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 at age seven. "I was doing it for fun until around 14 when I beat the Hungarian No. 1 at that time, and realised that this is serious, for real."

Why this sport?

"When I first tried [fencing], I felt like 'this is me'. Fencing is not only about physical or technical capabilities, it's also about mind games. It's not the fastest or the strongest who wins. It's the one who can put the whole cake together."

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 2009 in Ancona, Italy.

Why this sport?

After two years of swimming he wanted to try another sport. He considered taking up tennis before deciding to focus on fencing. "I was hooked from the beginning, and when I began winning some bouts I thought it was the right sport."

When and where did you begin this sport?

She began fencing at age nine.

Why this sport?

She was encouraged to try the sport by her parents, and went to a fencing class where her father coached. She took up foil in grade three of primary school, but competed in sabre at a competition which had a prize of a jigsaw puzzle. She then switched to sabre before starting middle school.

When and where did you begin this sport?

He began fencing in Alexandria, Egypt.

Why this sport?

"I took up basketball first because my family was involved in the sport, but my mother suggested I get involved in an individual sport like fencing."