Fencing
has been a significant part of my life for four years. In
eighth grade, when I was 13, I decided to try fencing at
my school. I had always enjoyed playing with swords, and
lots of people had told me that fencing was fun, so I looked
forward to it a lot. I soon discovered, however, that fencing
was a very difficult sport to do well in. I discovered that,
like all other activities, intensive training and unwavering
dedication are crucial to improving in fencing. In October
of that year, I went to my first tournament. I didn't expect
to do very well because the people there had been fencing
for many years. In the first round, I had to face the top
ranked fencer there. Much to my surprise, she had been sick
recently and was not able to perform to her potential. Because
of her weakness, I was able to win the match. Realizing
that my hard work had paid off, I started to work harder
in practice, and, after the season ended, decided to join
a club during the off season.
For two years I slowly improved. It seemed, though, that
whenever I made a significant breakthrough and was on the
verge of taking my fencing to another level, something always
happened that caused me to fall behind again. For example,
after Christmas break of eighth grade, I got sick with the
flu and was out for two weeks. When I went back, I had to
take time to get my strength and endurance back; my previous
progress was lost. Finally, though, at the start of tenth
grade, things started to fall in place for me.
I decided at the start
of tenth grade that it was finally time to get a lot better.
I had only two years to impress college coaches before I
sent my applications to the colleges I wanted to attend.
So, I began competing in as many tournaments as possible.
The experience I gained at those local events accelerated
my progress, and that winter I started competing in national
tournaments. By the end of tenth grade, I was ranked third
in Texas and in the top 20 in the United States. Today,
nearly a year and a half after I started that ascent, I
continue to improve.
It is also important,
however, to keep an element of fun in any sport. If a sport
is not fun, it is impossible to truly excel in it. For me,
fencing is, under all the competition and pressure, a fun
game that I enjoy playing. If this were not the case, it
would be impossible for me to continue doing it for long.
I think that everyone should remember that there is no reason
to do anything if it is not somewhat enjoyable. I suppose
that is my message: though there is always pressure to succeed,
it is important to remember to have fun in everything we
do.
