Archil Lortkipanidze
Master Head Coach & Co-Founder
Archil Lortkipanidze (“Achiko”) is an Olympic-level fencer and internationally recognized fencing coach. He received his degree from the Tiblisi State University, Republic of Georgia.
As a fencer, Achiko is a five-time Georgian National Champion, a Soviet Union Cup Finalist, World Cup Finalist, and a member of the Georgian Olympic Fencing Team (1996 Atlanta Olympic Games). As a coach, he has over 25 years of experience as a Master Saber Coach for a variety of leading athletic Organizations and institutions, including the Georgian National Team, Lincoln Fencing Club, Fencing Academy of Westchester, Fencers Club, Tim Morehouse Fencing Club, and Yale University Fencing Team.
Achiko has raised and coached numerous students onto national and international success in fencing. Several of his students became members of the National Saber Fencing Team, winning numerous medals at international competitions, including Cadet and Junior World Championships and World Cups. His students have also gone on to win regional and national medals at the North American Cups, USA National Championships and Junior Olympics. Many of Achiko’s fencers have been placed to fence Division One at top universities, including Yale, Columbia, Cornell, Duke, Princeton, Notre Dame, Penn State, and the University of North Carolina.
Maksim Lohotska
Elite Saber Coach
Maksim Lohotska is a world-renowned fencing coach and referee. As a coach, Maxim has trained Olympians and World medalists. For nearly a decade, he was the National and Olympic Coach for the Republic of Belarus. Most recently he was also the elite coach at Tim Morehouse Fencing Club.
Many of the students under his instruction have achieved remarkable feats as Championships in Catania, Italy and several of his students have gone on to win medals at international competitions. His student Aleksandr Buikevich earned an individual bronze medal at the 2012 World Fencing Championships in Legnano, Italy. Another student of his, Misha Akulo, took fifth place in the Cadet World Championships in Baku and fourth place at the Youth Olympic Games in Singapore in 2010.
Maxim is also a referee, overseeing fencing competitions at the highest level of the sport. He participated in the 2004 and 2012 Olympic Games as FIE Referee, officiating the gold medal matches. He was also appointed as a FIE referee at World Championships in 2005, 2009, 2010, and 2011.
Nick Quan
Junior Coach
Nick Quan is an international-level fencing referee and collegiate fencer, who recently graduated from Brandeis University in 2024. During his time competing within the NCAA, Nick would captain the saber team, providing key victories over programs such as UCSD, NYU, UNC, Columbia, and Duke. Before college, Nick placed 3rd in the Division 2 Men’s Saber event at the December NAC in 2019 and top 16 in the Junior Men’s Saber event at the 2020 Baltimore SJCC. As a referee, he has officiated the highest levels of competitions domestically. Most recently, he refereed the Division 1 Women’s Saber Final during the National American Championships. Nick will be joining the international cadet cadre this season as he will be serving as a referee in the European Fencing Circuit.
Zaheer Booth
Junior Coach
Zaheer Booth is excited to join the coaching team at Scarsdale Fencing Center. A former NCAA fencer and member of the USA National Travel Team, Zaheer brings over 18 years of experience in the sport. He has coached fencers of all levels, from beginners to national competitors. Zaheer is passionate about helping young athletes develop their skills, foster a love for fencing, and achieve their full potential both on and off the strip. He looks forward to bringing his expertise and energy to the Scarsdale Fencing Center community.
Jasmina Denner
Co-Founder & Fencer
Jasmina is a co-founder of SFC and top ranked saber fencer in her age group. She has been active in the fencing community since 2011, supporting her two sons, Lysander and Max as they pursued competitive fencing with Coach Achiko. Shortly after she was inspired to take up fencing, she excelled at the sport and became top-ranked fencer in her age group. Jasmina is a Bronze Team Medalist (World Championship in 2022), with 19 national and numerous regional medals. She has been a member of the National Team for World Championships in her age group four times (2020, 2022, 2023 and 2024).
Jasmina co-founded SFC with Coach Achiko to share her family’s passion for fencing, providing opportunities for others to try the sport and access first-rate instruction with world-class coaches in a state-of-the-art facility. Their mission is to foster passion and dedication for fencing, encourage the pursuit of excellence, inspire others to embrace the joy of fencing, and create a lifelong impact while promoting inclusivity and community engagement.
For a full bio please visit Jasmina’s LinkedIn profile.
