Often, when children are young, they seek to become anything. Flying with capes, charging the playground, imagination is a world yet to be discovered. Though many of these dreams are discarded by the time the child reaches a certain age, junior Nathalaan Jones kept his and has been continuing the same sport for years. However, Jones is not a typical athlete.

“I’ve been fencing for five years,” Jones said.
Jones’ fascination started when he was just in elementary school, watching the Suite Life of Zack and Cody. In an episode, he witnessed a fencing duel, which sparked his curiosity.
“I was watching Disney Channel one day,” he said. “I was like ‘wow, that looks so cool!’ I asked [my dad] if I could do it, and he said sure.”
Recently, he received first place in a tournament in Pleasant Prairie.
“It’s like boxing,” he said. “You have to stay in this box and you can’t step outside of the line. In the epee match that I was in, I could hit my opponent anywhere.”
Since he was 10, Jones has competed in many matches and has won many awards. Every weekend, he drives to Wisconsin for practices.
“We meet every Saturday, and there’s a tournament at the end of each month,” he said. Though he has two more years of fencing to follow, Jones hopes that he can continue doing what he loves beyond high school and take his passion to college.