2025 BF HONOURS FOR SERVICES TO FENCING ANNOUNCED

Congratulations to all those awarded honours in the 2025 BF Honours List for services to fencing. Recipients will be formally recognised at the upcoming AGM on Saturday 25th October.

The BF Honours are awarded to members who have made a significant contribution to fencing in the UK whilst upholding our values of honesty, respect and excellence. This year’s recipients will be formally recognised at the upcoming AGM, which will take place on Saturday 25th October, 2025. Click here for more info about the AGM.

Where recipients are not able to make the AGM in person, we will be arranging presentations at a later date.

To view the 2025 BF Honours for fencing performances, click here.

Vice-President

• Hilary Philbin: in order for BF to continue to benefit from her long experience as fencer, Olympic organiser and latterly as President, Hilary is invited to become a BF Vice-President. Hilary previously won a BF Honours Silver Medal in 1990 and Gold Medal in 2012.

Silver Medal

• Brian Speight BEM: for enthusiastic and welcoming support of fencers and fencing in Dorset over half a century.
• Luke Deamer: for tireless work supporting the growth of fencing by developing and delivering high quality entry level referee training, mentoring and examiner for referees, paving the way for the transformation of the UK’s refereeing culture.
• Adrian Speakman: for work for more than a decade improving the quality of British refereeing and developing the cadre of our referees to international level, as well as refereeing internationally and at all levels in the UK.
• Robin Paterson: for extraordinary and sustained contribution to the sport of fencing in Elgin and in Scotland as a whole.
• Jim Pilkington: for decades of contribution supporting and organising fencing in Devon and the south-west of England.

Bronze Medal

• Neil Bromley: for contribution to our sport among those of all backgrounds, especially the young and disadvantaged, in the Swindon and Wiltshire area.
• Henry Youngblood: for tireless contribution volunteering in the BF events team, fulfilling numerous roles over many years.
• Mike Sellig: for work for more than a decade improving the quality of British refereeing, in particular developing the pool of sabre referees.
• Jennifer Sancroft: for work of more than a decade improving the quality of British refereeing, in particular running specific initiatives to support female candidates.
• Lyndon Martin: for lifelong dedication to fencing in Wales, as a competitor both domestically and abroad, more latterly as a coach and supporter.
• Richard Collins: for voluntary coaching, mentoring and supporting for multiple decades at Chilwell Blades Fencing Club.
• Malcolm Cawton: for voluntary coaching, mentoring and supporting Chilwell Blades Fencing Club, since founding it over 50 years ago.
• Jane Clayton: for contribution to Mallard Fencing Club, Kent County Union and the South East Region.
• Mike Ellis: for contribution to fencing in the Eastern Region over many years, including delivering training for coaching and referees.
• Robina Begum: for work promoting fencing with Muslim Girls Fence and the wider women’s community in the Birmingham area.
• Nalette Tucker: for work promoting fencing with Muslim Girls Fence in the Bradford area, notably in developing coaches.
• Akeela Mohammed: for work promoting fencing with Muslim Girls Fence and the wider women’s community in the South Yorkshire area and beyond.

Award of Merit

• Alexander Scott: for a decade of dedicated service to Tiverton Fencing Club and more latterly also Hearts Of Devon Swords, and more widely in the county in multiple roles.
• Derek Desmond Truman: in recognition of over sixty years of contribution to fencing in the military, notably at Sandhurst.

A series of individual news posts highlighting the work of each 2025 BF Honours recipient will be published in due course.

More information

Nominations for the 2025 BF Honours opened on 24th January 2025 and closed on 30th May 2025.

The BF Honours are separate to the BF Community Awards, which recognise some of the best clubs, coaches, fencers and volunteers for their contribution to fencing over the past year. Nominations for the 2024-25 BF Community Awards will open in mid-October 2025.

The BF Honours nomination system focuses on members and ex-members with all nominations coming direct from members. The Honours Committee acts as selectors with the objective of recommending awards in a wide range of categories while ensuring that there is consistency of award levels and criteria. Awards are made annually and announced at the AGM. Other than the goblets, please note that Honours are not re-awarded.

For further information, including a list of previous BF Honours recipients, view the BF Honours page here.

Don’t miss the latest news. Subscribe to our weekly summary email, The Fencing Digest, featuring the previous week’s latest news and announcements. Sign up here.