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USA Fencing has a new president after former president Damien Lehfeldt announced he would not seek re-election over the weekend.
The national governing body confirmed that former U.S. Paralympic wheelchair fencing athlete Scott Rodgers succeeded Lehfeldt last Friday, in a statement to Pak Gazette Digital.
“On October 24, the USA Fencing Board of Directors elected Dr. Scott Rodgers PLY as Chairman of the Board. Dr. Rodgers is a Paralympic medalist and the first active athlete, and the first parafencer, to lead our Board, and will serve during the Annual Board Meeting in the fall of 2027,” the statement read.
“His election reflects the Board’s continued commitment to athlete-centered governance and the growth of fencing at all levels. We thank Damien Lehfeldt for his service; his term as Board President has concluded.”
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(L-R) Stephanie Turner, the US fencer who refused to compete against a transgender opponent, former high school volleyball player Payton McNabb and US Fencing Board President Damien Lehfeldt testify during the House DOGE Subcommittee on Oversight hearing on trans people in the women’s sports on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on May 7, 2025. (Oliver Contreras / AFP)
In Lehfeldt’s announcement that he would not seek re-election, he cited “lawsuits” and “death threats” as reasons for his decision. Lehfeldt has been at the center of the USA Fencing controversy dating back to April, when fencer Stephanie Turner went viral for kneeling in protest of a transgender fencer and was disqualified.
The incident prompted a federal subpoena of Lehfeldt to a congressional hearing to explain the organization’s policy on transgender athletes. Then, former Olympic coach and board member Andrey Geva and former Olympic fencer Abdel Salem sued Lehfeldt for allegedly making “false statements” at the hearing.
“I didn’t sign up to spend my nights and weekends dealing with lawsuits, death threats, and distractions that divert attention from the real work of governing and growing our sport. I want to get back to fencing, mentoring, coaching, and just being a part of the community I love, not constantly defending it in courts and comment sections,” Lehfeldt said in his announcement.
“I knew it would be hard work, but I underestimated how much time and energy it would require. Between my full-time job, my young children, and using almost all of my vacation days volunteering, I’ve gotten to the point where I’m just tired.”
Lehfeldt included a paragraph in his announcement advocating for inclusion on the fence.
“Fencing is for everyone,” Lehfeldt said. “No matter your race, religion, gender, gender identity or socioeconomic background, this sport belongs to you. For me that is not just a slogan; It’s a commitment. And even with the challenges we have faced, I will continue to fight for a fencing community that is open, accessible and welcoming to all.”
Prior to the May 7 congressional hearing, the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) subcommittee hearing on transgender athletes, Lehfeldt made a series of posts on her Instagram Stories that were later amplified and used against her on the committee floor. In a post, which went viral before the hearing, she responded to a question asking if she was “agree” with putting female fencers at a disadvantage with a simple and bold response: “Yes.”
Later, during the hearing, Lehfeldt admitted several times that he regretted answering that way and admitted that the question required a “more nuanced” answer.
At one point during the hearing, Lefheldt confessed to falsifying an email from a fictional fencer mother, “Dorothy,” who disagreed with him and called those members with a similar view of “Dorothy” the “grand wizard” of the Ku Klux Klan.
“It was a bad attempt at humor,” Lehfeldt said.
WHO IS STEPHANIE TURNER? FENCER WOMAN WHO KNEELED TO PROTEST A TRANS OPPONENT AND IGNIZED THE WORLD’S CONSCIENCE
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., holds up U.S. maps in front of an alleged screenshot of USA Fencing board director Damien Lehfeldt’s Instagram during the hearing on “Unfair Play: Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports” held by the Department of Government Efficiency Subcommittee (DOGE) at the US Capitol on May 7, 2025 in Washington, DC. (Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images)
Rep. Tim Burhcett, R-Tenn., asked Lehfeldt if she would let her daughter take on “a man.” Lehfeldt suggested he would allow it while boasting about his organization’s security precautions.
“As long as the competitor has met all the hormonal requirements and is compliant with the policy, they would be fine with it,” Lehfeldt said.
Turner previously told Pak Gazette Digital after the May hearing that he would work to push for leadership changes at USA Fencing after stepping away from the sport.
“To be honest, I’m going to push for people to resign. I would like to see some people resign because of comments they’ve made, especially in public, that are harassing and intended to humiliate concerned women, mothers and daughters,” Turner said.
The USA Fencing board of directors voted to modify their current policy that prioritized states with LGBTQ-friendly laws for competition host sites and a policy that may have prevented the playing of the national anthem at some events, at its June 7 meeting.
The above policies became one of the organization’s biggest points of criticism after Turner’s viral protest.
USA Fencing then changed its transgender participation policy in July to allow only female competitors to participate in the women’s category. The change was made to ensure compliance with the USOPC’s new athlete safety policy, which now cites President Donald Trump’s executive order “Keep Men Out of Women’s Sports.”
USA Fencing responded to Geva and Salem’s lawsuit in a statement previously provided to Pak Gazette Digital.
“USA Fencing is proud to serve its members (athletes, coaches, referees and clubs) throughout our community with absolute transparency and integrity. This derivative lawsuit misrepresents our organization, and we will vigorously defend it in court; any attempt to disparage them will be addressed appropriately,” the statement read.
“Because litigation is ongoing, we cannot discuss the details. Our focus remains unwavering: to advance fencing across the country, support the success of every member, and uphold the values of the Olympic and Paralympic movement.”
