Fencing is conducted on a fencing strip.  Some strips are taped down, some are completely made of metal.

Rules of the Strip
Fencers begin on the en guard lines.  Fencers can move up and down the strip and take up any space on the width of the strip.  If a fencers steps off the end of their end of the strip, the opponent is awarded a point.

Competition
Fencers will fence in pools.  Each fencer will fence another in bouts.  All fencers in a pool will fence each other.  Each bout is fenced to the first five touches with a fencing time of four minutes.  From pools, fencers are seeded into direct elimination.  Here, once a fencer loses, they are out of the competition.  Direct elimination is fenced to a total of fifteen touches.  There will be three bouts (3 minutes fencing time each), with a minute break between each.

Right-Of-Way
One of the most difficult concepts to visualize in foil and sabre fencing is the rule of right-of-way. This rule was established to eliminate apparently simultaneous attacks by two fencers.

In essence, right-of-way is the differentiation of offense and defense, made by the referee. The difference is important only when both the red and green lights go on at the same time in foil and sabre. When this happens, the winner of the point is the one who the referee determined was on offense at the time the lights went on.

Épée does not use the right-of-way in keeping with its dueling origin - he who first gains the touch earns the point. Or, if both fencers hit within 1/25th of a second of each other, both earn a point. However, it is equally important to have a sound defense for épée, since the entire body must be protected from a touch.

How to Follow the Action
For those new to fencing, it is difficult to follow the lightning speed of the fencers' actions. To become more comfortable in watching a fencing bout, focus on one fencer. The fencer being attacked defends himself by use of a parry, a motion used to deflect the opponent's blade, after which the defender can make a riposte, an answering attack. Thus, the two adversaries keep changing between offense and defense. Whenever a hit is made, the referee will stop the bout, describe the actions, and decide whether or not to award a touch.

Fencers seek to maintain a safe distance from each other, that is, out of range of the other's attack. Then, one will try to break this distance to gain the advantage for an attack. At times, a fencer will make a false attack to gauge the types of reactions by the opponent that can be deceived in the real attack.

As you become accustomed to the speed of the game, the tactics and strategies become more apparent, and you will gain a better understanding for the finesse and fascination of fencing!

Weapons of Fencing

The modern Olympic sport of fencing consists of three weapons.  Most fencers choose to learn and compete in one.  The sport of fencing will look very dissimilar to the sword play you see in movies.  The weapons of fencing are:

FOIL
The foil, the modern version of the court sword, has a flexible, rectangular blade (approximately one yard in length) and weights just over a pound.  Touches are scored with a spring-loaded tip of the blade and must land on the torso of the body to counted.

Scoring:
The fencer's valid target area is covered with a metallic cloth vest, called a lamé.  When an opponent's tip hits the vest, the tip depresses and completes an electrical circuit.  This set off a light and a buzzer one the scoring machine on the side of the one who hit.  A colored light signifies that the valid target (the metallic vest) was hit:  a white light signifies that the hit landed outside the target area.  When a light come on, the Referee halts the bout to determine if either fencer has scored a point.  No point is awarded for an off-target hit.

If colored lights go on for both fencers, the Referee must decide who gets the point, based on right of way.  The attacker has the right of way until the other fencer blocks (parries) the attack.  The defender then gains the right of way by making a return thrust (riposte).

EPEE
The épée (pronounced "EPP-pay"), the descendant of the dueling sword, is similar in length to the foil, but is heavier, weighing approximately 27 ounces, with a larger guard (to protect the hand from a valid hit) and a much stiffer blade. Touches are scored only with the point of the blade. The entire body is the valid target area.  The blade is wired with a spring-loaded tip at the end that completes an electrical circuit when it is depressed beyond a pressure of 750 grams. This causes the colored bulb on the scoring machine to light. Because the entire body is a valid target area, the épée fencer's uniform does not include a lamé. Off-target hits do not register on the machine. 

Scoring:
Touches are registered electrically -- the tip of the blade depresses and completes an electrical circuit, triggering a colored light on the machine for the one who hit.  The fencer who hits first get a point and if both fencers hit within 1/25th of a second, both score a point.

SABER
The saber is the modern version of the slashing cavalry sword, and is similar in length and weight to the foil. The major difference is that the saber is a thrusting weapon as well as a cutting weapon (use of the blade). The target area is from the bend of the hips (both front and back), to the top of the head, simulating the cavalry rider on a horse. The saber fencer's uniform includes a metallic jacket (lamé), which covers the target area to register a valid touch on the scoring machine. The mask is different from foil and épée, with a metallic covering since the head is valid target area.

Scoring:
The fencer's valid target are is covered with a metallic cloth jacket, called a lamé.  The mask is also electrically conductive and is connected to the metallic jacket.  The colored light signifies that the valid target (the jacket or mask) was hit.  Hits made outside the target area are not registered.  Anytime a light comes on, the Referee halts the bout and awards, if appropriate, a point.

All information presented above is from the USFA website (www.usfencing.org)