Bristol Blades Team
Nat Lewis
Senior Management Team: Club Founder & Lead Sabre Coach
Nat is a qualified Level 5 FIE Sabre coach and has been coaching professionally since graduating from University. Nat has been an England u15 sabre coach travelling with the squad to international competitions and has supported fencers at international U17 and U20 level. He also works as British Fencing’s Para Development lead, coaching and managing the next generation of GB wheelchair fencers on the road to the Los Angeles and Brisbane games.
Glen Golding
Senior Management Team: Club Founder & Lead Senior Foil Coach
Glen is a qualified Level 5 FIE Foil coach, has been a British National Development Coach for British U17 and U20 foil squads, and was a finalist for the 2018 British Development Coach of the Year. He has coached national and commonwealth champions as well as members of the 2012 Olympic squad. Glen has coached multiple GB squads including the cadet GB women’s and men’s squads at European and World Championships.
Glen also works at the UK Sports Institute with the Wheelchair Fencing World Class Program, coaching medal winning athletes at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games.
Richard Bernstein
Competition Officer & Club Foil Coach
Richard is a qualified L3 Foil Coach, L2 Epee Coach and Team Manager, who has been working in the Bristol area since 2015.
As a fencer, Richard has competed for both Jersey and Great Britain in three Commonwealth Games and medalled at 2 European and 2 World games for MACCABI GB.
As Coach and Team Manager, Richard has led Jersey at Junior Commonwealth Games. In the summer of 2019 was Manager, Coach, and Athlete at the European MACCABI GAMES. For the 2022 Commonwealth Fencing Championship Richard represented Jersey as an Athlete, Coach and Team Manager and on the 2022 Maccabi GB team. Richard is also the youth Foil coordinator for England Fencing.
Ben Priestley
Club Foil Coach & Lead Senior Epee Coach
Ben is a qualified coach of all three weapons with Level 3 in both Foil and Epee. Since finishing a Master’s Degree in Sport and Exercise Science at the University of Bath he now coaches professionally in schools and clubs around the South West. He also oversees the Strength and Conditioning work for our competitive fencers.
Maddi Pearce
Club Foil Coach
Maddi is a level 3 foil coach, currently working with fencers of all levels, from U10 to GBR senior team. Maddi is also an ex-international foil fencer, having represented England, been selected for the GBR team and been in the top 10 of GBR senior foil fencers and has won multiple domestic events prior to retiring to focus more on refereeing and coaching. She is also a qualified referee in all three weapons and is an international foil referee. Maddi has a strong interest in developing performance athletes and helping them to improve and develop themselves.
Dan Wide
Club Sabre Coach
Yvonne Hopkinson
Club Welfare Office