Supportive, motivative and skillful are all qualities of a good coach. But what does a good coach looks like for the fencing team?

This video features Head/Foil Coach Dong-Ying (Sasha) Pai, Saber Coach Ryan Zenanko, Assistance Coach Paul Soter, freshman Rowan Moore, junior Humza Murad, and senior Soren Miller. This video takes a peek at what a fencing practice looks like and dives deep into what the team values.

00;00;04;17 – 00;00;07;12

PAUL SOLTER: Coach can be empathetic but not too sympathetic.

00;00;08;14 – 00;00;11;27

HUMZA MURAD: A good coach can determine whether a player continues or drops a sport.

00;00;14;16 – 00;00;15;14

ROWAN MOORE: I think it is charisma, maybe.

00;00;15;14 – 00;00;17;28

SOREN MILLER: As a coach, that is going to push you beyond your limits as well as a coach that is understanding.

00;00;22;00 – 00;00;24;21
[INTRO]: What are exactly qualities of being a good coach?

00;00;25;14 – 00;00;29;06
[TRANSITION]: Head coach Sasha Pai mentions that the fundamentals of being a good coach comes from building trust with the athletes.

00;00;33;10 – 00;00;37;02
SASHA PAI: Very important part is the connection between the coach and fencers. If this is a fun environment and a safe environment. They are like open to make mistakes.

00;00;44;17 – 00;00;46;28
MILLER: We’re all coming into the gym to work on the same thing, to work with the same people and towards the same common goal, which is becoming better at fencing.

00;00;53;23 – 00;00;54;20
MILLER: And so there’s that level of mutual respect, which is we’re all in this space together. And it goes both ways. It’s both the athletes and their respect for the coaches and the coach’s respect for the athletes.

00;01;05;07 – 00;01;05;22
PAI: When you go to a fencing tournament, there’s only one champion. For me, the most important part is if you did the right action. As long as you recognize the mistake and try to fix it, then that’s an improvement.

00;01;19;07 – 00;01;22;19
[TRANSITION]: Fencers also share their moments interacting with sabre coach Ryan Zenanko and Epee coach Paul Soter, and what they observe to be qualities that define a good coach.

00;01;30;03 – 00;01;32;07
MOORE: I think I always get a bit nervous in like during the build-up
to my first bout or first bout, or anything like that. [Ryan] just always remind me to stay calm, stay focused and, you know, try and hit every time.

00;01;44;00 – 00;01;46;15
PAI: Fencing is an individual sport. And I try to tell them they need to have their own strategies. Even like sometimes when I’m on there to coach them, I tell them, “you don’t need listen to me”.

00;01;59;00 – 00;02;02;04
PAI: If you feel, like “ok, this is a good way.” And you are going to do this. It is going to work. You can just go for it.

00;02;05;25 – 00;02;08;18
MURAD: Sometimes what’s letting you down is your mentality, not your actual skill. I know that’s happened to me before, and you just need like a reminder. At the SPA invitational, I was fencing really poorly against this one guy.

00;02;16;20 – 00;02;19;13
MURAD: And when Paul pulled me aside, the main thing he said was just like, he said “you’re fencing below your intellectual ability.” Those are his exact words, so that they are that kind of just like, I guess, woke me up.

00;02;27;28 – 00;02;30;14
MILLER: Just getting to know Ryan has been awesome. He’s a super relatable guy, but he’s also committed. And he’s, you know, willing to put in the work, and he’s good.

00;02;38;12 – 00;02;39;18
MILLER: And I think that’s another thing that’s also really helpful. It is just that he’s a really good fencer. He has had eyes for those type of things where he can fix your form. He could help to push you. But then also he’s, you know, joking around, you know, having a good time.

00;02;52;23 – 00;02;55;21
MILLER: And I think that those moments where not only that, like I learned from him, but also have fun with him. I think those are my favorite moments of fencing.