Coup de Ventre
Coup de Ventre
Literally: belly strike
Coup de ventre is a horizontal stick strike to the stomach from the inside line, known in classical la canne, not in competitive canne de combat.
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Coup de ventre, literally a strike to the stomach, is in classical la canne, French stick fencing, a horizontal strike aimed at the opponent's torso from the inside line. The name directly describes the target area, since ventre means stomach. The target is a hit on the centre line of the body. The term belongs to the vocabulary of attacks and parries of classical la canne, distinct from the standardised sport canne de combat of the FFSAVATE federation. The Columbia Classical Fencing glossary places it among strikes to the body together with coup de flanc, targeting instead the opponent's left flank. Unlike croisé bas and enlevé, aimed at the leg, and croisé tête and brisé, aimed at the head, it targets the torso exclusively. Among the six officially named strikes of competitive canne de combat under FFSAVATE there is no coup de ventre, though the stomach belongs to the competition centre-line zone. We have not been able to document who introduced the strike or when it emerged.