Fencing is a sport which is both captivating and incredibly impressive to perform, and 11-year-old Olivia Deakin has already found a huge passion for it.

Having grown up surrounded by sport, Olivia was seeking a new challenge and looked upon fencing as a potential idea.

Barry Massey, Chairman of Ashton Fencing Club, knew that this would be a sport that Olivia would love, so invited her down to try out a session.

Almost instantly, she fell in love with the sport and found it incredibly ‘engaging’.

“I love the people at the club, there’s always so many fights going on and everyone is so friendly.

“If you lose a fight, you shake hands and if you get something wrong, then they’ll teach you right way and no one judges you for it,” she says.

Olivia has also loved making so many new friends while being at the club, she thinks it’s so important to have different friends in different groups.

After only being a member of Ashton Fencing Club for the last 10 weeks, Olivia has already learnt so much and loves to develop her skills.

“When I first started I was rubbish and I couldn’t even hold the sword right. But I would say you have to keep going because you might just find a talent for it,” she says.

A usual night sees the fencers taking part in a warm-up, stretches and then footwork techniques before they grab their gear and begin fencing.

It really is a fantastic sport and offers such a different skillset away from conventional sports.

The Droylsden Academy student has always had a huge passion for sport. She played netball and learnt how to play football during lockdown from her dad.

However, her heart also lies with dancing, a sport which she has taken part in since she was just 2 years old.

As a member of KC Theatrics Dance Academy in Hyde, Olivia loves to dance and enjoys working towards different goals.

“I love the shows that we do, and I love the dress rehearsal when everyone is frantic getting ready!

“We also do an exam after each show and I love to prepare for those too,” she said.

Keeping herself as busy as possible, Olivia enjoys living her active lifestyle and joins in wherever she can.

She still regularly swims after passing all of her stages and loves to do this with her sister.

Her passion for sport is truly inspirational and one which is set to continue as she gets older.

Do you know an inspirational sporting woman in Tameside or Glossop?

Women in Sport is a weekly column which shares the incredible stories of ladies involved in sport across the area. We are always on the lookout for fresh stories to tell. To nominate someone for the column or get involved yourself, please email Katie on katie.catherall@questmedianetwork.co.uk 

You can read last week's column here.

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