George Smith, who died aged 85 just before Christmas 2023, was a man of many and varied interests and accomplishments. He did his National Service in the Argylls, seeing action in Cyprus during the civil unrest there, and becoming a champion shot with the Bren gun. After the army he continued his love of shooting at the local Rifle and Pistol Club, owning a small armoury of firearms until it was all shut down in the aftermath of the Dunblane massacre. George enjoyed travel, cooking and entertaining, telling stories, and generally fixing things – he may not have been able to mend a broken blade but he could certainly make a trophy out of it, and not just one either. In short if you wanted anything done George would be more than helpful.
But it is as a stalwart of Scottish Fencing, or more properly, of the Scottish Amateur Fencing Union, its predecessor, that he will be best remembered. George was a very neat left-handed fencer, technically precise and, in his prime, fast and inventive enough to defeat many opponents. His true metier, however, was in coaching.
He had learned his craft at the hands of the redoubtable Christine Tolland in Glasgow, a teacher who would accept nothing less than perfection. Full of enthusiasm, George was able to start a beginners' class in fencing in his home town of Stirling, albeit with a very limited supply of kit and restricted to foil. The class grew to the point where the members decided to promote the class to being a SAFU registered club. Word spread and a small, but select, number of existing fencers who had recently moved to Stirling joined the club. Soon all 3 weapons were being practised and taught; teachers brought their pupils along; members were entering, and occasionally winning, competitions. The Junior Championships, Section Championships and school pupils' competitions proved valuable avenues for development. As the club prospered it attracted more and more members, both beginners and experienced fencers several of whom proceded to take coaching qualifications themselves, always encouraged by George who himself contined to coach both in the Stirling club and further afield. After he retired from work as Scottish manager for Semperit Tyres he joined the British Academy of Fencing, the professional body for fencing coaches, and extended his coaching over a wider field, both geographically and socially – including young offenders, pentathletes, university students – pupils of all ages and levels of skill. Stirling Fencing Club remained his base and became one of the premier clubs in Scotland. Many of George’s pupils went on to fence for Scotland at school/youth, junior and senior levels, and at all weapons.
Club members found that their talents were in demand for administration, from positions within the club to ones at Section, Schools and National level. George himself was recognised by the sport, being awarded the Crosnier Coaching award in 1987 and more recently the Sword of Merit for services to fencing in Scotland.
The very existence of the Stirling club, albeit under a new name to reflect its expansion, is testament to George's enthusiasm and his enduring legacy.
by Neil Melville
