Third at the North American Fencing Cup represents only one of the many accomplishments freshman Ravin Singh has achieved. Inspired by lightsabers in “Star Wars,”
Singh could not imagine how far this sport could take him when he started four years ago.
Singh was previously ranked 19th in the country for youth 14 and under and now ranked 91th in the 16 and under category, Last year, he competed in the Junior Olympics and placed 212 out of 397 fencers in the junior Men’s Epee and 211 out of 339 fencers in the Cadet Men’s Epee. The objective of these competitions is to use a blunt sword (epee) to hit the designated attack area on their opponents body with the tip. With more practice after this 2024 season, he will return to the Junior Olympics this February, where he will also compete in a new group: the Division 1 Men’s Epee in addition to the two categories from last year.
“If I continue on this path, I have a great chance to make the 16 and under national team,” Singh said, “That would be a great accomplishment.”
According to the La Jolla Fencing Academy, fencing can help participants improve their fast decision making skills and hand-eye coordination. Singh says he feels it is like boxing and chess combined.
“Half of the sport is about your mental game, while the other is about striking at the right time,” Singh said. “So if you are the strongest competitor, but have the wrong mentality, you won’t perform that well in the tournament.”
Singh trains at the ASER International Fencing Academy located in Sterling, Virginia. Through this program Singh has made many friends and has found a community of people that share the same passion. His friend, junior Nicolas Espinal Dapic, whom he fences with, likes to train with him.
“He’s a really hard worker and helps to push me at practice,” Espinal Dapic said. “My favorite memory with him was competing against him at the North American Cup for a national podium.” Singh ended up winning but it was a close game.
Singh’s brother, junior Aryaman Singh, is also a nationally ranked fencer. He admires the way that Ravin is dedicated to his training and finds ways to improve by himself at home.
“He built his own practice dummy so that he can practice his form,” Aryaman said. “We also cleared out an area in the basement to do footwork and practice ladder drills. On top of that, we have an at-home gym where Ravin likes to use the treadmill and weights.”
To prepare for tournaments, Ravin trains for two hours every Tuesday and Thursday and attends open bouting on Fridays, where he competes against people for practice. On Saturdays he lifts. Sometimes, Ravin says, it can be tricky for him to balance training and school along with other activities.
“The hardest thing is coming back from a tournament, because they usually take two-to-four days and I might have to miss some school,” Ravin said. “So if I have homework or a test, I either have to do it beforehand if the teacher gives me the material or just hope for the best during the test.”
Ravin hopes to continue on a path throughout high school that will get him recruited to a college by the end of senior year; however, after college there is no league for him to keep fencing on after college. He does have his eyes on one prize in 2028 though.
“The Olympics has been my dream for a very long time, hopefully the Los Angeles 2028 games,” Ravin said.
He will compete in the Junior Olympics on Feb. 14-17 at the Charlottesville Convention Center in North Carolina and the March North American Cup in March. 7 at the Huntington Convention Center of Cleveland in Ohio.
