Coaches

Now Hiring: Join Our Coaching Team

PBFC is actively growing, and we're looking for passionate coaches to grow with us. We currently have openings for a Fencing Coach (foil and épée) and a Youth Fencing Instructor.

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Our Coaches

Great coaching is what separates a good fencing club from a great one. At PBFC, our coaches bring international credentials, decades of competitive and teaching experience, and a genuine investment in every fencer who walks through our doors. We keep classes small so that investment stays personal.

Yousef Alaghehband

Head Coach, Épée

Yousef is an FIE Master Certified Coach with over 30 years of elite coaching experience across five continents. His fencers have earned more than 354 medals in national competitions across Canada, Iran, Brazil, and China, with recent podium finishes across every youth category from U8 through U16.

A specialist in developing young talent through elite junior competition, Yousef has founded and led fencing programs across three continents, including SilverSword Fencing Academy in Montreal, the Canadian Fencing Club, the Udine Fencing Association in Italy, fencing centers in Shanghai, clubs in South Korea, and the NYU fencing team. He holds coaching certifications from the FIE, Italy's National Sports Authority, and the Brazilian and Canadian Fencing Federations, along with a Master Diploma from the FIE Master School.

In Para Fencing, Yousef is the founder and former National Coach of the Canadian Para Fencing Team, whose athletes include three-time Paralympian Sylvie Morel. He is an internationally certified Para Fencing coach and referee with experience across eight countries.

His coaching philosophy: "Building champions is not about medals alone, it is about discipline, confidence, character, and lifelong values."

Christopher Vandaele

Coach & Club President

Christopher is a former modern pentathlete with a competitive background across Europe. After relocating to New York City, he trained under Hungarian National Champion Nora Szita and later with Olympian Tim Morehouse at the Tim Morehouse Fencing Club (TMFC). He holds FIE Moniteur certification.

At PBFC, Christopher works primarily with beginners and younger fencers, and he's passionate about helping new students, especially kids, fall in love with the sport from their very first class. His multi-discipline background gives him a natural feel for building coordination, confidence, and mental toughness in young athletes just discovering what they're capable of.

As Club President, Christopher is shaping the next chapter of a legacy that dates back to 1927. His vision for PBFC extends beyond producing competitive fencers: a program where the discipline of fencing (reading a situation, deciding under pressure, and owning the outcome) builds people as much as it builds athletes. He sees that as the club's real inheritance to the next generation, not only trophies, but character. More on that vision is on our About page.