I do not recommend this school. Instead, I cannot even call this institution a school or an academy. This is a big business built on children. The coaches are obsessed with victories and show no concern for the child's mental well-being. They prioritize those children who bring them medals. The atmosphere in the hall is very toxic. Two sons in the hall form coalitions against weaker children. The main Coach and his wife are so obsessed with victories that they even make a business out of their children. They drag them to all competitions, even those where they do not perform. The children do nothing else -- their parents did not give them a choice to be artists, musicians, or try another sport.
There are no conversations in the hall about how to cope with emotions, or about bullying, or why sports are needed at all, because it's not only about medals. Most parents send their children to fencing because it is a rare sport, yet prestigious, and in their opinion, this sport will help their children gain college admission. And from the first minute in this school, you feel this competition. You seem to be among children from 8 to 15 years old, but it feels as if you are in the adult world, where the strong beat the weak--a children's place where there is no childhood. My son started going to this school during COVID. All children's programs were closed at that time, and Premier Fencing was open, so we started going there. Until the school moved to a new building, we liked going there. But something changed when the school moved. In the new location, everything became more aggressive. They hired a new coach, and everyone started pushing for competitions, results, and victories. This aggression was transmitted to the children, and bullying appeared. My son came home and said that they called him bad names, and that the coach's son was turning other children against him, telling them not to fence with him, that he was a loser, and saying other hurtful things. He was very worried and tried to please them, but they offended him even more. The coaches always reacted negatively toward my son, and of course, their son was on the other side. Unfortunately, the other children listened to him because he is the coach's son. The last incident happened a few days ago. At a competition held in the hall, my son lost a fight and told his opponent that he would have beaten him if it were jiu-jitsu. He jokingly tried to grab him by the neck, but the opponent did not get the joke and threw him to the floor. Then he called him an idiot. My son realized he had done the wrong thing and apologized, to which the boy replied, "Shut up." That's how our four years of fencing at this school ended. Of course, my son's behavior was wrong, and we had a serious talk with him. We apologize to the parents and the boy involved. But when you're 13 years old, and you've been bullied for a year, called names, and told you're a loser, this is often how it ends. And the coaches, in their pursuit of money and fame, fail to recognize the problems occurring within their school.
We moved to another club in Rancho Cordova, which has been around since 1985. We shared our story with them, and they were not surprised. They said they know Premier Fencing is chasing Olympic medals and has no need for "weak" players. They said their philosophy is the opposite -- they want children to love the sport, enjoy it, and, if they wish to, participate in competitions.
This suits us perfectly. We do not need fencing for college. If my son wants, he will enter college simply because he is intelligent and educated enough. He has excellent grades, speaks three languages fluently, and is learning Mandarin as his fourth language. He plays the piano, draws beautifully, holds a gray belt in jiu jitsu, is proficient in programming, and is also a walking encyclopedia, as he reads extensively and genuinely loves to study read more
