Welcome! Olympian Fencing Club is an épée only fencing club founded in 2010 and located north of downtown San Antonio, TX in the historic Monte Vista neighborhood. Students from our program have attended and fenced at elite universities including Princeton and Stanford. Begin your journey to learn the amazing sport of fencing at Olympian Fencing Club today! Interested fencers ages 4 and up can join our programs year round.

Beginners Offerings

Little Olympians (Ages 4-6)

Class Description: Learn the Olympic sport of Epee fencing through a combination of games, drills, and exercises targeted to young children. Students build confidence, coordination, speed, good sportsmanship, and basic fencing tactics through this weekly class. Students practice their skills in fencing matches initially with foam swords and then advance to lightweight plastic swords with club safety gear.

The class is limited to 10 students and placement is based on a first-come, first-served basis. Our teaching philosophy is based on working one-on-one with our fencers to develop individual skills in a group-learning environment.

Schedule: The class meets on Fridays from 5-6pm. Parents can drop off their kids or sit in the bleachers.

Class Fee: The class is $100/month. 30 days notice is required for class cancellations.

Instructors: The primary instructor is June Hurme who has been a fencer for over 30 years, a Veteran World Team Member, and proud parent of three Princeton fencers. OFC head and assistant coaches will substitute as needed.

Other Requirements: All participants are required to:

  • Obtain a non-competitive USA Fencing annual membership ($15) for insurance purposes.
  • E-sign our club waiver (will be shared after registration).
  • Sign up for monthly subscription (payment link will be shared after registration).

What to Bring: Students are asked to bring a water bottle, an extra t-shirts and warm up pants or sweatpants and comfortable sneakers.

Once students reach 6 years of age they can either remain in the Little Olympians class until they turn 7 or move to our Recreational 1 fencing class for students 6-10 years of age and begin fencing with electric swords and full equipment.

Beginners (Ages 6+)

Class Description: The class teaches the basics of epee fencing including the fencing stance, how to warm up properly, footwork, tactics, and basic blade actions.

Schedule: The beginners program meets once a week on Wednesdays from 5-6pm for a full calendar month and begins the first Wednesday of each month.

Class Fee: The class is $100/month.

Instructors: The primary instructor is Tommi Hurme, a Prévôt level fencing coach with more than 20+ years of national and international fencing experience. OFC head and assistant coaches will substitute as needed.

Other Requirements: All participants are required to:

  • Obtain a non-competitive USA Fencing annual membership ($15) for insurance purposes.
  • E-sign our club waiver (will be shared after registration).

What to Bring: Students are asked to bring a water bottle, an extra t-shirts and warm up pants or sweatpants and comfortable sneakers.

Students can repeat the beginners class up to a maximum of 3 months but most students choose to move to the recreational fencing classes upon completion. More information about advancement will be sent to participants after the last session.

Olympian Fencing Classes

What other types of classes are offered?

Intermediate and advanced fencers can either attend recreational fencing classes or attend open fencing sessions. Competitive fencers will be invited to join either the Bronze, Silver, or Gold teams based on their age. More details about our classes are available here.

To sign up for a class or become a member, please contact us.

Individual Lessons

Individual private lessons are available to our members during open fencing times.

The Latest Fencing News


 

Our Upcoming Fencing Events

See the Full Competition Calendar
Heart symbol (♥) in front of tournament designates competitions where OFC members participates as a team with a coach in attendance.

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  • Coach Velizar is a professional, well respected, athlete that obviously takes pride in his work and loves what he does. His knowledgeable coaching technique shines through in all of his kids and I feel that he gives his undivided attention to each and every one of them. My daughter really enjoys and looks forward to going to practice and has such a great experience at the competitions that I’m confident in knowing she will enjoy this sport for many years to come. –A happy parent

  • Great club. My kids like it a lot. Coach is pleasure to work with. –Yuri

  • As the mom of three kids in the Olympian Fencing Club I have to add my praise for the environment and training Velizar Iliev provides. Velizar is an exceptionally talented and well-trained athlete who has the rare gift of knowing how to teach others to do what he does. His style is calm, patient, and adaptable. I have been well-pleased with the both the level of instruction (truly world-class) and the atmosphere (very family friendly). Because of Olympian Fencing Club my family has definitely caught the “fencing bug”. And, we’re much better because of it! –Another happy mom

  • Fencing in San Antonio has been turned up a few notches. If you are looking for fencing with the proper training approach and care, Olympian Fencing Club is your last stop. You will be well prepared by a qualified and concerned coach with Olympic training and proven success. San Antonio welcomes OFC and Velizar Iliev!–Anonymous

  • Our daughter has been fencing for less than a year, but has excelled a great deal nationally thanks to Velizar Iliev s approach. He is a professional that has proven experience and success. His calm and guiding approach is perfect for our child and has helped her immensely. We started through a summer camp that drew her interest and she continues to grow. The sport has made a major impact in our daughter s focus in school, attitude, and grades. She is more confident, respectful, and productive. We also appreciate Velizar s frugality in terms of fees, equipment and travel in a sport that can be an investment. His understanding of this and guidance in proper equipment and other items is a great plus. –Matthew Carpenter

  • Velizar is a great athlete and a great coach!!!!!! –Eva

  • I’m so glad to have found Olympian Fencing Club, opposed to other fencing clubs we have been members of. First of all Coach Velizar takes the to time to individually teach everyone of his fencers the proper way of fencing since he is an Olympian fencer himself. Second of all he has the patient to work well with the kids which my son noticed that the very first day he was there. If your looking for a fencing club , Olympian is by far the best club here in San Antonio!!!–Lisa

  • Of the three fencing clubs I have seen, I feel Olympian has the best approach. Velizar, a 2000 Olympic Pentathlete, is incredibly knowledgeable and is has a very positive coaching and teaching style. He will take extra time to work with his students. He also sports an incredible sense of humor, something that makes hard work not seem so hard. He is also capable of working with school districts for kids that wish to explore off campus PE credits. I couldn’t be more positive with this club. Call them is you are at all curious.–Sean

  • As a mom of a 12 year old fencer who currently is the #2 in the US in her age group and weapon, I must say that Velizar Iliev is by far the best coach my daughter has ever had. Our family feels extremely fortunate that San Antonio has such a world class Olympian fencer / coach, who can also work so well and patiently with children and teens. Olympian Fencing Club (or OFC as the fencers fondly call it) is a phenomenal family oriented fencing club, where kids, teens and adults come to have fun and stay in shape, and also to train for regional, national and international competitions if they choose to participate. There is a great deal of camaraderie not only between the fencers, but also between their families.–Nina

  • I feel really fortunate that our family has found Olympian Fencing Club. Coach Velizar is both knowledgeable and kind as a coach. As an accomplished competitor himself, he is able to exemplify the mindset of a champion for his athletes while still making learning to fence a lot of fun. He is never afraid to push his athletes to be the best they can be, and emphasizes conditioning and general good health and well being as part of his fencing program. Overall a very good experience for our son. It is rare to find any activity available to children in our community that is this rewarding or well run. Fencing is a sport for a lifetime!–A fencing mom

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Fencing Club in San Antonio

Modern fencing has three weapons: foil, épée, and sabre. Épée means sword in French and is the weapon of choice at Olympian Fencing Club. Épée fencing is different than the other weapons in various ways and allows for a “touch” or score on any part of the body, which increases the need for strategy and defensive skill nuance. As a San Antonio fencing school, all areas of training are offered related to learning and perfecting this exciting sport. Olympian, the premier fencing school in San Antonio, guides all skill levels and ages from beginner to advanced. Visit us or contact us to find out why Olympian is the best fencing school in the Alamo area.