George Nonomura
Growing up in San Francisco, George Nonomura’s parents exposed all their children to fencing at an early age. One of the youngest in the large family, George learned fencing at Halberstadt Fencers Club, learning from the succession of coaches at the club. Starting with Hans, he took lessons from John McDougall, Charlie Selberg and Michael D’Asaro.
A successful junior and senior competitor, George was a consistent finalist at national events for nearly 10 years and earned him a place on the 1988 US Olympic Foil Team. For many years he was trained by Letterman Fencing instructor Dr. William O’Brien. George coached for a time after his competitive career, then worked for the San Francisco Fire Department until his retirement.
Articles
Historical Documents in the Digital Age
Fear. It’s a motivator for me. Not the average, everyday kind of fear, nor an amorphous fear of zombies or clowns. Rather, the fear of loss. A very specific kind of loss.
Beware the Woman with Foils
The woman to beware of is, as mentioned, the great Helene Mayer. To say that her competitive record is impressive is an understatement.
Hall of Famer: Erich Funke d’Egnuff
Regular readers will be familiar with the many tales told herein of Charles Selberg, himself a graduate of SF State (BA ’57, MA ’60). Selberg had his fencing beginnings at SF State under the tutelage of Erich Funke.
Helene Mayer, Part 1
Helene Mayer was a German fencer who first distinguished herself as German national champion at the age of 13. By 19, she had won Olympic gold (1928) and the first of three world championships. After the 1932 Los Angeles Olympics, she remained in the US, studied at...
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