Coach Brenden has been teaching fencing in Orange County since 1994 and is committed to the development of fencers of all ages in a focused and positive learning environment. He is certified as a Prevot by the United States Fencing Coaches Association (USFCA), of which he is a lifetime member.  He began as the head of the fencing program for the University of California at Irvine in the 1990’s and left to create the South Coast Fencing Center, a non-profit center focused on developing fencers of all ages and levels in the greater Orange County area.
 

In the early 2000’s he traveled extensively to Europe, training in England, Spain, Italy and Holland.  He was invited to train with the Spanish Olympic team under the guidance of their National Coach and Olympian, Jesus Esperanza, and Brenden relocated to Madrid to focus on that training.  He has since continued his development overseas as well as domestically.  He has taught at the U.S. Coaches College at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, CO, and is a certified coach through that program.  In 2009, Brenden was asked to represent the U.S. at the Pan-American High Level Fencing Course (also at the Olympic Training Center).  Together with U.S. National Coach Buckie Leach, Brenden taught the foil portion of the course to over 80 national coaches from across the western hemisphere.

​

In addition to his coaching responsibilities, Brenden is a Regional Youth Coordinator for the United States Fencing Association (USFA), overseeing youth fencing development across southern California, Hawaii and Nevada.  He was a former member of the United States Fencing Officials and was an active referee at the national level for many years before leaving to focus on the fencing center.  He is also Chair for the Orange Coast Division of the USFA, which oversees fencing in the greater Orange County area.

​

Brenden’s students have been finalists at numerous North America Cups (NACs) and National Championships.  His alumni have gone on to fence at the international level, including the Junior World Championships.  In addition to his role at the Center, Coach Brenden also runs the fencing programs in the Kinesiology departments of the California State Universities at Fullerton and Long Beach.

BRADEN SAITO

Coach Braden started out as a student at SCFC in 2007 and has been passionate about the sport ever since.  He has many years of experience fencing in the national circuit, competing and training across the country prior to graduating high school.  During his time competing, he was ranked in the top 25 of Y14 Men's Foil  fencers nationally.  Braden went on to study Computer Engineering at the California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, where he volunteered as the foil coach for the school's fencing program.

Braden is a certified Moniteur de Foil by the United States Fencing Coaches Association.  He has a patient and analytical approach to coaching his students.  Coach Braden loves working with fencers of all ages and skill levels.