – U14’s
- 11th January 2015 Bingley Epee – 2nd
- 25th January 2015 Wakefield Yorkshire Youth League – Foil 3rd
- 25th January 2105 Wakefield Yorkshire Youth League – Epee 1st
- 15th March 2015 Penistone Yorkshire Youth Championships – Foil 3rd (Qualifier for British Youth Championships)
- 15th march 2015 Penistone Yorkshire Youth Championships – Epee 1st (Qualifier for British Youth Championships)
BRITISH YOUTH CHAMPIONSHIPS – U12’s
- 2nd May 2015 Ranked 26th in Epee in Great Britain
- 3rd May 2015 Ranked 13th in Foil in Great Britain
Competitions in the future
- JUNE - LPJS – Scotland Foil & Epee, English Youth Championships – Hatfield Foil & Epee,
Update June 15
Ellie competed in the English youth championships in London. This is the biggest competition in England and the one where selection for the English team takes place based on performance.
Ellie came 7th in foil which was an amazing place for her and then she went on to take 3rd place in epee winning all the matches apart from the last one! During the day Ellie seeded 1st through the rankings.
Jim her coach was very pleased with her performance, as are we.What a fantastic achievement after only 16 months fencing.