The year 2016 is a key one for the FIE, not only in terms of Olympic preparations, but also from the standpoint of youth development. Celebrating the pinnacle of our sport in Rio this summer does not mean we forget about the grassroots of fencing and the importance of creating a pipeline of future champions on every continent.

It is in this spirit that we mark a key milestone in Budapest with the inauguration of the FIE Coaching Academy, which welcomed its first students in January. This is the second educational centre run entirely by the FIE, following the opening of the International School for Fencing Masters in Dakar, Senegal. And it won’t be the last, either: the FIE’s strategic development plan to enhance fencing education worldwide envisages a coaching centre to open on each continent in the coming years.

Negotiations with the Hungarian Fencing Federation to open the Budapest FIE Coaching Academy started immediately after the 2013 World Fencing Championships in the city. Two and a half years later, thanks to the concerted efforts of the FIE and local authorities to find a suitable venue, the Academy is fully operational at its location in the 13th District of Budapest, close to the Danube and Margaret Island.