Three young Woodside fencers qualify for nationals Three young Woodside fencers qualify for nationals (July 06, 2005)

Three Woodsider youths have qualified for the Fencing Nationals, a tournament to be held in Sacramento from July 1 to July 10.

The three -- Kelly Miller, 12, Miles Robinson, 10, and Nicolette Stoddart, 9 -- train at the First Place Fencing Club, a private organization in San Carlos. They are all nationally ranked saber fencers, says coach Eric Dew, who owns of the club.

Kelly, who has been fencing less than a year, is tied for the No. 14 spot in the women's youth 12 and under division, or Y-12. "I love fencing -- it's fun and you get tons of energy out of it," she says.

Miles is ranked No. 16 in the men's Y-10 division, and Nicolette is No. 5 in the women's Y-10 division, according to Mr. Dew.

In fencing tournaments, there are contests, divisions, and rankings based on three sword-types -- saber, foil and epee. While the rules differ by weapon, the main goal is to hit one's opponent without being hit.

Matches at the nationals tournament are divided by weapon, age group and gender.

Mr. Dew says that younger competitors are often at a physical disadvantage when competing in older divisions, but Kelly will try her luck in both the Y-12 and Y-14 divisions. Miles and Nicolette plan to stick to their own age groups.

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