New York, NY (June 9, 2021) — Does an A21-rated fencer make you quake in your shoes? How about a D19?
Looking at the list of competitors and their ratings prior to a tournament can be confusing. As, Bs, Cs, the ubiquitous Us — what does it all mean? Consider this your essential explanation of the US Fencing letter rating system.
The tournament rating specifics can be found here, however, it’s a lot easier to read this explanation.
The Basics:
Ratings range from U (Unrated) to E, D, C, B, and A (the highest). Fencers will have a separate rating for each weapon they compete with. They are typically unrated for weapons they do not compete with.
Fun Fact: When ratings were MUCH harder to earn, fencers could be on national teams as Bs. If you earned an A in one weapon, you were given a C in the other two weapons because you were deemed a fencing expert . It was considered unfair to pit you against actual beginners.
Each letter rating has a year attached to it, indicating when it was earned (E20 is from 2020, A19 is from 2019, etc.). Letters with a recent year are ranked higher than older ones because they are a more accurate depiction of the fencer’s current skill level. Whether you earn a rating at the start of the year or the end of the year, they are valued equally.
Letter rankings degrade after four years. Athletes must renew their ratings every four years, or they are reclassified down one letter after Summer Nationals. For example, a non-renewed C17 will degrade to a D21 in July 2021. Any 2016 ratings were given a bonus year because of Covid halting tournaments, so rating degradation occurs in July 2021 instead of July 2020.
Point rankings up to a certain amount will supersede the letter rankings. Especially relevant in youth events, an unrated fencer ranked third from points will be above someone who is E rated but only 14th on points.
Ratings are effective because they are a way to gauge a fencer’s relative strength. Some ratings are harder to earn than others. A C rating can be earned without beating other C fencers (C2), whereas I earned my B 34 times before finally getting my A rating.
Is the ratings system perfect? Nothing is, but the main flaw I can see is that there are no international ratings. I’ve been to many tournaments where a world team member from another country comes in unrated and proceeds to blow up their poor, unsuspecting pool. Athletes can be over/under-ranked from what their letter is, but letters are generally accurate.
Regardless, ratings serve as a sign of achievement in your athletic career. Each letter represents a benchmark of a skill level as you progress up through the ranks in the fencing world.
Zack Brown is an A-rated saber fencer who was ranked 9th in the country during the 2016 Olympic year. He has competed in several World Cups and Grand Prix. Brown is also an FIE-rated referee and international medalist coach.