WITH flashing blades, pupils at Whitchurch CofE Primary School near Ross have been learning the Olympic sport of fencing with the help of former Commonwealth fencer Dan Robinson.

Over two days, Dan worked with pupils from both key stages who thoroughly enjoyed the challenge of getting to grips with the demanding sport.

Once the tricky task of putting on the mask and fencing jacket had been done, pupils got their first taste of going head to head with a foil (fencing sword).

Initially they became familiar with holding the foil and moving backwards and forwards and as they progressed, they learnt the rules about hits. They then took part in fencing against each other.

They particularly enjoyed this stage and once they realised that they could not be hurt, their confidence grew and the so did their skills.

As a highlight pupils had a chance to fence Dan Robinson himself and see if they could score points. Lots of points were scored and nobody wanted to end the session!