On February 15, 2025, the USA Fencing Board convened in person at the Junior Olympics in Charlotte, North Carolina to discuss a number of agenda items. As part of our commitment to transparency and organizational change management, here is a summary of all the decisions we made.
What we Voted “Yes” on
Y8 Format Approval: After hearing feedback from the Fencing community regarding the Y8 format passed in the July 2024 meeting, we, the Board recognized we made a mistake and didn’t properly socialize this format with the right stakeholders before giving it the green light. In the September 2024 meeting, Dr. Abdel Salem OLY motioned to reconsider the format. The Board then sent the format to the Tournament Committee (TC) and newly formed Coaches’ Committee to review the format and provide new recommendations.
Now, these committees led by Allen Evans (Coaches’) and Brandon Rochelle (TC) have come up with an agreed-upon format that we feel will serve as an excellent starting point. I would like to thank both these Committees, their members, and national office staff liaisons for their thought that went into this. Under the newly passed format:
- Fencers may have the option to compete with either a #0 or #2 sized blade. #0 Blades are optional, but not required. Fencers and coaches may make the developmentally appropriate decision as they see fit.
- Field of play: Y8 competitors will use the full strip length by default. However, per the USA Fencing Operations Manual, local organizers may shorten the field of play so long as that field of play remains in compliance with those outlined in Chapter 3 of the Operations Manual.
- Tournament format can be determined by the tournament organizer (e.g. pools to DE’s, two pool, or any other approved format from the athlete handbook), as long as it is published beforehand. The default would be a single round of pools followed by 10 touch eliminations.
- There will not be a Y8 national championship, nor will points be tracked at the regional or national level.
USA Fencing International Relations Reaffirmation: Recently, the Canadian Fencing Federation (CFF) Veterans’ Committee made the decision to boycott USA Fencing tournaments for Canadians in light of recent current events. Phil and I had the pleasure of meeting with the CFF’s leadership in Yann Bernard (Chair) and David Howes (Executive Director), and we wholeheartedly agreed that the relationship between our federations remains strong, important, and critical to the high-performance development of both nations. Our friends in CFF leadership have made the (awesome) decision to continue competing with us, and Canadian veterans will be of course welcomed with open arms in our events.
Nevertheless, the Board wanted to re-affirm our commitment to hosting our neighbors from all 23 North American countries, and continue our age-old tradition of friendly and spirited competition with our Canadian friends on the piste.
National Anthem Policy (Deferral to Tournament Committee): Andrey Geva proposed a motion requesting that the Tournament Committee create an official policy for the playing of the National Anthem. This was slightly different from the proposal made in December, as it placed the onus on TC to come up with the policy rather than offer a policy that was operational in nature.
The Board voted on Mr. Geva’s new proposal to request the Tournament Committee draft a national anthem policy. Based on their recommendations, that policy will be adopted at a later date upon completion.
Donald Alperstein – The First USA Fencing Member of Honor: In July 2024, the Board approved a motion to create a new Member of Honor award to recognize career volunteer contributions from Board members, Committee members, division officers, and other volunteers as well.
The Board felt that Donald was extremely deserving of being inducted as the very first USA Fencing Member of Honor. What can you say about Donald? Former President of USA Fencing, 18 years as our legal counsel, recipient of the Jack Baker service award, and a career influencer at the FIE level. Donald has been an important part of USA Fencing’s history, and this prestigious award is a recognition of all he’s done in decades of service to the sport. Thank you for everything, Donald.
Informal Resolution Procedures Updated: The Grievance and Disciplinary Committee (G&DC) presented a revised informal resolution process to the Board, which the Board approved. What is an informal resolution, you ask? In summary, it’s reserved for the most minor offenses that neither rise to the seriousness of a G&DC complaint or a SafeSport offense (which is under the jurisdiction of USCSS anyways). Most of these informal proceedings can be managed and mediated by USA Fencing’s compliance manager. We amended this process to provide more clarity and simplicity for all parties involved.
Board Liaisons Updated: Thanks to the leadership of At-Large Director Molly Hill, the Chair of the “Committee on Committees,” the Board approved an updated list of Board liaisons for each Committee. Since we completed the liaison staffing exercise in September, we’ve since had four new Board members join in Jackie Dubrovich OLY, Scott Rodgers PLY, Marie Donoghue, and Jade Burroughs. Board liaisons were shifted around to match Board members to their passions and relevant skillsets.
What we Voted “No” on
Motion to Dismantle the DEIB Office: After the Board voted down Mr. Geva’s previous DEIB proposal in December, a variation of that motion was offered in the February meeting. The Board once again rejected that proposal, as the management of the national office staff is a matter of Operations. USA Fencing’s General Counsel has also evaluated the slate of new Executive Orders, and determined that they do not apply to USA Fencing at this time.
Coaches Committee Charter/Amendments to the Bylaws: Mr. Geva offered an amendment to the bylaws to change the composition and structure of the newly formed Coaches’ Committee. This amendment was not supported by the Coaches’ Committee. The Board voted “no” on this proposal, since the Committee is months old, and the Board felt it would be premature to change the structure so soon.
Revised Conflict of Interest Policy: Dr. Abdel Salem OLY proposed a revised Conflict of Interest Policy around persons who were flagged by the Ethics Committee as having a “Moderate” or higher conflict of interest. While the Board recognized Dr. Salem for his efforts to buttress our ethics, the Ethics Committee had not been consulted on the revised policy. Thus, the motion was voted “no” on. However, the Ethics Committee Board Liaison Ms. Molly Hill committed to having a revised policy ready for the next meeting which will use Dr. Salem’s proposal as a starting point.
Other Actions of Note
Hall of Fame Committee Ballot and Charter: Dr. Abdel Salem OLY as Board liaison sponsored the HoF Committee’s proposed ballot for the 2025 elections and their revised charter. Dr. Salem chose to withdraw that motion, deciding more time was needed between the HoF Committee and Board to hammer out some minor details. In the next two weeks, the Board will meet with the HoF Committee in a working session to finalize details of the Charter and the Ballot. The Board will then conduct an email vote (results of which will of course be made public).
