Bruce McCaig and Sam McLellan have been awarded their EFC C licences for foil and Euan Deamer has been awarded his EFC C licence for epee, following their performances as referees on the EFC circuit events in 2023-24.
The EFC C licence is awarded to referees after being independently observed and scoring five “4’s or 5’s” (out of 5) at EFC nominated foil competitions over two seasons. The C licence is also a requirement for entry to the FIE exams.
Bruce, Sam and Euan are all active members of the BF Referee Pathway Programme, which is supported by funding from UK Sport.
Both Euan and Sam passed the FIE refereeing exam in foil and sabre, respectively, in September 2023. Since then, Euan has refereed FIE foil finals in Sabadell, and Sam has refereed FIE sabre finals in Dormagen, Budapest, Segovia, Antalya and Madrid.
On hearing the news, Euan said,
“I’m excited to receive my EFC C Licence in epee. This is testament to the great work done behind the scenes by British Fencing and through BF’s refereeing in mentoring, instructing, and encouraging referees. By achieving my C licence, I’m one step closer to my goal of achieving my FIE licence in epee, with the hope of refereeing major championships in the near future.”
Sam added,
“I am very pleased to have achieved a C licence in my second weapon, and grateful to the members of the EFC commission for the awarding of it. I am particularly indebted to British Fencing for their continuing support, to my colleagues in the UK for their camaraderie and friendship, and – most of all – to the athletes, coaches and their wider support networks for their trust and continuing to place their competitive fate in my hands. It is an opportunity for which I am extremely grateful, and a pursuit to which I will continue to dedicate my energy and enthusiasm.”
Bruce spoke about receiving his EFC C licence as well as his refereeing journey,
“I’m honoured to be awarded an EFC C licence at the end of my first international season. To receive recognition from the EFC based on my performance means a lot to me, and I am excited to continue to develop as a referee. It’s been a whirlwind few seasons, but I’ve loved every minute.
“I started fencing at university and very quickly fell in love with the sport. I began refereeing at training to develop as a fencer, but quickly became a better referee than fencer. I passed my L2 at the British Youth Championships in 2022 and started refereeing at every available opportunity. I sat my L3 in Birmingham last year and was accepted onto the Referee Pathway Programme shortly after. I was allocated 6 EFCs at which I was evaluated by the EFC delegates.
“I’d like to thank British Fencing their continued support, as well as my mentors David Fielding, Luke Deamer, and Adrian Speakman for all of their advice, encouragement and wisdom.”
Georgina Usher, BF CEO, added,
“I have great respect for the dedication and commitment that these referees show to the sport. Referees of this calibre play such an important role in fencing, contributing to creating the very best competition environments both domestically and abroad.”
George Liston, Chair of Scottish Fencing, said,
“The commitment shown by individual officials is often overlooked, and I am particularly pleased to see two Scots among them. Referees of this standard are vital for the development of our sport. They will now be role models for those who aspire to develop their refereeing skills and will keep developing fencers abreast of changes that affect them. Congratulations to all three.”
If you’re interested in joining the BF Referee Pathway Program, please click here for further information.
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