USFA Coaches & Retired Olympians

May 16, 2024

To: Board Members of USFA:

David Arias, Peter Burchard, Damien Lehfeldt,

Abdel Salem, Molly Hill, Ben Bratton, Lauryn DeLuca,

Kat Holmes, Nzingha Prescod, Darryl Jacobs,

Amanda Nguyen, Aimee Rice, Emily Bian,

Donald Alperstein, Mike Joo, Selina Kaing, Peter Barton

CC: Referee Council

CC: USFA Athlete Council

CC: United States Olympic and Paralympic Athlete Commission

CC: United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee

CC: International Fencing Federation

CC: International Olympic Committee

CC: International Olympic Committee Athlete Commission

CC: Rob Koehler, Director Global Athlete

Re: Allegations on Saber Fencing Bout Manipulation

Dear Board Members,

We, as the collective group of US Saber Fencing Coaches and Retired Saber Olympians, would like to address the urgent issue of saber fencing bout manipulations at the US and international levels which have impacted US Olympic selection egregiously and demoralized our saber fencers.

We are extremely concerned with the process that US Fencing has put in place to investigate allegations of bout manipulation. The athletes we have heard from have no confidence in the current investigation for several reasons:

1. US Fencing has set up a one-way investigation relying on people who fear retribution to come forward and provide evidence. To our knowledge, the investigation has not followed up on leads and pertinent evidence that have exposed the manipulation. The investigation process has not been transparent in defining the scope, goals, and outcomes and it has been frustrating to us all.

2. Athletes and officials are being told that the investigators need people to talk “on the record”. This is concerning as everyone was led to believe that the investigation’s terms of reference would protect whistleblowers, therefore any evidence should be considered on the record with confidently upheld and protected.

3. The interim investigation suspension of Mr. Jacobo Morales and Mr. Brandon Romo has left the impression that US Fencing is lenient on match-fixing. The suspension of only 9 months for both of these referees, who were found guilty of violating the USA Fencing Referee Code of Ethics, the FIE Technical Rules, and the FIE Ethical Code (International Fencing Federation) for the San Jose NAC on January 6, 2024, is ineffective as both referees continue to direct international FIE bouts and some domestic ones!

4. US Fencing has determined they will not be reallocating the points acquired from the bout manipulation, where the two referees mentioned above were suspended. If this investigation is to be fair and ethical, points must be reallocated for manipulated matches.

5. Athletes are aware that evidence exists that discloses money being offered to fix matches, yet they have been told there is not enough proof. Additionally, the undersigned coaches who have testified to the investigation have informed the investigators that cheating has occurred, yet their expert input has been disregarded.

6. The interim investigation report has not been made public and the current investigation process has not been transparent, leaving many athletes confused and betrayed. 

Sadly, everyone in the fencing community knows about the match manipulation happening in our sport. US Fencing is just as aware of this ‘open secret’ as the rest of the community, yet they refuse to act responsibly to expose the rot in our sport, leaving them complicit. In addition, US Fencing has been censoring our athletes’ right to free speech, editing what can and cannot be said.

Bout manipulation has been raised to USFA for the last three years, yet the issue continues to prevail in our sport. To uphold and protect a level piste for all our athletes, we urge the board members of USFA to take action. First, to ensure the report from the investigators is made public.  Without an open and transparent investigation that protects whistleblowers, athletes’ confidence in the governing body will be weak. Secondly, to reallocate the points from the bout manipulation so that the Olympic selection process maintains its integrity.

Thank you in advance for protecting our athletes, protecting the integrity of our sport, and supporting fair play. 

Sincerely,