2020 BRITISH YOUTH CHAMPIONSHIPS

Updated 26.3.2020: In light of recent events, the 2020 British Youth Championships have been postponed. We are in the process of confirming new dates for the event. Further information can be found here.

Dates: 8th, 9th and 10th May 2020

Check in times are to be announced after the Regional Qualifying Events (RQEs) are complete at the end of March. For more information, please see the British Youth Championships FAQs page.

Venue: PlayFootball Birmingham Indoor, 20 Great King Street North, Birmingham, B19 2LF

Membership Level Required: Compete

Check your BF membership and log into the platform here 

Entry Fee: £36

Ranking: Fencers are ranked at the event using a unique BYC formula which takes into account a variety of results and rankings available over the different age groups

The British Youth Championships (BYCs) are a 24-event competition, with events in four age groups (U12s, U14s, U16s & U18s) for all three weapons.  Fencers have the opportunity to qualify for the BYCs through Regional Qualifying Events (RQEs) which will be held by each Region.

Fencers who qualify for the BYCs through the RQEs will be invited via Sport80 directly by British Fencing.

A list of events held on each day of the competition will be released in early 2020.

Byes: All fencers who reached the last 8 in an event at the 2019 BYCs are eligible to claim a bye to the 2020 BYCs. A list of fencers who qualify can be found here. Further information about the bye system is found within the Regional Entry Information Document.

Regional Qualifying Events (RQEs): For information regarding the Regional Qualifying Events please find the Regional Entry Information Document below. Information that has changed for the 2020 event has been highlighted in yellow throughout the document.

Regional Contact Information can be found by clicking the button below.

Accreditation: Accreditation will be in operation for the event. Please note that nearer the time, these rules may be adapted to the venue.

However everyone attending should expect some form of restricted access to the field of play and accreditation to be in place.  We expect parents and coaches to work with their athletes in advance to ensure that they are able to get themselves on and off the piste.

Coaches on the BF coaching register will receive field of play Coach Accreditation for the poules. Coaches are expected to be sensitive to situations where young children (esp those U14) are competing without coaches and have greater responsibility for the welfare of both fencers in these scenarios.

During the round of poules, parents of U12 athletes will be allowed temporary access to field of play to assist if the athlete unexpectedly requires assistance with connecting and disconnecting from the spools. Once the assistance is provided parents are expected to exit the field of play.

During the Direct Elimination match each athlete, for the duration of their bout is allowed one nominated supporter within the field of play. ONE coach or in the absence of a coach ONE nominated member of BF.

Once the athlete has finished fencing these supporters along with the athletes are expected to immediately leave the field of play, to allow the next match to commence.

There will be a maximum of one supporter accreditation per athlete and the supporter must be a BF member. (This is to ensure that the supporter has agreed to the BF codes of conduct). A supporter accreditation will not entitle anyone to permanent field of play access.

Officials will have the right to remove accreditations from anyone who does not follow the rules.

All accreditation will be free on advance application. Further information and link to the application process will be available in early 2020.

Fair Play: The BF Fair Play Code for Youth Events is applicable. See here for more information.

Rule Changes: The new passivity rule introduced on the 1st January 2019 by the FIE will be implemented at the event. Organisers of the RQE are expected to implement the new passivity rules.

Consent Forms: Parent Consent forms are required for athletes aged under 18. A link will be provided nearer to the time to allow you to complete these online.

Kit Specifications: Kit specifications for the RQEs and BYCs can be found here

Field of Play Bags : For safety reasons athletes should not bring fencing bags to the field of play. For the poules, athletes may bring up to 3 weapons, 2 body wires and a re-useable water bottle/small towel and allan key in a small bag. For the Direct Elimination bouts athletes may bring into the field of play for the duration of the bout their top bags or dual weapon bags and these should be removed once the bout is over.

Location of Bags/Picnics: For safety reasons athletes will be requested to store their fencing bags and picnic in designated areas. Food will not be permitted on field of play.

Sustainability: As part of BFs commitment to reducing the environmental impact of our sport, no single use plastic bottles will be permitted on the field of play. We hope that the community will support efforts in this area and ensure that everyone brings re-useable bottles to the event.