Applications Now Open for Fencing the Gap Club Grants

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — Sometimes, all a club needs to broaden its impact in the community is a little help. That's where Fencing the Gap comes in —  a way to, well, close that gap.

USA Fencing is now accepting applications for the 2026 Fencing the Gap Grant Program, a community investment initiative that funds clubs working to bring fencing to young people who might not otherwise have the opportunity to try the sport.

This year, the program will award five grants of $5,000 each to clubs across the country. The application portal is open now and closes April 30 at 11:59 p.m. local time.

Fencing the Gap is made possible thanks to the U.S. Fencing Foundation and generous donors who support its mission. (Want to help grow FTG even more? Consider making a donation.)

Beginning in 2026, Fencing the Gap has shifted from individual grants to club-level awards. After a full analysis of the program, we made this change to concentrate resources where they can generate sustained, measurable impact rather than spreading smaller amounts across many recipients.

Each funded club is expected to reach 30 to 50 youth through programming that addresses barriers to participation, whether those barriers are financial, geographic, cultural or physical.

"We want to put meaningful dollars behind clubs that are already doing this work in their communities," says Phil Andrews, CEO of USA Fencing. "Five thousand dollars can buy equipment, cover coaching time, fund scholarships or open doors at a community center. That's the kind of impact we're going for."

Any active USA Fencing member club in good standing is eligible, provided the club meets at least two of five equity criteria. Those criteria focus on diverse coaching and leadership, community-based delivery, financial access infrastructure, recruitment of girls and underrepresented youth, and disability access or adaptive inclusion.

Clubs that received a Fencing the Gap grant in a prior year are welcome to reapply. Prior funding does not create an advantage or disadvantage.

The application asks clubs to describe who they serve, what the grant would fund, how many youth they expect to reach and which equity criteria they meet. Clubs also submit a simple budget narrative and supporting documentation for each criterion they claim.

Applications are scored on a 100-point scale across four categories: equity alignment (40 points), program impact (30 points), community rootedness (20 points) and accountability readiness (10 points). A geographic diversity check ensures funding does not concentrate in just one or two regions.

The application portal opened April 1 and closes April 30 at 11:59 p.m. local time. Staff and committee review runs through May, with award notifications going out in the first week of June. Funds will be disbursed by the end of June.

Award recipients will be recognized publicly through USA Fencing communications channels and potentially at Summer Nationals.

Visit the application portal at this link to get started.

Grant funds may be used for equipment, coaching stipends, facility rental, youth scholarships, transportation, outreach events and adaptive equipment. Funds may not be used for general operating costs, elite athlete travel, club marketing or capital improvements.

All award recipients are required to submit an impact report by March 1, 2027, covering participants reached, activities completed and 3 to 5 photos from funded programming.

Good luck — and thank you — to all who apply.