West Coast

Fencing Archive

Jan York Romary

Born in Palo Alto, Jan was the first woman to compete in six Olympic Games

West Coast

Fencing Archive

Ralph Faulkner and Polly Craus

Two-time Olympian Faulkner coached Polly Craus to a National title and an Olympic berth

West Coast

Fencing Archive

Sal Giambra, Emily Romaine, Hans Halberstadt, Helene Mayer, Bunny Fratessa

Clubmates in Germany in the 1920s, Hans and Helene reunited in San Francisco at Halberstadt Fencers Club

West Coast

Fencing Archive

Michael D’Asaro

After experiencing San Francisco’s Summer of Love, in 1967 Michael became the coach at Halberstadt Fencers Club

West Coast

Fencing Archive

György Piller and Gerard Biagini

At the Fairmont Hotel in 1958, Piller demonstrates a foil lesson with San Francisco native Biagini

Charles Selberg

Fencing Master at UC Santa Cruz, member of a team that won gold at the World Master’s Championships

Preserving Fencing History

The passion for fencing history you’ll find reflected here on the West Coast Fencing Archive can be traced to the legacy of Charles Selberg.

An exceptional teacher and storyteller, Charlie brought fencing history to life for his students through his vivid tales of great fencers and famous bouts.

His estate, filled with posters, photos, scrapbooks and other fencing memorabilia, became the initial collection for the Archive. Since then, we have incorporated sixty more collections and counting.

The Latest Story

Women’s Foil, circa 1971

Women’s Foil, circa 1971

The 1971 US National Championships were held on the campus of the University of California, Berkeley, commonly known as Cal.  The locals did pretty well, too!

Other Tales from the Archive

Aldo Nadi’s Record, Part Two

Aldo Nadi’s Record, Part Two

It’s entertaining, reading through Nadi’s ruminations on his life and career as a competitive fencer.  That he possessed a finely honed ego – to which he admits in one section – is obvious.  In addition, he clearly has an excellent memory to remember so vividly events...

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Aldo Nadi’s Record, Part One

Aldo Nadi’s Record, Part One

Aldo Nadi was a great fencer.  He… well, let’s let the back of his business card explain:   High praise, and not misplaced.  Nadi was an Olympian for Italy in the 1920 games, winning gold in all three fencing team events and an individual sabre silver medal,...

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Fencing and the Summer of Love

Fencing and the Summer of Love

The short version, the one I like best, is that he was qualified to be a member of the 1968 Olympic sabre team, with one condition. The condition, as allegedly put forward by the AFLA’s selection committee, was that he cut his hair.

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July 1981: World University Games, Part 2

July 1981: World University Games, Part 2

Let’s get right to the action. The first match in the top four pits the great Soviet fencer Vladimir Smirnov against Federico Cervi from Italy. Unfortunately, we pick up the battle past the mid-way point with Smirnov leading 8-5…

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World University Games, Part 1 July 1981

World University Games, Part 1 July 1981

Training under former Olympic coach Michael D’Asaro, I was fortunate to have teammates that traveled to major competitions and would come back knowing the names of the current greats. But for those of us who did not travel internationally, all we knew were a few names and reputations.

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The Last Captain

FEATURE LENGTH FENCING DOCUMENTARY

For fifty years, the Hungarian National Sabre team had two constants: they took home gold in every tournament they entered and they had George Piller.

This is the story of Jekelfalussy (Piller) Gyorgy, the 1932 Olympic Sabre champion who defected to the United States during the 1956 Olympics in Melbourne.

By Doug Nichols and Greg Lynch

Relic Spotlight

Relic Spotlight

A trio of medals, gold, silver and bronze from the Colonel Laurance Brownlee collection.

Film Library

Check out our video library

Vintage Posters

View our collection

Books

By the West Coast Fencing Archive

 

 

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STORY

Have something to share or add? Our goal is to capture the stories we know are out there. Plus photos, videos, home movies, posters—you name it. All this material helps preserve the stories of West Coast fencing.

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