New employment of video replay system, as well as transparent masks for foilists and sabreurs, will make fencing competition of the 2008 Beijing Games more fair and transparent, the International Fencing Federation (FIE) said here Saturday.

FIE President Rene Roch said at a press conference at Beijing's Fencing Hall that the use of new technologies will help make the judging fairer. He said there used to be complaints on the judges' decisions, but the new video system will significantly reduce such complaints.

On the transparent masks, now used only by foilists and sabreurs, Rene said they would make the fencers' faces visible to the audience and thus make the game more popular among TV viewers. However, he said it would still take time for these masks to be used by epeeists.

The press conference was held after the preliminaries of the women's sabre individual event. Saturday marked the first day of the nine-day fencing tournament of the Beijing Olympics.

(Xinhua News Agency August 9, 2008)