Ready? Fence! Grand Prix in Town

Tomorrow, the 2004 NYC Grand Prix of Fencing in fencing starts, featuring over 300 fencers. The competition includes individual events and the 2004 World Championships in Women's Team Foil and Saber. The top 30 men in saber will all be competing as will the top 5 women in foil and saber.

In May, Newsday looked at local fencers and their Olympic aspirations. Keeth Smart from Brooklyn, is one of 13 Americans that are qualified for the Athens Games and was once the top-ranked sabre fencer in the world - a first for an American. Currently, Smart is ranked 18th in FIE standings. In the city, there are a lot of quality fencers, with several good university programs and world-class coaches, which helps the athletes in the region.

The New York City World Cup starts tomorrow and runs through Sunday at either Hunter College or the Roosevelt Hotel. Schedule and ticket information can be found here. If you are looking to start fencing, The Fencers Club, who is hosting the event, is a local organization that teaches and promotes fencing to people of all ages.

Gothamist vaguely remembers fencing when we were young. We remember having issues with lefties and getting a nice scar on our knee that we still carry around. We're also pretty sure that if we continued to fence, we would never come close to this level.