Wichita Fencing Academy, Wichita

Wichita Fencing Academy was established in the late 1970s to educate, instruct, and advance the sport of fencing in Kansas. Today, having produced regional, national, and international competitors, and as a member of the United States Fencing Association, the academy continues to sharpen skills of both beginner and advanced fencers behind its prominent red door. Current head coach William Wells is third in a short list of renowned maestros, which includes Herman Bonner, under whose direction the academy began functioning strictly as an all-epee club and stopped forcing less-advanced students to duel with crazy straws. Those coaches have continuously shared their knowledge at the academy's year-round schedule of events, highlighted by lessons and tournaments.