I grew up in the suburbs around Paris and started fencing when I was five. I kept it up until I was about 22, but then began looking for something else. I started running marathons instead. The good thing about running is that you can go whenever you want – but that also means you can put it off all the time. I wanted a sport that had more structure.

I considered options like the canne de combat, a martial art in which people fight each other with a wooden cane. But then I listened to a podcast that mentioned plans to create a fighting sport using lightsabers. I thought: I’m a geek. I like Star Wars. I’ve done fencing. Let’s try it.

That was 10 years ago. Since then, I’ve never stopped. In 2019, the French Fencing Federation registered “lightsaber duelling” as an official sport, so now there are lightsaber clubs in most big cities. Our Paris club has about 150 members.

Most people know Star Wars and have seen the movies, but are not necessarily hardcore fans. They’re more attracted by the fact that it’s fun. I mean, we are fighting with lightsabers; we cannot take ourselves too seriously.

For a lot of people, it’s a chance to do some fighting, but in a more relaxed way. For combat sports, like boxing, you need strength to win. But in our sport, you are only meant to touch, not overpower, your opponent.

It’s more a precision sport. It’s mixed gender and there isn’t a masculinity or aggression to it. Also, aggression is not a good strategy. You need to defend yourself before being able to attack. When you duel, you lose points when you are touched with your opponent’s lightsaber. It’s very strategic.

Some people like to show off a bit, wear elaborate colourful masks and clothes, and spin their lightsabers like they do in the movies. Though, in reality, if you fight theatrically like that you will lose. If you turn your back to your opponent, you will take a strike. Unfortunately, we don’t have “the force” like in the films.

People use different lightsabers; you can buy them from dedicated stores. The blade is made of polycarbonate. There are rules about the length and weight, but you can shape the blade however you want. Some people have ones modelled after the lightsabers in the films, but mine are more shaped for performance – I’ve made them from a custom 3D print with specialist grips to have better control of my moves.

We have different sizes of competitions. For regional ones, you will have about 40 to 50 fighters, a bit of audience, right up to the French Open, where there’s about 500 people in the audience and 80 or 90 fighters from all over Europe. I stopped counting how many tournaments I’ve won. I think it’s about 40. I keep the most significant medals in my office, and give the others to my children – they love playing with them.

There is no official world ranking, so maybe it’s a bit much to say I’m the best in the world, but there’s one for Europe, and I’ve been the No 1-ranked player for as long as I can remember. I think the fact that I fenced when I was younger really helps me to succeed and, also, while I’m not saying that other players don’t train, I train a lot.

But the more the sport evolves, the higher the level gets. Today, if you take the top eight fighters, there is not a single easy match. It’s getting harder and I’m getting older. I’m now 40. We’re all friends, though. Many of us train together. There’s real community.

I earn good money in my job at the foreign exchange market, so when I win, I don’t keep the prize money. At the lower end, it’s not a lot, say a few hundred euros; that’s enough to get the beers in for everyone after a competition. Anything more than €1,000, I refuse to accept; I’d rather the money be invested back in the sport.

It’s still very new, but it’s growing. Clubs are popping up all over the world. We have started livestreaming tournaments, and thousands of people watch. Even my colleagues from work have started to come and support me.

As for me, I love it. Who could have imagined when I started fencing at five that I would end up the lightsaber champion of Europe? It might look a bit silly to some, but it’s skilful, fun and a sport like no other.

As told to Daniel Dylan Wray

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