As a young man, Dave Micahnik displayed dashing swordplay in three Olympics.
Now, at 56, Micahnik is one of thousands of senior fencers competing at tournaments across the country.Last year Micahnik joined top fencers of all ages at the national championships in Louisville, Ky. While the younger competitors were vying for a spot on the American team, about 120 older fencers were simply enjoying being competitors again.
Micahnik wasn't even close to being the oldest. Robert Berg, 81, of Miami, held this honor, while Lya Korda, 75, of Plantation, Fla., was the oldest female. Ralph Spinella, 72, of Wolcott, Conn., was the oldest fencer to take any trophies, winning in both foil and epee categories for his age group.
Of the more than 13,000 members of the United States Fencing Association, more than 800 are over age 55. The ages of members climb well into the 70s, with nearly 200 over 75.
Fencing, like other combat sports, requires agility, swift reflexes, stamina and the ability to take a hit. As in many sports, older members are considered senior athletes and compete against their peers rather than against younger opponents.
Once typically seen only in large cities in the Northeast, fencing has increased in popularity in cities and towns across the country. In a university extension course at California State University at Sacramento each semester, older students are not unusual.
"There's no age limit on fencing as long as your hand-eye coordination is there," said instructor Phil Stillman, himself 74. "And as you get older, you get sneaky to conserve energy out there."
During one class, Stillman demonstrated that principle when he sparred with a student nearly 50 years his junior. Suited up in the appropriate whites and protective gear required in competitive fencing, they began the duel.
Stillman posed in fighting stance with his foil - a light, thin sword. His young, female opponent raised her foil in readiness for combat.
With an "en garde, fence!" from the main judge, the two tensed and began the wary dance of fencers, looking for the quarter-inch opening needed to thrust the point of the foil into the target - the opponent's torso.
After a minute or so of timid sparring and easy defense, Stillman was facing the pointed tip of his opponent's weapon. But with eye-deceiving swiftness, Stillman deflected a lunge and successfully jabbed his foil home for a point.
The judges chuckled. Stillman's opponent shook her head in frustration.
On the sidelines, 58-year-old Larry Woelfel appreciated the sight of a 74-year-old man outmaneuvering a 25-year-old. A beginner, Woelfel says he showed a bit of competitive prowess at a recent fencing tournament, too.
"I was 40 years older than some of them," said Woelfel with a laugh. "And I did OK."
In contrast, 62-year-old Chaba M. Pallaghy, of Milford, Pa., hasn't fenced competitively in decades. A member of Hungary's national team in 1966 and a gold and bronze medal winner at the Pan Am games in 1963, Pallaghy is happy to rest on his laurels.
"I've been fencing off and on since then," says Pallaghy, who attended the Louisville competition in his capacity as the vice president of the International Fencing Association. "I don't want people to beat me whom I've beat in the past. I'm preserving my reputation."
Micahnik, back in competition, is joining other former Olympic fencers in pursuing the possibility of a "Cavalcade of Champions" at this year's national finals, the site for the final trials for the summer's Olympics.
"I retired from competition when I was 33," says Micahnik, who is now head fencing coach for the University of Pennsylvania. That was in 1972, when he failed to make the Olympic team, losing in the semifinals in the qualifying competition. He quit fencing that year and turned to coaching.
Last year, on a whim, he started fencing competitively again. He called his old coach - then 91 - to help him get back into shape.