Arkansas Fencing Academy

Our Coaching Staff

The Arkansas Fencing Academy is very fortunate to have a group of talented and dedicated coaches. They come from a wide range of backgrounds and have a great deal of experience with the sport of fencing.

Scott Sutton

Scott Sutton, founder of the Fayetteville Fencing Academy and Fayetteville Fencing Club. The classes were held in Scott's apartment until 1982 when the group began renting a room in the old University of Arkansas Bowling Building.

Neal Picken

Neal Picken took over in 1982 and started the Arkansas Fencing Academy in Springdale. The Fayetteville Fencing Club moved into the new academy, which included 6 strips, a full armory, changing areas, and showers. The concept behind this new academy was having several area fencing clubs, formed through the local schools, utilizing its facilities.

Nadia Tucha

Nadia has over 30 years of fencing experience and over 10 years of coaching experience. Nadia was a member of the Bulgarian National team as a foil fencer for over 15 years. She fenced foil in the Bulgarion National Championships, Balkans Championships, and traveled throughout the world attending World Cup and World Championship competitions. Nadia joined the club in 2003 and became the owner and head coach in 2005.

Robert Hanacek

After winning 11 Slovak national championship titles in swimming, Robert adopted Modern Pentathlon at the age of 17, and soon became a member of junior national team of Czechoslovakia. After the country split in 1993, he got a spot on the Slovak men’s national team. His biggest international success for the 3rd place at the Junior World Cup final in Rome, 1992. In 1994, he was a part in the 3-member team of Slovakia that came in 2nd at the military world championships in St. Petersburg, Russia. A knee injury terminated his sports career shortly before 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, when he finished 3rd at the Slovak Fencing National Championships, and was a member of the fencing champion team of Dukla Banska Bystrica.