The NY Times “featured” fencing as one of the examples of colleges cheating on women’s participation numbers to meet Title IX requirements for their schools.  Fencers have read the article, watched the video, and submitted their letters to the editor.

You can read the comments, including several touching on how Title IX has decimated NCAA fencing here: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/01/sports/01inbox.html

As a fencer who competed against former NCAA teams at John’s Hopkins, the US Naval Academy, NC State, Rutgers, and Cornell, this quote summed up what’s happened to a number of teams:

The Cornell men who practice with the women’s squad are but a vestige of a strong men’s varsity team that was cut long ago because of Title IX. The men still compete against varsity teams, but they are forced to go it alone outside the fencing salle: they have to be their own coaches, trainers, team managers and administrators, all on a small budget outside the athletic department.

Just this week Brown’s fencing program was granted a stay of execution.  Will all NCAA fencing go the way of the Collegiate Club Championships soon?