SAM PARISH, one of Guernsey’s top young fencers, produced his best to win gold medals for foil, sabre and epee in the senior under-17 section of the Woolwich CI Fencing Championships. This year’s event, hosted by Guernsey’s Sarnia Sword Club at La Mare de Carteret School, also produced a record entry of 73 youngsters from Guernsey and Jersey.

‘The quality of the day’s competition showed that Channel Islands fencing is positively thriving at junior level,’ said the club’s Meyrick Simmonds.

‘This success reflects the hard work of fencing organisers and coaches on both islands, and the financial support given to junior fencing in Guernsey by the Woolwich Building Society.’

At sabre, boys fenced at under-15, under-17 and under-20 levels.

At under-15, the final bout was contested between Jersey’s Michael Daniells and Guernsey’s Thomas Miller.

The Sarnian fenced well to edge out the Jersey fencer for a well-deserved gold medal.

Guernsey’s Jamie Ellington and Parish met in the first of several titanic clashes in the final bout of the under-17 sabre.

In this, Parish’s greater determination won him his first title of the day by 15 hits to 12.

In the under-20 section, Glen Ashworth outfought a less-experienced Alistair Wrench by only one hit at 15-14 to win gold.

The women’s age-group sabre events were fought as one competition. In the final, Jersey’s Katie Slater, delivering effective attacks, was well matched by Jenny Harding’s equally crisp, accurate ripostes. Harding won her first sabre title by 15-11, however, with two well-timed attacks of her own.

The junior women’s epee was an all-Guernsey affair, with Harding reaching her second final bout of the day against Hollie Redhead.

Harding could not repeat her sabre success, however, giving Redhead the title by 15 hits to 11.

As in the sabre, the epee competitions were fought at three age levels.

At under-20, Jersey’s Christopher Lees used classic fencing to beat Guernsey’s Ashworth by 15 hits to six.

In the final of the under-15 event, Guernsey’s Alex Harlow met Jersey’s Edward Tidy, who had fenced well to reach this stage of the competition.

Though Tidy fought well, Harlow won his first CI junior title, by 10 hits to two.

The under-17 event again saw Ellington pitted against his old rival, Parish in the final bout, which again produced some powerful fencing.

Each badly wanted to win a fascinating contest but, eventually, Parish won a pulsating fight by 15 hits to 13.

The day’s foil events produced the largest entries of the championships, with the under-11 and under-13 categories fought as mixed competitions.

Jersey’s Harriet Christie won the under-11 title from Guernsey’s Barnaby Christopher by 10 hits to three, while in the under-13 event, Alexander Petit, also from Jersey, won a well-deserved trophy from his Jersey colleague, Grant Keyhoe, by 10 hits to eight.

The girls’ under-15 event was won by Rosie Milner, a very promising young Guernsey fencer, who defeated Helen Dack by 10 hits to one.

In the junior women’s event, Redhead had to overcome opposition from first Harding (15-11) and then Heidi Sheppard (15-10) on her way to the title.

Throughout the boys’ under-15 foil competition, only the odd hit marked the difference between victory and defeat.

Guernsey’s Harlow gained his second final place of the day by defeating Jersey’s David Speller by only one hit. Ryan Ashworth edged past Laurence Makins by 10 hits to seven to become his opponent.

In the final bout, Ashworth made his greater experience count, eventually winning a keen contest by 12 hits to six.

The last event of the day saw Parish and Ellington resume hostilities in the under-17 foil semi-final.

Foil is Parish’s strongest weapon while Ellington is a more natural sabreur so the former gained his third final place of the day by 15 hits to three.

John Breslin provided more opposition to Marcel de Garis, another strong junior Guernsey fencer, before being eliminated by nine hits to 15.

While Parish is developing into a fine fencer, de Garis has improved his skills hugely in the past two seasons.

So the result of this pulsating fight was in doubt until the end.

The bout ended in Parish’s favour when he completed a clean sweep of under-17 titles by 15 hits to 11.