At least when I fenced foil in high school in the late 90s there was a move called the flick that involved whipping the foil over the opponents shoulder and having it bend sufficiently to depress the tip on his back. Fencers that mastered this technique dominated our level (perhaps Olympians could counter it, I don't know) but I don't think it has any analog in terms of real dueling. It seems like the flick is a quite good analogy for the debate 'spreading' the article talks about.
This. Flicking is probably the most egregious offender. Not only is it not useful in an actual duel (not that that's particularly practical anyways.) But it also depends on properties of the modern epee/foil (extreme flexion.)
Btw, the way to counter a flick is to not get hit by it. I know that sounds stupid, but whipping the blade substantially decreases it's length. So just space around it.
I believe the pressure requirements were increased to combat the prevalence of this move. Watching Olympic fencing you don't see that many flicks anymore.
Not just the pressure requirements, but the blade stiffness too. While I was fencing it became almost overnight MUCH harder to flick. You needed a pre-stressed (near breaking) weapon or just huge amounts of force (prep).
I was a sabreist but my friends did foil and spent a lot of time bitching about the change. (Some people looooove their flicks)
