CARROLLTON, Texas — The Olympics offer an opportunity for niche sports and their athletes to, at least momentarily, steal the spotlight away from the sports that typically hog most the airtime on television networks.
And since the faithful followers of those sports can count on an uptick in interest, local leagues and clubs like the Fencing Institute of Texas in Carrollton are getting ready.
“Olympic years are huge years and also when a movie with sword fighting comes out like 'The Three Musketeers' or 'The Princess Bride,'” said coach Samantha AlKadi.
But though relatively small compared to other sports in the United States, there is still no shortage of participants at the Fencing Institute wielding one of the three weapons you will see in this year’s Olympic fencing competition. In fact, the Institute has produced several top talents who have gone on to compete at the highest level.
“We offer recreational fencing but also train all the way up to Olympic levels,” said AlKadi.
Not only are all skill levels present, the floor sees children as young as six years old on the many fencing strips at the Institute, while a senior citizen might be on one across the gym. They and all ages in between learning the techniques of one of the oldest and fastest forms of combat sport.
“It is like a cross between ‘rock, paper, scissors’ and chess,” AlKadi said. “But physically speaking.”
Coach Michael D’Asaro competed for Team USA in the 1996 Olympics and then returned to the Olympics as a coach in 2008. Now you can find him at the Fencing Institute of Texas, passing down the skills and knowledge of the sport engrained in his family bloodline.
“My father was on the Olympic team, my stepmother was on the Olympic team, so I had to make the team or they were going to kick me out of they family,” D’Asaro joked.
Not only do the Olympics and movies spark interest, but AlKadi said COVID19 also brought people looking for a new hobby in through the doors.
“If you get within six of someone’s space, you’re going to get stabbed," AlKadi said. "So it worked out well with the pandemic.”