Competition, Points, and Qualifying

Parents who are unfamiliar with fencing as a sport, and sometimes even those who have been involved in fencing for a while, often find that the system of ranking and qualification within USA Fencing is confusing.  That’s because it IS confusing!

Information regarding the point system in USA Fencing, and its use in qualifying for national and international level tournaments can be found in chapter 3 of the USA Fencing Athlete’s Handbook, available in the Athlete section of the USA Fencing web page.

In an attempt to make the system more understandable and condensed, we have taken excerpts of that section of the handbook and put it into what is hopefully a more understandable format.  Suffice it to say, that at the most basic level, the system works as follows:

• For regional level tournaments and above (RYC/RJCC and above), athletes who compete earn a certain amount of points, depending on where they place and how many competitors are in their events.

• A subset of these points (the best of their results) are used to generate Regional and National Point standings.

• Point Standings are used to rank individuals within the region and across the nation.

• Regional points are used to qualify individuals for national level competitions.

• National points are used to qualify individuals for national and international level competitions.

We have left the section headers in where applicable, so that you may find more complete information in the Athlete’s Handbook.  The Handbook takes precedence over information presented here, so once you get the gist of how points work, be sure to read through the relevant sections so that you fully understand what your student needs to do to earn points and qualify for higher level competitions.

You can find the current listing of both Regional and National Points at: https://member.usafencing.org/points

Point standings are updated as results are sent to the head office and confirmed; they may therefore lag by about a week or so.

Earning Points – Youth Divisions

3.3.1 Regional Youth Circuit (RYC) —Regional Point Standing 

Fencers only earn points at RYCs within their home region (region 1). The best 3 results count towards the point total. These points may qualify Y12 and Y14 fencers to the USA Fencing National Championships. RYC points are not used in any National Point Standings, for seeding or team selection purposes. 

Using the formula below, RYC tournaments will award points to all participants: 

(# entries – place + 1) /# entries) x 100 points

When there is a mixed gender Youth competition, points are not separated out by gender. The winner of each RYC, regardless of size of field, will earn 100 points. The size of the participant field is based on all athletes in the event, regardless of region. RYC Regional Points are only earned by fencers competing in their own region. At least 2 fencers must compete in a given RYC event for Regional Points to be awarded. 

Example:

A student places 11th of 13 competitors at an RYC:

(# entries – place + 1) /# entries) x 100 points
((13 – 11 + 1) /13) x 100 points
((3) /13) x 100 points
23.0769 pts awarded

3.1.5 National Rolling Point Standings (NRPS) (Youth, Cadet, Junior, Senior, Veteran)

National Rolling Points are earned at North American Cups, National Championships, July Challenge, SYCs (Youth only) and SJCCs (Junior and Cadet only), and designated international events as listed in the selection criteria for each weapon.

3.1.6 Youth Point Standings (SYC and National Tournaments) 

For the Y10 and Y12 age categories, points may be earned by competing at North American Cup (NAC) events for one’s own age category and the next older category. Y14 athletes may earn points in Y14, Cadet, Junior, and Div I national events for which they are eligible to compete. 

National points earned at SYC events are awarded at a 0.8 scale of the Youth NAC/Championship Points Table. The point table for SYC competitions can be found in Points Tables. 

For the Youth Point Standings, the point total is the sum of the best four results earned at the combination of eligible competitions at the National Tournaments and the one SYC per eligible category in which the fencer has earned the most points (see Formula for Youth Points below).

Formula for Youth Point Standings: BEST FOUR RESULTS = TOTAL POINTS: Youth 10: Sum of the four highest results in SYC Y10, SYC Y12, NAC Y10, NAC Y12, National Championship Y10, National Championship Y12 (up to 2 national results may be used per age category, only one SYC result per age category).

To get the total number of points (Youth Divisions):

National Points

Best 4 of points earned at NACs and up to 1 SYC per age category

Regional Points

Best 3 of points from RYCs

Youth Qualification to the March NAC and National Championships

Qualification Y10/Y12 to the March NAC
Fencers must fence in at least one Y10 and/or Y12 Regional Youth Circuit, Super Youth Competition in the United States or in one IRC in Y10, Y12 or Y14 (if competing in the International Regional Circuit competition during 2019 in China), in the current season to be eligible to enter the same category and weapon at the March NAC. RYC event must have at least 2 competitors to fulfill any qualification standards.

Qualification Path to USA Fencing National Championships

Championships - Athletes must be US Citizens or Permanent Residents to compete in the National Championship

Youth 10 National Championships

Eligibility (age, representation, classification)
Fencers must meet the birth years in Table 2.5.1 in the Athlete Handbook, and be a U.S. citizen or Permanent Resident. There are no classification requirements.

Qualifying Path

• Be on the Y10 National Point Standings at the regular fee entry deadline OR

• Be on the Y10 Regional Youth Point Standings in your region at the regular fee entry deadline OR

• Earn at least 60 Y12 Regional Points during the current season (Total points = an athlete’s top 3 point results) OR

• Participate in a SYC or RYC in the current season.

Youth 12 National Championships

Eligibility (age, representation, classification)
Subject to the listed exceptions, fencers must meet birth years in Table 2.5.1 in the Athlete Handbook and be a U.S citizen or Permanent Resident. There are no classification requirements.

Qualifying Path

• Be on the Y12 National Point Standings at the regular fee entry deadline OR

• Earn at least 70 Y12 Regional Points during the current season (Total points = an athlete’s top 3 point results) OR

• Earn at least 150 Y14 Regional Points during the current season (Total points = an athlete’s top 3 point results) OR

• Place in the top 25% of the fencer’s division’s Y14 National Championship qualifying competition

Youth 14 National Championships

Eligibility (age, representation, classification)
Subject to the listed exceptions, fencers must meet the birth years in Table 2.5.1 in the Athlete Handbook and be a U.S. Citizen or Permanent Resident. There are no classification requirements. Athletes that have represented another country in the last 3 years at FIE level competitions (Senior/Junior and those athletes that represented another country at the Cadet World Championships) are not eligible to compete in a National Championship.

Qualifying Path

• Be on the Youth 14 National Point Standings at the regular entry fee deadline OR

• Earn at least 150 Y14 Regional Points during the current season (Total points = an athlete’s top 3 point results) OR

• Place in the top 25% (round up) of the fencer’s division’s Y14 National Championship qualifying competition

Earning Points: Cadet and Junior Divisions

3.3.2 Regional Junior/Cadet Circuit (RJCC)

Fencers only earn points at RJCCs within their home region (region is assigned based on division affiliation). The best 2 results count towards the point total. These points may qualify Cadet and Junior fencers to the USA Fencing Junior Olympics and July Challenge. Points earned at Regional Junior/Cadet tournaments are not considered in determination of National Point Standings, for seeding or team selection purposes; they are only reflected in Regional Point Standings. 

Using the formula below, RJCC tournaments will award points to all participants: 

((#entries – place +1) / # entries) x 100 points

The winner of each RJCC, regardless of size of field, will earn 100 points. The size of the participant field is based on all athletes in the event, regardless of the region. Regional RJCC points are only earned in the fencers own region. RJCCs must have at least 2 competitors and cannot be fenced with mixed gender.

Example:

A student places 11th of 13 competitors at an RYC:

(# entries – place + 1) /# entries) x 100 points
(13 – 11 + 1) /13) x 100 points
((3) /13) x 100 points
23.0769 pts awarded

3.1.5 National Rolling Point Standings (NRPS) (Youth, Cadet, Junior, Senior, Veteran)

National Rolling Points are earned at North American Cups, National Championships, July Challenge, SYCs (Youth only) and SJCCs (Junior and Cadet only), and designated international events as listed in the selection criteria for each weapon.

3.1.7 Junior & Cadet Point Standings (SJCC and National Tournaments) 

For the Cadet and Junior age categories, points may be earned by competing at North American Cup (NAC) and National Championship events. Cadet athletes may earn points in Cadet, Junior, and Div I national events for which they are eligible to compete. Junior athletes may earn points in Junior and Div 1 national events for which they are eligible to compete. 

National points earned at SJCC events are awarded at a 0.2 scale of the Cadet/Junior NAC Points Table. The point table for Junior and Cadet competitions can be found in Points Tables. 

The Junior and Cadet Point Standings will be computed on a rolling point basis. See Section 3.1.2 for replacement schedule. 

For the Junior and Cadet Rolling Point Standings, the point total is the sum of the best four results earned at the combination of eligible competitions at the National Tournaments and the one SJCC per eligible category in which the fencer has earned the most points (see information on the formula for Junior and Cadet points by clicking the link below). 

To get the Total Number of Points:

National Points

Best 4 of points earned at National Tournaments and up to 1 SJCC per age category.

Regional Points

Best 2 of points from RJCCs

Qualifications

Qualification for JO’s

Eligibility (age, classification):  

Subject to the exceptions in Table 2.5.1, fencers must be at least 13 years old on January 1 in the year of the competition. Fencers younger than that must, as of the regular fee entry deadline, be on the Y14 National Point Standings to be eligible for Cadet events or on the Cadet point standings to be eligible for Junior events. There are no classification requirements. 

Fencers must meet age requirements as above and be a U.S. Citizen or Permanent Resident representing the United States. Athletes that have represented another country in the last three years at FIE level competitions (Senior/Junior and those athletes that represented another country at the Cadet World Championships) are not eligible to compete in a National Championship.

Qualification:

CADET 

• Fencers must meet eligibility AND 

• Be on the Cadet National Rolling Point Standings (NRPS) at the regular fee entry deadline OR 

• Earn at least 110 regional points on either the Cadet or Junior Regional Point Standing (Total points = an athlete’s top two point results) OR 

• Be in the top 25 percent (round up) of their division’s Cadet JO qualifying competition OR

• Be in the top 25 percent (round up) of their division’s Junior JO qualifying competition. Junior event must occur first

JUNIOR

• Fencers must meet age eligibility AND 

• Be on the Junior national rolling point standings (NRPS) at the regular fee entry deadline OR 

• Earn at least 110 regional points on the Junior Regional Point Standing (Total points = an athlete’s top two point results) OR 

• Be in the top 25 percent (round up) of their division’s Junior JO qualifying competition