Video replay for fencing
What video replay does in a fencing bout, how a video review works at the piste, and what a club needs to run one, with or without Reprise.
What video replay is for
A scoring box shows that a touch landed. It doesn’t show how. In foil and sabre the referee decides which fencer had right of way. In all three weapons the referee also judges things the box can’t see: whether the touch came before or after the halt, whether a fencer left the piste, what happened in a corps-à-corps.
Video replay lets the referee watch the action again, slowed down, before deciding. The referee still decides. The video only lets them look again.
How a video review works
At events that use video refereeing, a fencer who disagrees with a call can ask the referee to review it on video. This is an appeal. The referee watches the touch, often frame by frame, and the call either stands or changes.
Under FIE rules, a fencer whose appeal changes the call keeps the appeal. If the call stands, the fencer loses one. How many appeals each fencer starts with is set by the rules of the competition. The referee can also consult the video on their own.
For training and club bouts there are no formal appeals, but the same replay settles arguments, helps referees in training check their calls, and shows a fencer what really happened in the touch.
What you need
A camera at the side of the piste, level with it, covering the whole length. One camera is enough to start. A second angle helps with actions hidden by a fencer’s body.
A screen at the piste for the referee, with slow motion, frame-by-frame stepping and zoom.
A way to find the touch fast. This is the hard part. If someone has to scrub through a recording to find each touch, a review takes minutes. A system connected to the scoring box knows when each light went on and can open the replay right at that moment.
The seconds before the light. A touch starts well before the light goes on, so the recording has to keep the preparation and the attack, not just the end of it.
Frame rate matters more than resolution
Blade actions are fast. At 30 frames per second there are 33 milliseconds between frames; at 60, about 17; at 120, about 8. A parry and riposte can fall between two frames of a slow camera. Good light lets a camera hold its frame rate: in a dim hall many cameras quietly drop it to keep the picture bright.
The ways clubs do it today
A phone on a tripod. Free, and better than nothing. Finding a touch means scrubbing the recording by hand, and nobody can do that quickly in the middle of a bout.
Tournament replay systems. Built for international and national events, connected to the scoring apparatus, run by a dedicated video operator. Out of reach for most clubs, and more than a club night needs.
A tablet or computer linked to the scoring box. The box tells the app when a light goes on, so every touch is clipped automatically and is ready to replay at once. This is what Reprise does.
How Reprise does it
Reprise is video replay for fencing on an iPad or Mac. The Reprise timer plugs into the scoring box’s data port and sends each light, the score, the clock and cards to the app over Bluetooth. The app records the bout into a rolling buffer, and when a light goes on it keeps a clip with the seconds before and after. Nobody presses record. Halts, cards and passivity become clips too.
The referee replays the clip at the piste: frame by frame, down to 0.1× speed, zoomed in. More angles are possible: two cameras on one station, or fencers’ iPhones scanning the station’s QR code. Nothing at the piste needs Wi-Fi or an account.
Reprise is in development. It has been tested on the Favero FA-05; other boxes with a data port are being built against. It is not FIE-homologated.
Questions
Can Reprise be used at FIE competitions?
No. Reprise is not FIE-homologated. It is made for clubs, training, referee development and regional events.
Which scoring boxes does it work with?
The Favero FA-05 has been tested on hardware. The Favero FA-01, FA-07 and FA-15, Allstar, St George and Skewered boxes are in development. A box with no data output can’t be read, but the app still works with manual capture.
Do I need internet at the piste?
No. The timer talks to the iPad or Mac over Bluetooth, and clips stay on the device.
Can fencers film with their own phones?
Yes. An iPhone that scans the station’s QR code becomes another angle. Phone angles are marked unofficial.
What does it cost, and when can I get it?
Reprise will be sold to clubs and associations as a bundle: the app, plus one timer per piste. Pricing will be announced at launch. Register your interest and we’ll write when it’s ready.