Two years after the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, French fencing is preparing to host another major event: the European Championships, from June 16 to 21, in Antony, at the Éric Tabarly sports complex. Rémy Delhomme, president of the French Fencing Federation, outlines the stakes involved. Francs Jeux.
France already had the 2028 European Championships in Bourges in its sights. Why was it important to also take over the 2026 edition, following the withdrawal of Tallinn (Estonia)?
It's a strategic choice for us. We have a community that would like to see more fencing. In January, in Paris, the French foil fencers didn't perform well. No medals. At the same time, in other weapons, elsewhere, we achieved podium finishes and victories, but what did the press talk about? The World Cup in France. Even though we perform exceptionally well all over the world, fencing gets very little coverage. It's not easy; we've had several sleepless nights, and sponsors are hard to find in six months, but media exposure is essential.
Saint-Maur recently hosted a World Cup fencing competition in May. Have you noticed this increased exposure at home?
Yes, absolutely. We're reaching the fencing community, but we're going far beyond that. I was on France 3 Île-de-France to talk about it. We're fortunate to have just come off the Olympic Games in France, where France shone with seven medals. We've never had the same media impact as at the Games; it's historic. We've seen a 20% increase in registered members. We even had to turn people away in some towns. That shows how important it is to have events in France. This is evident at the World Cup events; they're always packed. We fill a 5.000-seat arena in Orléans, and the Coubertin arena is always full for the Paris International Challenge in January.
Is the momentum of Paris 2024 still being felt?
It's faded a bit. We're almost back to pre-Paris 2024 levels in terms of registered members, although we're still slightly above. Our priorities are retention, training – training more instructors and fencing masters – and increasing female participation. We've had a step It's been exceptional since the Games. We have wonderful ambassadors who have stories to tell: Auriane Mallo-Breton, Manon Apithy-Brunet, Sara Balzer, Ysaora Thibus… We have very strong teams and star athletes who reach beyond the fencing community. We have 35% female participation, which is quite high among combat sports. Our goal is to achieve gender parity by 2032.
Having hosted the European Championships in 2026 and 2028, the logical next step would be to apply for the World Championships. Have you considered it?
Yes, but for now, I'm not going beyond my current term. We're making choices, and I think they're good choices. Applying to host World Championships is something the international federation would like, but you need to be financially sound and prepare three or four years in advance. We'll think about it a bit more in 2027.
Among the options you mention, there is para-skiing, for which the FFE took over the delegation in January?
Yes, it's a top priority. We need to manage the transition, ensuring there's no disruption that could be detrimental to athletes' preparation for the Paralympic Games. Today, it's also about resources and structure. Along with the European Championships, it's the major focus of our 2026 season. Everything isn't completely finalized; we're currently revising the regulations and creating a 2027-2028 calendar that's much more in line with our standards after a transitional season. We'll also be acquiring new equipment. It's a whole additional, exciting, but necessary task to ensure that para fencing is fully integrated into our standards. We've made the firm decision to keep the para training center at INSEP (National Institute of Sport, Expertise and Performance). Some able-bodied athletes will also be able to switch to wheelchair fencing: those with lower limb injuries can certainly train in wheelchairs and broaden their horizons in wheelchair fencing. This is important for inclusion.
