Category: Competitions

EFC Krakow – Wawel Dragon Trophy

Normally taking place towards the end of the cadet season, this event attracts a good number of fencers and is definitely worth a visit.

Introduction

Normally taking place towards the end of the cadet season, this event attracts a good number of fencers and is definitely worth a visit. The only negative I have is that it’s held in two different halls, so it feels a bit disjointed and if you’re in the com-com zone hall, it almost feels like you’re in a different competition all-together. Krakow normally doesn’t have a team competition, so bear that in mind.

It’s very similar to Challenge Wratislava in my mind – but maybe that’s just because both take place in Poland!

Years attended – 2020 & 2022

Venue

Hala Widowiskowo & Com-Com Zone

The main hall is Hala Widowiskowo and the extra pistes are located a 2 minute walk away in the com-com zone. Both are good spaces, but it’s worth noting that the cafe, shop and majority of the action takes places in the main hall. And like I mention above, this is very much like the ORBITA sports hall used for Challenge Wratislava in that it’s right on the outskirts and is a taxi ride from pretty much wherever you choose to stay.

Hala widowiskowo (Main Venue)
Com-Com Zone (Second Hall)
Main Hall
Second Hall
Equipment Shop
Cafe
Main Hall

Hotels

We opted for a bit of luxury for our visit and stayed at the Sheraton Grand. It ticked all the boxes to be fair, but for our second visit we opted for the Holiday Inn Krakow City Centre which would be my recommendation. Very well situated for the old town – just a couple of minutes walk – and a quick enough taxi journey to the venue.

A few fencers stayed closer to the venue, but discovered there were very few restaurants near to their hotels so ended up getting a taxi in to the city centre.

Shops & Places To Eat

Krakow old town has a lot of choices, we ate at Betmanowska Residence on the main square which is definitelty geared towards catering for tourists. There is though one place I would strongly recommend in the old town and that’s Czarna Kaczka / Black Duck. A reservation will definitely be needed, but it’s well worth finding time to pay this amazing restaurant a visit.

EFC Copenhagen

What can I say about this event – it’s all round one of the best competitions you could wish to attend.

Introduction

What can I say about this event – it’s all round one of the best competitions you could wish to attend. It literally ticks all the boxes with a fantastic modern venue, amazing hospitality, great atmosphere, excellent facilities, it runs like clockwork and generally has an entry standard suitable for cadets at most competitive levels. They have also been very accomodating to sort our opportunities to fence in the team competition with fencers from other nations if you don’t have your own team. Combine all that with Christmas in Copenhagen, and this is a real winning combination.

Years attended – 2016, 2018, 2019 & 2021

Venue

Gentofte Sportspark

It’s a large modern sports hall and it is hands down one of the best spaces for a fencing competion you could with to fence in.

Main Entrance
Main Hall
Main Hall
Second Hall
Second Hall
Main Hall stands

Event Videos

Marco Balzano ITA v. Alban Diane FRA (L64 fight – 2016)
Leonardas Kalininas LTU v. Alex Oroian ROU (L16 fight – 2016)
Mattia Magni ITA v. Igor Borisov RUS (L32 fight – 2016)
Ben Andrews GBR v. Francesco Leone ITA (L32 fight – 2016)
Hugo Brandberg SWE v. Liam Kew GBR (Team Competition – 2021)

Hotels

There are essentially two options most fencers have chosen over the years – Gentofte Hotel is the closest to the venue and sometimes a shuttle bus is available. The rooms though are quite small and it can be very expensive. The alternative is the Scandic Eremitage in Lyngby. This is a more affordable hotel but does require a train journey to the venue. One thing to note about staying in Lyngby is that are more restaurant choices than there are in Gentofte.

Shops & Places To Eat

If your are staying at the Gentofte Hotel then your eating options are a little limited. The hotel restaurant is a fine dining experience. A short walk is SuperBrugsen and Netto for any needed shopping, and Big Bens pizza. Heading in the other direction is Armando’s, another pizza place. All these places get booked up as there are not so many choices. For our last visit in 2021 a new takeaway pizza place had opened right next to the hotel – Costa Smeralda Pizzeria.

In Lyngby there is a lot more places to choose from – we ate in Green Mango and the amazing Halifax burger shack.

Dinner at the Gentofte Hotel

EFC Grenoble – Challenge Mondial

A great competition with a good number of entries and high standard of fencing – just prepare for any eventuality and a small amount of chaos.

Introduction

If you were to pick an outlier of all the competitions on the cadet circuit, this is probably it. Thankfully things have become a little more simple in the past couple of years, but you only have to go back to 2016 when there were 2 rounds of poules, 2 cuts and a repechage from the L32 – something that no other event was doing. However, all things considered, it’s always been a great competition with a good number of entries and high standard of fencing – just prepare for any eventuality and a small amount of chaos.

Years attended – 2017, 2018, 2019 & 2021

Venue

Halle Clémenceau

It looks terrible from the outside (take a look on Google maps street view), but inside it has a lot of character. It can feel a bit busy and cramped in the pistes area, but there is plenty of seating and it does have a great atmosphere. The food served in the cafe is definitely a major positive too., There is though one big negative – the toilets are horrendous and they have a septic tank at one end of the venue which can be a bit aromatic.

Main Hall
Main Hall
Main Hall
Main Hall – Competition Day

Event Videos

Theo Brochard SUI v. Semen Zhukov RUS (Semi Final – 2019)
Damiano Di Veroli ITA v. Igor Borisov RUS (L64 fight – 2017)
Theo Brochard SUI v. Mikhail Kazmin RUS (Final – 2019)
Jules Mangin FRA v. Simone Mencarelli ITA (L32 fight – 2017)
Quentin Podique FRA v. Ethan Kew GBR (Team competition – 2018)

Hotels

By far and away the most popular place for fencers to stay is ApartHotel Citadines. It’s a short walk through the park to the venue, has some shops and restarants pretty much opposite and has always been a good price.

Another popular choice is the Mercure, which is also just a short walk to venue. As Grenoble is a popular destination for ski holidays, there are quite a lot of available hotels options as well as Airbnbs – we stayed in one along Bd Maréchal Joffre which worked out really well.

Shops & Places To Eat

Your are spoilt for choice really – the restaurant in Pathé Grenoble was a good choice for larger groups. Le Cintra Pub and Le Sporting on Pl. Grenette were good for walk-ins as a lot of places needed a reservation, especially at the weekend. La Palestria on Pl. Grenette is a good destination if you’re after a pizza. As for shops, there are loads so that’s not a problem, although it is worth noting that many do close on Sundays.

Finally, it’s worth mentioning that if there is overlap with the Christmas Markets, then that’s really woth checking out the stalls at Place Victor Hugo.

EFC Bonn – Tank und Rast Pokal

I’ve not got many positives to say about this competition, and I’d probably rank it as the worst organisationally that we went to over the years.

Introduction

I’ve not got many positives to say about this competition, and I’d probably rank it as the worst organisationally that we went to over the years.

I think we started the individual competition at 08.30 in the morning and the L16 only got underway at around 19:30. There were long periods of time when no-one was fencing and the pistes were empty. I remember asking some of the refs about this as that’s quite unusual but it’s seemingly not uncommon for this to happen in Bonn.

Years attended – 2018

Venue

Olympic Fencing Club Bonn

It’s a purpose built fencing facility on the outskirts of Bonn. As a competition venue I thought it was very tight on space.

Main building outside
Main hall
Main hall at registration
Posters in the corridors
Posters in the corridors
Posters in the corridors

Hotels

We stayed in the IntercityHotel Bonn which was very central in Bonn and only a short stroll through the railway tunnel to the excellent Christmas markets and main shopping area.

It was though a taxi journey to the venue which was not really walkable from any city centre hotel.

Shops & Places To Eat

As we stayed very centrally in Bonn there was a supermarket less than 5 minutes walk from the hotel. At the venue though, there were no shops nearby, however there was a cafe selling a range of snacks and drinks.

A popular choice for visiting fencers over the years has been Tuscolo Muensterblick, an Italian restaurant known for it’s very large pizzas. It gets very busy there, so be prepared to queue or book in advance. If the Christmas markets are up and running then you can’t go to far wrong with the food on sale there, but again, it gets very busy.

EFC Klagenfurt – Trofeo Dario Codarin

Despite the travel hassles, this is well worth the effort. Klagenfurt is a picturesque city and the competition venue ranks among the best of the best.

Introduction

This has to be the hardest competition to travel to – we went via Vienna and then a 4 hour train journey to Klagenfurt in 2016 and then tried flights to Ljubljana and a bus through the mountains in 2017.

Despite the travel hassles, this is well worth the effort. Klagenfurt is a picturesque city and the competition venue ranks among the best of the best – it’s huge!

Years attended – 2016 & 2017

Venue

Eissportzentrum Klagenfurt

Quite simply a great venue – easily accomodates 30+ pistes and has room to spare. Great facilities and only a short walk from the hotels in Klagenfurt ciry centre.

Outside entrance
Main Hall
Main Hall
Main Hall
Main Hall cafe area

Event Videos

A look around the venue – 2016

Hotels

We stayed in two hotels – one was quite expensive and the other a bit more budget. Hotel Zlami-Holzer was very affordable and served us well. Der Sandwirth is slightly more up-market and is definitely worth considering – the one negative I can remember is that the restaurant closed very early and wasn’t open on Sunday, but that may have changed over the past few years. Der Sandwirth was definitely a popular choice for many travelling teams.

Shops & Places To Eat

Klagenfurt for us will always bring up the memory of the roast chestnut seller pictured here – quite simply the best roast chestnuts we’ve ever had.

For dinner, you can’t go far wrong with Zum Heiligen Josef or Gasthaus im Landhaushof but both places do get very busy and you’ll need a reservation. For something less formal there were some good pizza places on Alter Platz.

On Sundays very few shops are open, so be sure to grab everything you need on Saturday.

The best roast chestnuts in the world!
Zum Heiligen Josef

EFC Geneve

The standard was very high with most of the entries coming from France, Italy and Switzerland.

Introduction

Quite possibly a one-off EFC cadet event that came in very early on in the season. I don’t think there has been another since, but I could be wrong.

A smaller (just 85 entries in the mens epee), very well organised competition with two rounds of poules – which is extremely unusual for EFC events.

The standard was very high with most of the entries coming from France, Italy and Switzerland.

Years attended – 2018

Venue

École de Commerce et de Culture Générale Aimée-Stitelmann

A nice modern sports hall attached to the business school just a short bus ride away from the city centre. The later stages of the competion were held in an adjacent building that I think was a lecture theatre.

Main Hall
Main Hall
Main Hall
Main Hall

Event Videos

Filippo Armaleo ITA v. Sven Vineis SUI (Final – 2018)

Hotels, Shops & Places To Eat

We stayed at the Ramada Encore Geneva and ate at the Pizzeria Ristorante Molino which was right next to the hotel. The supermarket, which stocked a wide range of water, was located in the shopping centre right behind the hotel – so everything was very convenient. We were there for less than 24 hours, so didn’t get a chance to explore any further.

EFC Budapest – Budapest Cup

The first EFC cadet event that we ever went to and in my opinion, this is by far and away the best of them all.

Introduction

The first EFC cadet event that we ever went to and in my opinion, this is by far and away the best of them all.

Commonly attracting around 300 entries in each category and with participants travelling from all over the world, this is undoubtably a competition that attracts a very high standard of fencer. Combine this with an excellent level of organisation, a great venue (the Gerevich Aladár National Sports Hall – see below), a slick weapons control and registration process, good on-site facilities and being easily accessible from Budapest International Airport (a quick 25 minute transfer) this event has so many positives.

Years attended – 2016, 2017, 2019 & 2021

Venue

Gerevich Aladár National Sports Hall

This historic sports facilty used to host the competition before it moved in 2021 to it’s current home at the BOK Sports and Conference Centre. Full of character and a real labyrinth of a building – in 2016 space was so tight some of the DE’s took place in what appeared to be a storage room deep in the bowels of the building! This was easily one of my personal favourite venues to visit on the cadet circuit.

Main Entrance
Main Entrance
Central Hall – Finals Piste
Central Hall – Finals Piste
Lower Side Hall
Upper Side Hall
Upper Side Hall
Upper Side Hall
Upper Side Hall 2

BOK Sports and Conference Centre

Situated right next to the Puskás Aréna and only a couple of minutes walk from the Danubius Hotel and just a 10 minute walk from the Gerevich Aladár National Sports Hall, this arena complex has been used since 2021 as the new venue for the competition. It’s a purpose built event space, and unfortunately in my opinion, it lacks the character and charm of the previous venue.

Outside
Entrance
Side Hall
Main Hall
Main Hall

Event Videos

Bence Csere HUN v. Pietro Varengo ITA (L8 fight – 2016)
Artem Sarkisian RUS v. Ryan Lee USA (L8 fight – 2019)
Agoston Ko HUN v. Marton Mezinger ROU (L16 fight – 2021)
Filippos Gkogkos GRE v. Francesco Leone ITA (L8 fight – 2016)
Francesco Ferrauti ITA v. Miles Weiss USA (L32 team fight – 2019)
Alec Brooke GBR v. Maksym Mykytenko UKR (Final – 2021)

Hotels

The Danubius Hotel Arena was normally the recommended accommodation by the organisers (and quite possibly still is), and it is literally next door to the venue making it very convenient. It was relatively cheap to stay there, however, it is a very dated hotel and could be described as at best, functional. Personally I would always choose to stay at the Royal Park Boutique Hotel, which is around a 15 to 20 minute walk to the venue. We also stayed at the Lion’s Garden Hotel which is also worth considering especially as it has a restaurant on site.

Shops & Places To Eat

A lot of places had unfortunately closed down when we last attended this event in 2021, so best to check everything in advance. The supermarket in the Récsei Center is a 15 minute walk from the venue and the Danubius Hotel. If you’re staying in the Royal Park Boutique there was a great Spar supermarket almost directly opposite.

There are not so many restaurants in this area but we did have some great meals at Asian Street Food on Thököly Way. Em oi pho on Rottenbiller St was also really nice and is a must visit if you like Vietnamese food. We also tried the restuarants in the Danubius and Lion’s Garden, both served tradditional Hungarian dishes and were generally OK.