By Sok Lak
The Cambodia Fencing Federation (CFF) sent two athletes to join Olympic Solidarity Fencing Coaching Course to be held at the PSC Fencing Center, Philsports Complex, Pasig City, Philippines on August 18 to 30, 2011.
H.E. Means Sarin, Secretary of State for Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport and Vice President of CFF, said that under the support of Fencing Confederation of Asia (FCA) and International Fencing Federation (IFF), an effort to send two fencing athletes to send two fencing athlete to study the coaching course in Philippines was made. The sponsor covers the costs for the whole process of the athletes’ training.
“”Course will develop athlete to be best athlete and coach in the future,” he said. He expected that after the course they can promote the skill of Cambodian athletes as well as to promote this sport to youth in order to develop this kind of sport in Cambodia.
It is first time that Dr. Celso Dayrit support Cambodia. He will help Cambodia to organize coaching course in Cambodia if Cambodia has fencing athletes from 10 to 25 and then he will help one athletes to join 26th SEA Games in Indonesia if the Government of Cambodia agrees to help with accommodation and food of Cambodia athletes, Dr. Celso Dayrit, President of FCA, President of Philippine Fencing Federation and Former President of Olympic Committee of Philippine (1999-2004), said at the General Assembly of Asia Fencing Federation in March this year.
Recently, IFF sponsor equipments to federation such as two Plastic Piest for training and four electronic scoring tables.
H.E. Sarin stressed that fencing is a sport for youth which can make them majestic, courageous, smart, handsome or beautiful and healthy. “Fencing is a kind of sport which can get more medals among other sport, because this sport does not focus on physically, but it is mainly focus on skill and technique.” Even though Cambodian athletes train not regularly, but Cambodia athletes ranked number five. If Cambodian athletes train more, he believed that Cambodian athletes can achieve a good result on the international stage.
Khlok Ratana, former fencing athletes and treasurer of CFF, said that there are three kinds of fencing: Foil, Epee and Sapre. “This sport is not only making people healthy, but it is also making them handsome or beautiful.” In western country, they train on this sport in order to be actor or actress. He planned to take this sport to shoot a film in Cambodia.
Ms. Chhay Chansithary, a female fencing athlete who is ranked number five in the Southeast Asia, said that she will try all her effort to learn as much as she can. After training, she plans to teach Cambodia youth about fencing. “I used to train one time for half month in Philippine while there is a tournament there, but I did not join the tournament, because the federation has no money to register. At that time, I did not learn much as well while I could not eat enough food. This time, I believe that I am able to learn more from this course.”
Mr. Hang Chetha, a male fencing athlete, said that this course can make him stronger. In the coming SEA Games, he excepts that he can join it in order to get medal as well as learn more experience. The federation established since 2006. In the past time, it conducted coaching course one time in Cambodia while there are 20 athletes participating. With difficulty of federation to find a place and funds in developing sport, the federation has no more athletes to train anymore. Nowadays, there are only amateur athletes and two clubs in Phnom Penh. With the long-term goal, the federation is optimistic to develop fencing in order to progress in the future.
Source: The Southeast Asia Weekly, August 21-27, Vol. 5, Issue 34, Page 12
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