Written by Valerie, Year 9
Last month, I competed in the British Youth Fencing Championships and England Youth Fencing Championships, achieving great results.
Fencing is an extraordinary sport, although not a lot of people are familiar with it. I started fencing at the age of 5. Not only does it keep my brain working throughout practices and matches, it also improves my body coordination. Fencing itself is fascinating. It encourages interactions between fencers and enhances friendship.
However, I have to admit that it can be frustrating at times. Sometimes, even with excellent coaches and teammates, you may still feel stuck and simply cannot improve for a period of time. Participating in different competitions seems to be the only way for me to break the bottleneck. Of course, competitions can be stressful and nerve-wrecking, especially when you have expectations for yourself. I was excited but extremely nervous before competing in the two competitions. Still, I believed in myself and told myself that competitions are amazing opportunities to reflect on my weaknesses and learn from other fencers.
If you are considering learning a new sport or developing a new hobby, don’t hesitate to try!
Being brave enough to step out is always the key to improvements and success. Valerie, Year 9