Daniel Tibbetts | California Fencing Academy

Maestro Daniel G. Tibbetts CPT, CSMT, NCMTB, NMT

CEO, Academy Director, Men’s Foil Coach

Première Maitre & Moniteur d’ Armes – Française
Military Provost & Moniteur d’ Armi – Italiano
Moniteur d’Armes Foil – USFCA of America
Certified Archery Instructor – USArchery & FITA
Certified Natural Horsemanship Instructor – CHA
Certified Sports Therapist & Personal Trainer

Maestro Tibbetts has been teaching fencing since 1984 and founded the internationally renowned California Fencing Academy in 1986. He was the founder of the West Valley and De Anza College fencing clubs, co-founded the San Jose State Fencing Club. He started the Independence, and Harker High School fencing programs, as well as Bagby Elementary, McAullif and Hillbrook Middle School programs to name just a few. He started the Los-Gatos Community Recreation Fencing program in 1988 which was soon followed by the City of Saratoga Recreation Department, Milpitas, Mountain View, and Campbell Recreation all of which offer beginning classes and camps in his life sport passions of fencing, archery and horsemanship. Maestro Tibbetts is the founder and leader of fencing in the South Bay and Silicon Valley. He has singlehandedly introduced more people and organizations to fencing than any other person or club in Central California – teaching thousands upon thousands of people to fence recreationally to internationally.

Fencing Education, Diplomas & Honors:

He trained many years in the FRENCH SCHOOL OF FENCING both abroad in France and with French Masters in the USA in preparation for the exams and writing his masters thesis. He earned his French Fencing Masters Diploma or Maitre d’ Arms were he was examined by the Departmental d’ Escrime, and the French Federation of Fencing. He is one of a handful of rare fencing masters to be examined equally in foil, epee, saber thus becoming a three weapon Maitre d’Arms after insisting of the French Board he be allowed to do so (This is unheard of in any country for a long time). He was then informed he scored higher than the twenty French fencing masters examining that year in foil and that he was Magna cum laude in all three weapons.
In the ITALIAN SCHOOL OF FENCING he obtained his Provost-at-Arms Diploma in all three weapons, and the Instructor-At-Arms Diploma in foil from from the Military Fencing Masters Program where he was examined by the President of the International Academy of Arms, the President of the Italian Association of Fencing Masters, and senior examining board members of the National Academy of Fencing in Naples. He was soley presented by the Italians with a rare antique Olympic gold medal to honor his demonstrations of “teaching excellence in all three weapons.” which was designed by the great fencing master Augesalio Greco. He was the Saber Champion of the great Italian Fencing Gala held in the Palace Medici Riccardi in Florence which was a tournament for professional Italian Provost’s and Florentine fencers. He was made an “honorary Italian, and member of the Italian Fencing Masters Federation” while training in Rome. Over a period of many trips he trained in the Military Fencing School in Orvieto, Rome, Frescatti, and Florence Italy, and subsequently led many of his own students to camps help in these locations with his mentors.
He was the honored protege student of Maestro William Gaugler of the Military Italian Fencing Masters Program for five years, and continued training and assisting for 8 years in developing fencing coaches.
In the AMERICAN SCHOOL OF FENCING (there really is no such animal) he is certified by the United States Fencing Coaches Association as a moniteur-at-Arms (instructor in foil). He has trained many coaches certified by the USFCA, He was a coach for the US Fencing Association for the US Youth tours to Great Britain with Andrea Lagan, and he was a designated Coach for many US cadet and junior world cup teams in foil and epee. Maestro Tibbetts has earned more than six of the distinguished US Fencing Association Coach gold medals for producing National and Junior Olympic Champions.
He has become a trainer of coaches and teaches a FRANCO-ITALIANO SCHOOL OF FENCING with some notable HUNGARIAN & POLISH INFLUENCES. The CFA Coaches College has produced a long list of certified junior and senior assistant instructors, Moniteurs, Provosts and Fencing Masters. Maestro Tibbetts coaching students have been professionally and sucessfully prepared for the Italian, French, and American examinations in all three weapons, and one of his competitive fencers later became a coaching student and passed as a Hungarian Saber Master. His Coaching students have received Moniteur, Provost, and fencing masters diplomas in all three weapons from around the world, and many have gone on to be successful coaches, and a few with their own clubs.
Maestro Tibbetts is a professional and contributing member of the International Academy of Arms, the Italian Fencing Masters Federation, the United States Fencing Coaches Association, and the Unites States Fencing Association.

Some Personal Student Results:

1986-1999 (pre- 2000). This only includes “some” of the first 13 years of results before another coach was ever hired to CFA – does not include the last 15 years – yet.

Dominated many levels of foil and epee at the California State Games and Pacific Coast Championships.
The name of the club “California Fencing Academy” actually comes from our dominance of the state.
Many years holding the top three national point positions for entire seasons in men’s foil and epee.
Many years of top youth 10, 12, 14 girls foil fencers
Produced so many men and women foil, epee, and saber North American Cup gold, silver and bronze medalists in Youth 10/ 12/14, Cadet, and Junior we have just lost count.
Men and Women foil, epee, and saber National Championship Finalists in youth, cadet, and junior.
Numerous individual Junior National and Junior Olympic Champions in both foil and epee.
Silver medal in Junior National Team Championships in both foil and epee.
Silver medal in Division 1 National Men’s foil.
World Cup epee and foil placements in the top sixteen in cadet and junior catagories.
Seventh place in the Cadet World Championships in foil (the highest US result at that time).
Four US World Team Placements in foil
Three US World Team Placements in epee.
Students received scholarships and entry to the just about every elite university in The US including Stanford, Penn, Princeton, Harvard, Rutgers, Berkeley, Air Force Academy, UCSC, UCLA, Notre Dame, Cornell, to name a few.

His Coaches & Mentors:

Primary Coaches: Gay Jacobsen/D’asaro (Foil-AMERICAN), Maestro Ferenk Marki (Saber-HUNGARIAN), Maestro Gaugler and Ralph Sahm (foil/epee/saber-ITALIAN)
Secondary Coaches: Maestro Musimeci Greco (foil-ITALIAN. Masters Preparation ), Maestro Niccolo Perno (Saber-ITALIAN. Masters Preparation ), Maestro Lucio Nunges (Foil/Saber-ITALIAN).
Notable Clinician & Mentor Influences: Professor Chaikowski (Foil/Epee/Saber-POLISH), Regis Mantzer (Foil-FRENCH. Masters preparation), Daniel Revenue (Foil-FRENCH. Masters Preparation ). All of these coaches more than one week of full-time clinic and most for more, as well as their treatise studying, and personal study areas as outlined in detail by these masters

Other Related Information:

Elite Certified Personal Trainer and Sports Therapist
Certified Neuromuscular Therapist
Nationally Certified Massage Therapist & Bodyworker
Certified Sports Massage Therapist
USArchery and FITA certified Archery Instructor
Certified Western & English Instructor: Certified Horsemanship Association,
Parelli Natural Horsemanship Student and Savvy Member.
Accomplished martial artist.
He was a park ranger, wild-land firefighter, Search & Rescue Responder
Naturalist, Outdoor Survivalist and Adventurer.
In sports he was a fencer, baseball and football team player, wrestler, frisbee freestyle competitor, horse trainer, dog obedience trainer and handler from youth, and a horseback-dog field trail competitor training and finishing dogs as AKC AFC, FC, and OGD Champions.