Fencing: The Fenced In Podcast Fencers: Christopher Mollard, Ben Peggs

A bit of a delay and some overdue updates…Ben is flying to Tokyo and Chris is recovering from a broken rib!

What a great opportunity to to hear about what goes on in an Olympic and Paralympic village - sparring partners, holding camps, who gets into the village…Ben speaks from personal experience! Ben also has a story about how he got stuck in the Olympic village in Rio 2016 having lost his chaperone…not to be repeated!

We also have our review of the Olympics…

…stand out moments
…how the results compared against the expectations
…surprises and unexpected performances
…

And discuss when should you change tactic? Overall it depends on whether the mistake is technical or tactical.

We out the fencing couples, well done to the fencing powerhouse couples and their Tokyo successes!

How much longer will the fencers in their mid-late thirties look to keep competing?

Ben talks about GB's hopes in Tokyo! And the prospect of flying

Did you know that theParalympians are not part of Team GB? They are different organisations with different logos - Paralympics GB

What will happen with the FIE season that’s been announced and meant to be starting next month. We shouldn’t be ruled by ‘fear of missing out'.

Getting back to a life of relative normality and how we phase back into that at different times.

“We are part of an historic Olympics"...the Women’s Foil Dream Team competing in the Tokyo 'Pandemic' Olympic Games

We’re celebrating 🇨🇦 Day🍁 by bringing you an interview from the Women’s Foil Dream Team that are going to the Tokyo Olympics (sometimes referred to as the Pandemic Games) in FEWER THAN 30 days! Here’s a quick insight in their own words…“we’re quirky all the time, banter is our middle name”.

In this whirlwind of an episode we get to know 3 of the 4 that will be on the plane (Jessica unfortunately couldn’t make the interview), how it felt to qualify pre-Covid and how they have dealt with a requirement to train at an elite level when the world was locked down. Despite this, it brought them closer together as a unit. Something that was especially difficult considering that they were scattered around North America. This group is obviously close, aided by the fact that they don’t see each other as competition to one another, which enables them to push forwards as opposed to holding each other back.

This summer's Olympics is a new chapter for most of the team with only Eleanor able to qualify for Rio 2016, which came with some surprisingly difficult emotions before any fencing had even started before going on to beat a legend of the modern game. They reckon that this experience will prove vital, which we don’t hesitate to believe considering comments from other Olympians that we have interviewed!

Two of the big questions are, how will this Olympics be different to the others and what effect will this have? One thing is that they try not to look at the negative parts and focus on the fact that they get to go as a team. One key quote here is: “knowing the emotions that are to come and not freaking out when they happen”

And in achieving what is a lifelong goal, Eleanor reflects on how reaching your goal doesn’t actually transform your life…something we can all relate to no matter the goal.

We also touch on how female athletes have, essentially, been treated as small men and the implications of that. This directly translates into how women’s foil is different to men’s foil and how the wrong attitudes can be addressed...does this come from stigmas when starting to fence at a younger age and comfort in hitting others?

Despite the challenges of 2020, it proved to be a fruitful time for the squad as they were all able to turn their other talents into some more serious projects.

Eleanor started Lenny Garb, her own art and drawings on Canadian made and revamped clothing through embroidery and silk screens:

Insta: https://www.instagram.com/lennygarb.revamps/
Website: https://www.lennygarb.com/

Alanna started paintings by Lanna, a business when selling her art when COVID fully hit:

Website: https://www.etsy.com/shop/PaintingsByLanna
Insta: https://www.instagram.com/paintingsbylanna/

Kelleigh transitiones from a personal trainer to start her fencing specific strength and conditioning business:

Insta: https://www.instagram.com/lionethik/
Website: https://www.lionethik.com/

As always, please continue to support us on our new Patreon page, follow us on social media and make sure to rate and review wherever you get your podcasts!

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/fencedinpodcast
Insta: https://www.instagram.com/fencedinpodcast/
Twitter: https://Twitter.com/fencedinpodcast

#fencing #tokyo #olympics #canada #🇨🇦#womens #foil #awesome #athletes #elite #art #strengthandconditioning #fencedin #🤺 #🇯🇵 #🗼#pandemic #games #pandemicgames #training

A few mainstream places you can listen:

Apple podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/fencing-the-fenced-in-podcast/id1505770635?i=1000527508125
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/7CETVuYkhXoyzQWAsrXzBD?si=q1yLdFucTCGL30H7X_nXPA&dl_branch=1

After taking his first real break from fencing since he started in 1994, Richard joins us to discuss his career, travels and all sorts of nonsense while sipping his afternoon Oolong tea.

We go through training habits and philosophies and how he believes that he managed to turn his hobby into his profession with some tips for fencers that want to do the same (including how he deals with jet lag).

We also talk about the Olympic qualification process, a topic that Richard is extremely well positioned to comment on considering that he took a different route to each Olympic Games he qualified for: individual ranking, zonal place, wildcard and team ranking. Which begs the question, are individual and team fencing really two different sports?

There’s so much in here that it’s hard to write about it all but just a few more topics which include: playing the bagpipes in the park, we get to meet his lovely wife (who comments on how he is at home), hearing some of his many linguistics skills and how Ben made it into Croatian folklore.

Be brave, have fun, stay curious. Play the game

Ben and Chris talk about the latest developments in their training and what we can all continue to work on from home and what might change with the return of fencing looming…

We cover our thoughts on the recent Sabre and Epee Olympic qualifiers (this was recorded before the Foil event in Doha) and label one athlete as the Federer of the fencing world. Of course, we also talk about the Olympics and Ben’s experience as an Olympic training partner for Rio 2016.

We also cover why gratitude in the sport is important and a very curious topic…what fencers that originate from Guadeloupe so successful internationally?

There’s also a teaser in here about a big announcement that is to come in the next episode!

“Commit to the moment so that you finish with no regrets - don’t ever lose hits on the things that you can control”

As a two time Olympian, this is the approach that Johnny Davis, the Olympic Team Manager for British Fencing, took to his very successful Fencing career.

Johnny talks us through his life to date…from Belfast to a big shot in the music industry to his fencing career. He explains how he has taken these experiences into his role with the British Team. Providing us with insights into how he convert his athlete’s raw talent into world class performances.

Having someone who’s been there and understands exactly what the athletes are going through gives them the confidence they need to perform at their best.

Dan Berke is a tech head turned fencer who spotted an opportunity to make life at his club a little easier through technology. Now it’s 2021 and you have probably all used Fencing Time in some capacity either as a fencer, tournament organiser or spectator. The app grew naturally, with word spreading regionally...then nationally...then finally to the FIE who now use it at the worlds biggest events. 
Dan still works as a software engineer while running Fencing Time and finding the time to speak to those using it to continuously find improvements. We get to hear his journey, where Fencing Time has taken him and what he misses most about life pre-pandemic. Enjoy!
You can get in touch with Dan by sending an email to info@fencingtime.com
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