The lunge is the signature attacking movement of fencing: from the en-garde stance, the front leg drives forward and the back leg straightens explosively, propelling the weapon arm and point toward the target while the body stays balanced for a quick recovery. It dramatically extends a fencer’s reach for a single attack, allowing them to hit from outside the opponent’s expected range. Combined with footwork that sets up the right distance (measure), a well-timed lunge is the most common way to score. Variations include the advance-lunge and the explosive flèche.
Key points
- Front leg drives, back leg straightens
- Explosively extends reach to hit
- Recovery to en-garde must be quick
- The most common scoring attack
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