Hawke's Bay Blades

COACH BAZ CLARK

DIRECTOR OF COACHING / HEAD COACH - SABRE & EPEE

Specializations - Sabre & Epee

Coach Baz has been involved in Fencing nationally for over 20 years, and been the #1 men’s Sabre Fencer for no fewer than 6 years as well as winning the 2017/2018 Oceania Sabre Championship. He has held almost every National Title over the last 10 years and is now is primarily focused on coaching here in the Hawke’s Bay having moved here in 2017.

Baz has represented NZ in the 2014 & 2018 Open Commonwealth Championships for both Open Foil & Sabre also severed as NZ Sabre Coach for the Commonwealth Championships in 2018 and in 2021 acheived his 100th podium.

In 2013-2017 he was Head Coach at the Highly decorated UHFC Fencing Club as well as being a High-Performance Coach for Fencing Central. During his tenure as coach across multiple clubs he has developed athletes that have represented NZ at Junior, Open and Vet Commonwealth Championships, Developed National Champions and provided a positive learning experience for anyone who is interested in Fencing.

COACH HAYDN

JUNIOR COACH

Specializations - Foundational Fencing

Haydn was born in Auckland and became interested in Fencing when he was working at Children Adventure camps in the UK while on his OE.

He ran kids taster sessions for an hour and thought – what a cool sport!!

He thought no more about it until many years later after meeting his wife and moving down to Hawkes Bay to start a family.

He came along to the HB Blades Open in 2019 with his family to have a look and he and his daughter Mackenzie joined straight away!

Haydn started with Foil for the first couple of years but became interested in Epee last year and undertook the Level 1 Epee Coaching course.

He enjoys teaching newbies the sport of fencing and encouraging all types of people to learn.

COACH OLLY STYLES

HEAD COACH - FOIL

Specializations - Foil & Sabre

Olly has been fencing on and off for 20 years. This began in 1998 when he picked up a foil on a whim during his orientation week at university.

Probably chosen more for his banter on the minibus than overall skill with the foil, he was selected to be on the fencing squad for Royal Holloway (University of London) in his final year.

On moving to London for work, he fenced recreationally and competitively in the capital and even began to branch out from his beloved foil after being persuaded to attend an intensive weekend Sabre session with UK fencing master John 'Jes' Smith and eventually moved to New Zealand in 2012.

Having almost given up hope of being able to fence in Hawke's Bay unless it involved a piledriver and some number 8 wire, he was heartened to read of a regional club in the local newspaper and joined Hawke's Bay Blades in 2018 and in 2022 he represented NZ at the Veteran Commenwealth Champs in London

OUR TEAM

OUR COACHS OF PAST

OPEN SESSIONS WEEKLY

HAWKE'S BAY

BLADES

OUR TEAM

OUR COACHS OF PAST

OPEN SESSIONS WEEKLY

HAWKE'S BAY

​​​​​​​BLADES

BLADES