En Garde! Tournament Asymmetry and Disincentive Effects in International Fencing Competitions

Abstract

In this paper I test the predictions of tournament theory using panel data from international fencing competitions. The theory predicts that for a given level of prize spread, agentsÕ effort incentives are reduced due to the asymmetry. Using two measures of prize spread, I estimate the impact of these measures on performance for five separate skill-sorted cohorts using OLS and the Heckman selection model. I find evidence of ordinal disincentive effects for fencers of a lower skill level, which is consistent with the predictions of the theory.