The Colorado Springs Gazette

Olympians Help Spread Fencing Exposure to Area Elementary Teachers, Students
 

Youth interest in fencing has grown in recent years. Fencer Tim Morehouse is helping make sure it never slows.

The two-time Olympian, who took home a 2012 silver medal in team fencing, and fellow national team member Jeff Spear launched the first fencing program for Colorado Springs elementary school students last week. They led school assemblies at Banning Lewis Ranch Academy, Pikes Peak Prep, Queen Palmer Elementary School and STAR Academy, followed by a three-hour training session for physical education teachers.

The six-week program began this week. Student interest is as high as the decibel levels, judging from the cheers, heard during a recent assembly.

"I'm really excited," said Haley Misner, 11, a fifth-grader at Queen Palmer. "Not many kids get to do it."

The approximately 1,100 students were exposed to the Olympic sport thanks to Fencing In The Schools, a nonprofit founded by Morehouse, a former seventh-grade teacher in his native New York City, and Spear, of upstate New York, to reach children who never tried the activity before.

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