European martial arts school to host fencing tournament in Plymouth
The AG Open Fencing Tournament, featuring about 140 competitors, returns to the PARC in Plymouth this weekend.
Ars Gladii, one of the oldest schools in North America practicing Historical European Martial Arts, is hosting the event. The Garden City-based school specializes in various weaponry including the longsword, rapier, Messer and saber fencing.
The school is known for their focus on techniques from 14th century fencer Johannes Liechtenauer of the Holy Roman Empire, which is modern day Germany. These athletes will soon put their skills to the test as they prepare for an upcoming tournament, which they’ve hosted back-to-back years.
When and where is the tournament?
The AG Open begins at 8 a.m. Friday and concludes with awards at 4 p.m. Sunday. Competitions start at 9 a.m. all three days, with check-in beginning prior. Competitions conclude at 5 p.m. Friday and Saturday.
The tournament location, the Plymouth Arts & Recreation Complex, is located at 650 Church St. in Plymouth. Parking will be available in the lot outside the gymnasium.
More: Fencing tournament comes to Plymouth this weekend
What events are included in the tournament?
Joseph Mundo, volunteer and competitor for Ars Gladii, said the focus of the tournament is longsword fighting.
“The core of this tournament is going to be longsword fights. It’s a two-handed sword, its European style,” he said. “They are blunt, steel, and they are made to recreate historical swords, but they have some safety functions built-in.”
The tournament competitions include:
Longsword Relay: Requires a three-person team
Longsword: The event will include Tier A/B/C, which are skill divisions based on one’s history and ratings. The entry cap is 120 people.
Women’s Longsword: The event will include Tier A/B, with an entry cap of 40 people.
Messer: The Messer is a weapon often used in single-handed competitions. The entry cap is 60 people.
Longsword Cutting: The competition has Tier A/B with a cap of 60 people for entry.
What other events are taking place?
In addition to the tournament, lectures and workshops will be available from world-class professionals.
Mundo said many instructors will be from North America, but some come from other places like Ireland and Finland as well.
“Besides the fighting and the competition aspect going on, we also have a bunch of world-class instructors that are coming in,” he said. “They are going to be flying again from pretty much all over the world.”
Among the professional attendees expected are Adam Franti, Jane Strange, Jonathan Ying, Beth Hammer, Tyler Dunham and Rebecca Glass.
Mundo said the instructors specialize in certain techniques and will teach different styles from Italy, Germany, etc.
“So how (Historical European Martial Arts) works, there’s no one dedicated fighting style,” said Mundo. “They are essentially going to be teaching their different styles and techniques to the attendees of this tournament. There’s a bunch of different styles from different historical sources.”
More: Detroit artists are focus of 2 of Freep Film Festival's short documentaries
More: Freep Film Festival opens with screening of documentary 'Coldwater Kitchen'
How much does the tournament cost?
The price is $95 for competitors and registration currently remains open. The event is free for all spectators.
How do competitors train for the tournament?
Mundo said each school is going to be different in their training and there is no standardized process. However, at Ars Gladii, they train and condition regularly leading up to competitions.
"At my school, we train probably three or four days a week depending on each individual competitor’s abilities. We do a wide range of different drills to work on specific techniques like our thrusts, our cuts, our parries," said Mundo. "We also do a lot of free sparring which is free fighting between people at the school."
Mundo also said they often participate in "fight nights." Here, everyone from the school — and sometimes guest fighters — are invited to spar against one another freely.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Historical European Martial Arts school hosts fencing tournament
