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Comment by jessaustin | Hacker News Reader

...the winner screaming in a fury.

This is so distasteful to me that I haven't been able to watch much fencing. Fencing is fast enough that it would take a lot of viewing to really understand what's going on. So, this has really hampered my appreciation. Appropriate automated video editing could really help me out.

Do they scream like this at practice? Do they practice the screaming? It would be one thing if they vocalized as they struck, as in many martial arts. But this delayed "maybe I got a touch I guess I should ask the judge by screaming" just seems silly.

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> This is so distasteful to me that I haven't been able to watch much fencing. Fencing is fast enough that it would take a lot of viewing to really understand what's going on.

Yea it's terrible.

Now imagine going to summer nationals, or JOs, or any of other big circuit tournaments, and going near the saber section, where there's like 40+ consecutive bouts going on all at the same time, with each person yelling and screeching every 10 seconds.

> Do they scream like this at practice?

> Do they practice the screaming?

Fencing really is a terrible spectator sport. Second probably only to bullseye target shooting without electronic targets lol.

When you do something physically intensive, fighting to hit someone who's doing their damnedest to stop you and hit you back, in a high pressure situation, it can be really hard to not shout/scream when you succeed, or even just believe you succeeded.

Not many people are super-cool in that situation.

But, admittedly, the shouting can be a bit of a meme in the fencing community.

I have no problem with genuine celebration, in any sport. I have no problem with any vocalization that accompanies a vigorous action, such as in tennis or kendo. I'm sure that in many cases what seems to my untrained eye to be special pleading via emotional outburst is really just a reaction to a clearly valid touch that both opponents and all judges would acknowledge.

But, do they have to take off their face shields after every point? Surely that gets at least as tiresome for experienced fencers as it does for relatively ignorant observers?

Actually, shouting is usually frowned upon, and it's really disturbing in the salle.

Most of us want to punch the yeller, but he's got a weapon. Oh wait, so do we!

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