Great fencing club in Seattle area! My son has had many great experiences at kaizen, and the…read morecoaches are great!

We have had a wonderful experience with Kaizen. The coaches are awesome. They have the kids…read moregrowing as a fencer as a key goal. Great staff who are always responsive. There is a sense of community with this club.

I'd like to provide context regarding the one-star review left by Wayne L several years ago. The…read moresituation stemmed from a referee call made by Coach Chris during a tournament that Wayne disagreed with. Believing his child had been treated unfairly, Wayne requested that Coach Chris review video footage he had recorded. Under USA Fencing rules and referee guidelines, referees are not permitted to review spectator video or reconsider calls based on such footage. The USA Fencing Referees' Handbook explicitly instructs officials not to engage with or consider video evidence provided by coaches, parents, or spectators, and to avoid post-call debate that could compromise impartiality. When repeatedly confronted with these requests, the appropriate and required response is to decline. During one of these exchanges, Coach Chris stated, "I don't care," meaning that he could not consider the existence of video footage--not that he does not care about fencing, the athletes, or his students. That statement has since been taken out of context. It is also important to note that Coach Chris serves in two distinct roles within the sport: as a referee and as a coach. When officiating, he is acting in his capacity as a USA Fencing referee and is required to remain neutral, impartial, and strictly compliant with officiating protocols, as outlined in the USA Fencing Referees' Handbook. His conduct while refereeing must remain separate from his responsibilities and relationships as a coach. The comment in question was made while he was officiating--not coaching--and should not be interpreted as reflective of his coaching philosophy or commitment to his athletes. Additionally, speaking from personal experience as a long-time fencer at the club, Coach Chris has been consistently supportive of my growth both on and off the strip. He has helped me work through mental challenges after difficult bouts, supported me through disappointing tournaments, and encouraged balance between fencing and school responsibilities. His guidance has extended beyond results and rankings, focusing instead on long-term development, resilience, and personal accountability. As such, this incident does not reflect the values, professionalism, or standards of the club.

Has both Eppe and foil, Epee fencing is hard to find, great place.read more

As a coach, Mark Lundborg is fantastic with kids and makes class and private lessons fun! He is…read morepatient and provides great feedback, and the kids think having a World Champion as a coach is pretty darn cool!

Engarde! I attended…read morethe Washington Fencing Academy for a little over a year. The classes were fun and I enjoyed the club members and coaches. I liked the sport so much I began to compete and even earned my first rating. The coaching staff is involved in the sport both regionally and internationally. You can learn a lot at this club. The people, coaches, and curriculum are great, however the way club management conducts business is unethical and borderline illegal. I injured my arm during a tournament and sat out for 3 months during which I paid full club dues because I didn't request the club to stop charging me. I learned my lesson so when I re-injured my arm 2 months later in April, I had my membership suspended. Forward 6 months, my wife realizes the club charges that had stopped in June had started back up again in August. Funny, cause I had not returned to the club. I had not used the facilities, nor services for over 6 months. I had not given the club permission to charge my credit card again because I simply had not been back to the fencing. Shame on us for not noticing sooner, but the club doesn't send billing statements, nor emails, nor any sort of receipt or notification to let you know they are charging your card. They charged me over $600 without notification and without permission for services I did not receive. I immediately reached out to my coach and club co-founder, Kevin. He directed me to the finance person, Marj. I got no response for 18 days. I emailed and called several times. I felt like I was getting the run around and was finally told Marj isnt really the finance person. She was only communicating on behalf of Amy, another club co-founder and owner. Marj finally wrote back, "We haven't forgotten about you..." and stated that because its a lot of money 'its a big decision for them'. They offered to credit the amount towards future club dues instead of reimbursing me. I insisted on reimbursement, 8 days later Amy tried to settle with me for half of what they took. I'm following up with my credit card company. I'm very disappointed at how I have been treated by club management; and ultimately this bad behavior is what prompted this review.

I put 5 stars, because my kids have been going to this club for half a year (at the moment they go…read moreto a full day camp) The club is new, clean and well equipped, with convenient parking. Alex is a good coach with an excellent track record. Highly recommend

I got a Groupon for four 1:1 fencing lessons and really enjoyed it! Coach Michael is super patient…read moreand helpful, working with me at my own pace and going over (repeatedly as needed, haha) techniques and form.

Michael is a wonderful instructor!! My friend and I enjoyed learning a new skill, getting to try…read morefencing, and just experiencing a new activity. I would definitely recommend signing up for it/checking it out if you are somewhat interested! It was engaging and fun, and it will forever be a cherished memory.

Best fencing academy in Seattle!!! The people there are amazing and classes are available for all…read moreswords and all ages.

Just finished up the introduction classes and had a good experience. The front desk is really…read morefriendly and the coaches helpful as well. Lessons are punctual and informative. They also have a lot of gear you can purchase on site which is always very convenient. If you haven't fenced before this is a great place to start and you get a lot of real fencing bouts. Everyone is nervous in the intro class and built confidence over time so if that's holding you back I'd consider ignoring that. My only gripe is that the classes themselves are somewhat short for me. Warm up, gearing up, taking equipment off, etc can eat up time so I would have liked to see 1.5 hrs classes to amortize the necessary overhead.