COLCHESTER and District Fencing Club members have qualified for the British Championships.

They booked their places at last weekend’s Eastern Region Championships.

The fencers, ranging from nine to 15 years old, featured in almost all the events across the two-day competition, held in Stevenage.

Some were competing for the very first time.

On the first day, Billy Craven competed in the under-12 boys’ foil and Addison Garland in the under-12 girls’ foil.

Both were fencing in their first championships.

Rahul Aravinthan and Tudor Iordache both fenced well in the under-14s foil category, with Iordache coming eighth overall.

In the under-14 girls’ foil, Colchester were represented well by Erin Rance, Bo Seaborn and Emily Wong.

When it came to the under-16 boys’ foil, fencers Lex Brincklow, Archie Mills, Joseph Rance and Rory Myatt all fenced well.

Rance narrowly missed the medals but took home a respectable sixth from a tough age group.

Brincklow secured a well-deserved bronze medal, in a semi-final that he came so close to winning.

Catherine Cheung competed in a tough under-16 foil line-up for her first competition ever.

Day two saw Oscar Brincklow and Jan Calatayud compete for the medals in the under-14 sabre.

Oscar narrowly missed out but gained a respectable fifth place.

Peter Calatayud, fencing well in the under-16 boys’ Epee, won his poule and DEs.

In the final, he narrowly lost 15-13, winning a greatly deserved silver medal.

Each and every CADS fencer fought well in their respective categories, with Iordache, L Brincklow, J Rance, O Brincklow and P Calatayud all qualifying to represent the Eastern Region in May’s British Youth Fencing Championships.

Both J Rance and L Brincklow used this competition as a warm up for the Paris CEP Marathon the following weekend, where they are both selected to represent England.