Crossing International Fences
Junior Nguyen competitively fences across the globe
Jett Nguyen fencing at the Utah national fencing competition
Outside of school, junior Jett Nguyen spends much of his time free time in an unusual but interesting way: fencing.
Nguyen said, “My mom found it as a Groupon and it looked interesting so I just decided to start fencing.” Since then, he has fenced for four years, both individually and with a team.
He practices two hours a day, six times a week. Fencing is physically demanding. He must wear a lot of equipment, and that itself is pretty hot. When conditioning, his team focuses on legs in order to move quickly. It’s a difficult sport but he seems to enjoy it.
Nguyen competes in regional, national, and international competitions. He’s traveled to many states all around the US. He’s also attended fencing competitions in Mexico, Poland, and Germany. To Nguyen, “It’s pretty exciting. It’s a good experience to visit different places and fence more people.”
He’s won regional competitions but not nationals. “It’s harder at the national level.”Although, he has received top 16 and 64. The Poland competition ranks his favorite because “There was a team event and we got fifth out of 22 teams.”
“I’m not sure if I’ll continue after high school, but I hope to. I like to think there is a future in fencing for me.”
