Competing in Europe vs. the USA

Updated October 20

When I lived in Europe I was not nearly good enough to compete outside my clubs, nor was I encouraged to even think about it. In the US, nobody raised an eyebrow when, after barely a month in my new club here in Riverside, I enquired about local competitions.

The competitive world in the USA seems a lot more inviting. Part of the reason for this might be a cultural difference in the attitude towards personal achievement. In Europe, all to often people will be discouraged from sticking out of the crowd, and communities such as competitive fencers will tend to be elitist, closed and exclusionary. In the US, while having a much more competitive mentality in general, it seems to be much more accepted to just go and compete to have fun, or for personal development. Everybody is encouraged and praised for giving their best, even is their best is pathetic. This is just a personal impression, and I haven't been involved with competitions in Europe, but it is a difference that extends to many areas of life, such as education. Also, the US has a different approach to sports that Europe does. More people practice sports, in Europe sports practicioners are quasi-professionals (without the money), and Americans just love to compete.

American fencing is also much more internet-friendly than European fencing, at least in general, and information is more openly and readily available. Maybe I am not looking in the right places, but the European national and international federations don't have quite as much information available online, it is really hard to find the regional federations, and the competitive schedules are not displayed as prominently.
American competitive fencing is regulated by the USFA. The USA is geographically broken down into sections (my section is the Pacific Coast Section), and then divisions (mine is the San Bernardino division) within each section. Each division will organize an average of one competition a month for each category and weapon. Then, the sections have their own competitive cirduits, and sponsor high-profile "invitationals" which are quite fun, and also of high level. There are a few competitions at the national level, too.

In Europe each country has some sort of regional organization, and a national competitive circuit, apart from local competitions. At the supra-national level there is the European Fencing Confederation, which organizes the European Championships. Then, there are a variety of international competitions (here is a very complete calendar).

International competitions fall into two broad categories: official FIE competitions and other (non-FIE) international competitions. Official FIE competitions include the Olympic Games, World Championships (by age category) World Cup (Open and Junior), "Masters" and "Super-Masters". The Olympic Games take the place of the Open World Championships on Olympic years. World Cup competitions include "Grand Prix", "Category A", "Candidate A" and "Satellite A" competitions. Fencers enter official FIE competitions through their national federation or Olympic Committee, and require FIE licences. In the case of World Cup (except Satellite A) competitions, countries must supply up to two referees, one for each 5 fencers they enter. Non-FIE international competitions are usually open competitions, entry is open to individual fencers or though clubs, and FIE licences may not be required.

FIE licences

This just in from the Legalese Department:

The FIE's organization rules for FIE competitions state

• o.15 c) When expatriate fencers take part in a poule, they must first fence the fencers of their original nationality, after they have fenced among themselves, and then against the nationals of the country through which they are licensed.
  

Does this mean a fencer could be licensed by a country other that the one that he is a national of, or is it just allowing for changes of nationality? It seems the first is the case, since the FIE's statutes require any fencer living abroad to be licensed by his country of residence, not nationality:

• 9.1.5 c) If a fencer lives in a country other than his own, he must apply for his licence to the member federation of the country in which he lives. It is strictly forbidden for a fencer to possess more than one international licence. [...]
  
• 9.1.5 d) When a fencer is only visiting another country, he must request his licence to the member federation of his onw country (or to the country where he resides, if he resides in a different country from the country of his nationality).
  

Expatriate fencers are considered by the FIE as having double nationality for the purposes of licensing, and for configuring poules in international competitions. This is explicitly stated in the statutes:

• 9.2.1 When a question of nationality is raised in the application of the Statutes and Rules (fencers, granting licences, etc.), the fencer residing in a country other than his own must be considered as belonging to both countries.

Fair enough. So, if I move to the UK and I plan on taking part in a international (non-FIE) competitions, I must apply for a British licence. The problem is, the British Fencing Association warns licences are British; if you compete internationally for any other country you must apply via that country. This is because, according to the FIE statutes, with a British licence I would then be barred from participating in any official FIE competitions (including satellite events, which I believe are open):

• 9.2.3 For official competitions of the FIE, competitors must be strictly of the nationality of the country they are representing.

What! This makes it impossible for serious competitive fencers to move out of their home country! I am making the resonable assumption that "the country you are licensed by" is "the country you represent". It is not even clear to me that I could fence outside FIE events with a British FIE licence for a period of five years, according to the following article:

• 9.2.4 In the case of other international competitions, the FIE, although still in favour of the same rules, while preferring that the same rules be respected, is more tolerant in the matter of countries represented as long as foreigners have actually been residing for five consecutive years in the country which they are invited to represent, and have not represented their own country for five years.
  

Forgive my disrespect of the FIE, but this stuff is ridiculous. I am going to contact the Spanish and British federations for clarification, then maybe even the FIE itself. In fact, I think this nonsense violates EU law regarding the free movement of persons among EU member states. In the EU, the issue of residence is not so clear-cut any more either, as one is allowed to register to vote in local and European elections in one's country of residence, and to vote in regional and national elections in one's country of nationality. I should actually contact the EU, too, maybe they can force the FIE to change these stupid rules.

Watch this space!

Ditto.