When and where did you begin this sport?

She began fencing at age 11.

Why this sport?

She tried a number of sports, including dancing and taekwondo, before finding fencing. "I was interested in taekwondo and so I did it all the way until I was age 11 and I got my black belt. But then my mother still wanted me to dance and in between she made me do ice skating. I liked it, but I was not so good at it. And then my father stepped in and said, 'Why don't you try fencing?' Fencing is like the ballet of sports, it is very elegant and I really, really liked it."

When and where did you begin this sport?

He began fencing in 2008.

Why this sport?

He was involved in artistic gymnastics when he was younger, but switched sports after watching Japanese fencer Yuki Ota win a silver medal in individual foil at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. He started out in foil before changing to epee while he was in high school after winning an epee tournament.

When and where did you begin this sport?

She began fencing at age six after watching her father fence at a local competition. "My siblings and I thought the sport was strange and interesting-appearing, so my dad started teaching us the basics in our empty dining room and taking us to a club twice a week that was 1.5 hours away from where we lived."

Why this sport?

She and her brother and sister followed their father, Steve Kiefer, into the sport. "Growing up my dad decided that he wanted to take up fencing again. He hadn't picked up a foil in 10 or 15 years, and me and my siblings watched him compete at a local tournament. Then he asked if we wanted to try it, and we said yes. Twenty years later I'm still doing it."

When and where did you begin this sport?

He took up the sport in the fourth grade at primary school.

Why this sport?

"My parents were both basketball players, so it was only natural I followed in their footsteps during my early years. All the basketball classes were suspended during the long holidays when I was probably in primary four. My father asked if I would be interested in taking a fencing course so that I could get some exercise and kill some time during the break. I thought about it for a while before saying yes."

When and where did you begin this sport?

She took up the sport at age eight and began competing in 2010.

Why this sport?

She followed her older sister, who was a member of the Strasbourg Universite Club.

When and where did you begin this sport?

He began the sport at age 12 in Marseille, France.

Why this sport?

He followed his older brother into the sport. "I had no idea what fencing was. I would go to competitions with our father and I met a trainer, who has since become a close friend, and he proposed that I try it for a week. I did three or four sessions and after that there was a local competition that I won. I didn't even know about the difference in weapons, all I knew was the sabre because that's what was in our house. Looking back, destiny was kind because this weapon suits my character."