Wheelchair Fencing introduced to Mexico

Six budding wheelchair fencers got a taste for the sport thanks to support from the City’s Mayor Benito Juarez as well as US Ambassador to Mexico Christopher Landau and his son Nathaniel, an international fencer.

The programme, led by the Mexican Paralympic Committee, is well supported by local government organisations and the US Embassy. The exhibition attracted around 30 dignitaries and guests.

Nathaniel Landau and fellow instructor Emanuel Martínez helped show the future fencers how to get started. They took part in exercises such as guarding and beginning to attack and were taught the target areas for the different weapons.

The participants went on to their first formal training sessions whilst more exhibitions are planned around Mexico City. The next will take place on 29 February with organisers receiving a lot of interest from other areas of the country.

Mexico are the latest country to begin to develop wheelchair fencing, joining nations such as Jamaica and Costa Rica who have both made recent strides towards recruiting and training athletes.

More information about the growth of the sport can be found here.