What protective equipment is tested for, and what that does not promise.

What the FIE says its rules do and do not do

• Reinforce, not guarantee. The FIE Technical Rules (December 2024 edition, t.20) say fencers arm, equip and clothe themselves and fence at their own risk, and that the safety measures in the rules, the annexed standards and the control methods are designed only to reinforce safety, not to guarantee it.
• Protection against movement. The FIE Material Rules (August 2026, m.25.1) ask for the maximum protection compatible with the freedom of movement fencing needs.
• Untested for effect. The IOC chapter on fencing injury (Harmer, 2010) states that FIE safety-related equipment and rule changes had rested on face validity, and that, up to its publication, no research had tested whether any of them reduce injury.

FIE requirements for protective kit (Material Rules, August 2026)

Annexe A also sets out which parts the FIE Medical Committee treats as vital to protect: for the plastron, the neck under the bib, the hollows above and below the collar bone, the area around the sword-arm armpit and the heart; for the trousers, the abdomen, groin and genitals.

Blades: steel and fatigue, by weapon

The Material Rules make maraging steel blades obligatory at all three weapons (m.2.1). Annexe A requires blade steel to withstand high exertion and resist breaking, with a yield strength of at least 1900 N/mm2 and a tensile strength of at least 2000 N/mm2 after heat treatment, and requires every blade to pass a non-destructive electromagnetic check of its whole surface before sale. For homologation, blades must survive a set number of bending cycles before breaking, with at least 8 blades exceeding it:

At World Championships and the Olympic Games, an electromagnetic check of blades at weapon control is mandatory (m.42.2.g). These are thresholds a blade design must meet to be homologated; they are not a statement of how long any blade will last, and no source in the research gives one.

EN 13567, the European standard

• The edition in force is EN 13567:2002+A1:2007, covering protective clothing and hand, arm, chest, abdomen, leg, genital and face protectors for fencers (AFNOR catalogue). A revision, prEN 13567, is under way at CEN technical committee 162; its comment period closed on 28 January 2025 (Genorma catalogue).
• The standard's text was not read: it is sold by standards bodies. Its levels are given here as the bodies applying it describe them. British Fencing gives CEN Level 1 as 350 Newtons for clothing with a 350N mask bib, and CEN Level 2 as 800 Newtons for clothing with a 1600N bib. The FIE's 2009 homologation handbook says EC tests for FIE clothing, under-plastrons and masks were done to EN 13567 level 2.
• British Fencing (as at 13 March 2026) says the CE mark is the maker's declaration of compliance with EU law, and that meeting Level 2 does not by itself make an item FIE-approved: an FIE mark means the FIE has approved the item.

Homologation: who decides

Under Annexe A, FIE-labelled material used at official FIE competitions must hold a certificate of homologation from the FIE's SEMI Commission. Homologation is compulsory for blades, points, protective clothing including masks and gloves, scoring apparatus, pistes and video systems. The SEMI may buy items on the market for independent testing, and homologation may be withdrawn if material no longer conforms. The SEMI's July 2014 minutes record that some equipment involved in fencing accidents had tested below the homologation standard despite carrying the correct label, raising the possibility of counterfeit items or weaker later batches.

Regulators act too. In Decision 2011/49/EU, the European Commission upheld a United Kingdom ban on a 350N fencing jacket and breeches after a UK test found insufficient penetration resistance under EN 13567:2002, finding a serious risk to users. More cases are on recalls and incidents.

Below FIE level, national rules set lower figures

• USA Fencing (Rules for Competition, October 2026): FIE-homologated uniforms and masks are not required, the mask bib must resist 350 Newtons, and a note says the plastron need not be 800 Newton material, although the same rulebook's m.25.3.c still reproduces the FIE's 800 N wording, so the document disagrees with itself. Its Athlete Handbook 2026-2027 requires 800 N sabre gloves at all levels.
• British Fencing (Equipment by Activity, 2 October 2026): CEN 1 (350 Newtons) kit for beginners, lessons and younger fencers; a CEN 2 (800 Newtons) plastron for general training and BF competition; CEN 2 kit with the FIE mark at FIE competitions. British Fencing's own markings page (as at 13 March 2026) differs on the plastron, giving 350N as the minimum for metal club fencing with 800N recommended.

Which level applies is set by the competition and the club, not by the kit. The rules item by item are on EN 13567 and protection levels, FIE homologation and national equipment rules, and youth levels on youth rules.