Episode 26: Nikki Franke
SabreCoachKate podcast
Nikki Franke began her illustrious fencing career her last year in high school; she enjoyed the combative mental aspect of it. Listen as Dr. Franke explains the need for more fencing exposure for inner city youth. She’ll explain how training for the Olympics back then differed from today. You’ll hear what she looks for in a recruit and her vision for a college fencing team. She’ll also give advice on how an athlete should choose which college to attend.
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Episode 25: Stacey Johnson
SabreCoachKate podcast
Stacey Johnson got involved in fencing at 13 when the Pentathletes at Fort Sam Houston asked her to keep time and score at a tournament. She was terrible at it until her coach switched her to her left hand, a move that would eventually earn her a spot on the Junior World and Olympic Teams.
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Episode 24: Terrence Lasker
SabreCoachKate podcast
Terrence loved computers and jumped at the chance to study in a state-of-the-art computer science program at a new Kansas City Magnet school. He didn’t expect to turn that passion into a love of fencing. After being wooed by the promise of international travel and thanks to their focus on Olympic sports, Terrence learned from one of the greatest Sabre coaches of all time: Vladimir Nazlymov.
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Episode 23: Cody Mattern
SabreCoachKate podcast
Cody Mattern started fencing at age 15 after an argument with his brother. After 2 years he became the Junior National Epee Champion. He competed at the 2004 Olympics and then joined the US Army’s World Class Athlete Program. In 2012 he was part of the Men’s Epee Team that won the World Championships. After all these successes, Cody retired to coach full time. Tune in to hear his journey from fencing wonder to coach, USAFencing Board VP, and Vice Chair of the USOC Athletes Advisory Council.
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Episode 22: Lisa Campi-Sapery
SabreCoachKate podcast
Lisa Campi Sapery is a woman who has filled pretty much every possible role in our sport: elite college athlete, coach, international referee, referee trainer, club owner, and published author. She is known as the Fencing Referee online on YouTube, Fencing.net and Facebook. She started fencing when her sister Barb thought the guy at the recruiting table was cute...and the rest is history. Tune in today to hear more about this history, a life story you will find both inspirational and uplifting.
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Episode 21: David Sach
SabreCoachKate podcast
Today’s episode is the story of David Sach, a man who has represented fencing on two continents, and who you probably know best as the Head Assigner of Sabre at most NACs. You know: the guy with the accent at the big table in the middle of the venue. You just had no idea who he really is!
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Episode 20: David Sierra
SabreCoachKate podcast
David Sierra began fencing at Texas A&M when he needed a PE credit. Since then, he has worked his way up the referee ranks and is now the co-owner of Cutting Edge Fencing, a Sabre-only club, near Fort Worth. He describes what the fencing world was like back when he started in the 90s and the changes he has helped bring to our sport. Note: yes, David is my husband. We decided to do this from an impersonal journalistic perspective as much as possible and not as a married couple. This is HIS story, not ours.
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Episode 19: Maureen Griffin
SabreCoachKate podcast
Maureen Griffin started foil at age 14 when she quit the swim team; her dad said she had 24 hours to find a new sport. Her fencing career had many ups and downs, from a Bronze at the PanAmerican Games, to missing the Olympics because of a visa. She is now the owner of GGFC in San Francisco and will describe how to build a positive competitive culture, as well as the difference between losing and being beaten. Tune in today to hear the career of an extraordinary woman: Maureen Griffin.
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Episode 18: Damien Lehfeldt
SabreCoachKate podcast
Damien Lehfeldt coaches epée at the Richmond Fencing Club. His website, TheFencingCoach.com, is one of the Top 50 Fencing Blogs of 2018. He and his writing team post articles on a variety of topics. Damien can be found on Facebook and other forums leading wide-ranging discussions about contemporary societal issues. Tune in to listen to one of the thought-leaders of our sport talk about his experiences as a competitive fencer, Olympic epée Coach, blogger, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers fan: Damien Lehfeldt.
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Episode 17: Peet Sasaki
SabreCoachKate podcast
If you say the name “Peet Sasaki” to fencers, they might not recognize it. If, however, you ask them who “FRED“ is, nearly every one will be able to give you an answer. The name FRED is as ubiquitous a name to a fencer as HAL is to a sci-fi fan.
info_outlineBack in the day, coaches received training at was then called Coaches' College. Begun in the late 80s by the United States Fencing Association, its purpose was to create an opportunity for professional development for fencing coaches.
When the cold war ended, the USFA brought Soviet bloc coaches over in 1990 to lead the program with Jack Keene serving as the main organizer. Alex Beguinet and Vinnie Bradford took up the reins in 1993. Vinnie helped organize it for 10 years, Alex for 20. The USFA decided to cancel the Coaches' College in 2003.
The United States Fencing Coaches Association (USFCA) started the Coaches' Academy last year to fill the professional development void. Only 8 coaches attended but the spark was created. The Academy this year, organized by Gary Vanderwege, had triple the number of participants. It featured a Moniteur level session from July 30-Aug 3, and an advanced (Prevot and Master) level session from Aug 2-6. The USFCA Annual General meeting was held Aug 3 and several special awards were given out.
The main purpose of the Coaches' Academy was to prepare coaches for their certification exams, with most sessions being led by fencing Masters like Peter Burchard, Gary Vanderwege, Paul Sise, Vinnie Bradford, and Jen Oldham. Ariana Klinkov and David Sierra also were on hand to help guide participants. In addition there were sessions such as sport psychology, the business side of being a fencing coach, armory sessions led by Michael Mergens, referee seminars, yoga, watching Dan Kellner give Sam Moelis a high-level Foil lesson, a roundtable discussion about coach vs referee ethics, among others.
All in all the Coaches' Academy appears to be getting off to a strong start, as evidenced by the comments from the participants. Listen now to their input about what they experienced at Keystone College in Pennsylvania in early August.