The past year has been one of great change and growth for our club. This is a summary of key news, events and results relating to The Cape Fencing Academy over the last year.
Incorporation of Cape Fencing Academy PTY
In February of 2023, CFA was officially registered as a proprietary company by Jacques Viljoen and Jeremy Saner.
The aim is to run the club as if it was a non-profit organisation until the club is large enough to be officially registered as such. The fee structure changed, with all fencers paying a monthly membership fee which goes directly to running the club. Fees pay for club equipment and venue hire.
Founder Misha Galukhin remains as head coach but is now assisted by Jeremy, Jacques and Caden.
The club has grown substantially, tripling in size since The COVID pandemic.
Cadet & Junior Africa and World Championships 2023
Many of our young fencers competed on the world stage for the first time this year. Congratulations to Conrad Nicolay (CMF), Lisa Lambert (CWS / CWF) and Juliana Pereira (CWF) who represented South Africa in Accra, Ghana. Special mention to Nicolay who made the quarter finals, narrowly missing a medal and placing 5th!
Nicolay also qualified for and competed at the Cadet World Championships in Plovdiv, Bulgaria. He has had a breakthrough year, training hard and improving tremendously. We look forward to seeing how he does next season.
World University Games 2023
Also known as The Universiade, The World University Games is the largest and most prestigious international multi-sport event after the Olympic Games. Caden Sampson proudly represented CFA, Varsity College and University Sports South Africa in Chengdu, China, where he competed in individual and team men’s foil. It was a fantastic experience where he competed against and trained with the current Olympic champion!
Caden has recently returned from a training camp in Folgaria, Italy, with fencing legends Andrea Cassara and Valentina Vezzali.
2023 South African National Championships
For the first time in recent history, all age groups were combined in one large tournament held over three days in Soweto.
CFA sent a large team, ranging from 8 to 35 years old, who competed in all three weapons. Here is a list of medalists:
Senior Men’s Foil
Jacques Viljoen, silver
Jeremy Saner, bronze
Western Cape A (Viljoen, Sampson, Saner, Saunders) gold
Senior Men’s Epee
Michael Malahe, bronze (although Michael does not compete for CFA, Misha has been his coach for over a decade)
Senior Men’s Sabre
Jeremy Saner, gold
Tiago do Filipe, bronze
Western Cape, gold (Saner, Do Filipe and Saunders)
Junior Women’s Foil
Anika Loubser, bronze
Junior Men’s Foil
Josh Diggle, bronze
Junior Women’s Sabre
Lisa Lambert, Bronze
Junior Men’s Sabre
Tiago do Filipe, gold
Jack Saunders, bronze
Cadet Women’s foil
Lisa Lambert, bronze
Cadet Men’s Foil
Josh Diggle, bronze
U15 Girl’s Foil
Stella Keers, bronze
U11 Boy’s Foil
Jasper Keers, bronze
Looking Forward to 2023/ 2024 season
The club will be calling its first AGM since the major changes have been made. All club members and parents are welcome. A notice will be sent out in the following weeks.
The Cape Open, The Cape’s annual national completion, will take place in December of this year, kicking off the 2023/ 2024 Season. Train hard!