Athletics
The Peter Westbrook Foundation’s results in the athletic arena have been no less than astonishing.
The Foundation has set an unprecedented record by qualifying the most athletes from a grass roots organization to the 2000 and 2004 Olympic Games.
How do we do it? Easy. We have the world’s best fencers as coaches, a passionate and cohesive staff, and a program that teaches the students that success is based upon their sense of responsibility and their commitment as much as it is their natural talent. Since our founding in 1991, we have developed a systematic formula for taking ordinary students in underserved communities and transforming them into world-class athletes. In fact, the Peter Westbrook Foundation has done more to integrate the fencing community than any other organization in the world, helping to break down racial and class barriers that once seemed insurmountable. Our program not only trains athletes, but it also cultivates relationships among many college-level fencing programs, resulting in an extraordinary number of athletic scholarships among our students. See some highlights of our athletic accomplishments.
Saturday Program
This is a competitive fencing program open to young people ages 9-18, of any skill level. The program is held every Saturday morning from 9:00 AM to noon, September through June. The number of participants enrolled in the program is over 150 per class.
The instructional format consists of a warm-up period at the beginning of each class followed by group lessons in foil, epee, or saber fencing. During individual and group sessions, students are taught topics ranging from the history of fencing to emotional preparedness in sports and its relevance to school and life. Rigid discipline is required and instilled in participants by instructors who are all world-class athletes, and Olympic coaches who are committed to helping young people fulfill their potential.
After School Leadership Program
An elite squad of approximately 35-40 athletes who show exceptional talent for the sport are selected for our After School Leadership Program. In this advanced program, athletes train year-round and are put through a professional training regimen of 4-6 days per week designed to prepare them for domestic and international competition. All participants in this program have been awarded scholarships that pay for fencing club memberships, coaching, and competition and traveling fees.
The athletes are required to attend monthly meetings conducted by the training staff and attend a summer training camp, as well as volunteer their time to coach younger fencers in the general program or to conduct fencing demonstrations and clinics on behalf of the PWF.
Athletes are trained by the Foundation’s international roster of coaches, comprised of Olympians and instructors with extensive competitive and athlete development experience. Each coach acts as a mentor by monitoring each student’s academic performance to ensure that athletes are balancing their responsibilities to study as hard in school as they train in the fencing gym. Coaches also chaperone athletes during trips to domestic and international competitions, often acting as a motivator, cheerleader, friend, and counselor to their students.
The organization’s crowning athletic achievement has been qualifying athletes to represent the United Sates at the 2008, 2004, and 2000 Olympics. Siblings Keeth and Erinn Smart brought home silver medals from the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games and were also members of the 2004 and 2000 Olympic teams. Other Olympians from the Foundation include Kamara James (Women’s Epee 2004), Ivan Lee (Men’s Sabre 2004), and Akhnaten Spencer-El (Men’s Sabre 2000). Also of note, Nzingha Prescod became PWF’s first World Champion in 2008 by winning the Women’s Foil Cadet Junior World Championship, which she repeated in 2009.
Athletic Results
National Champions – Individual
Junior National Champions - Individual
Junior National Champions – Team
Kamara James – Women’s Epee, ’04
Ivan Lee – Men’s Sabre, ’04
Erinn Smart – Women’s Foil, ’00,’04,’08
Keeth Smart – Men’s Sabre, ’00,’04,’08
Akhnaten Spencer-El – Men’s Sabre, ’00
Erinn Smart – Silver, Women’s Foil Team, ’08
Keeth Smart – Silver, Men’s Sabre Team, ’08
Epiphany Georges – Junior Women’s Foil Team, ’09
Ivan Lee – Junior Men’s Sabre Team, ’01
Nzingha Prescod – Cadet Women’s Foil, ’08,’09
Nzingha Prescod – Junior Women’s Foil Team, ’09
Nzingha Prescod – Junior Women’s Foil, ’11
Kamara James – Junior Women’s Epee, ’04
Ivan Lee – Junior Men’s Sabre, ’01
Nzingha Prescod – Cadet Women’s Foil, ’09
Keeth Smart – Senior Men’s Sabre, ’03
Akhnaten Spencer-El – Junior Men’s Sabre, ’98
Adam Crompton – Men’s Sabre, ’03,’04,’06
Alexis Jemal – Women’s Sabre, ’03
Ivan Lee – Men’s Sabre, ’01,’02
Keeth Smart – Men’s Sabre, ’97,’99
National Champions – Individual
Ivan Lee – Men’s Sabre, ’01,’03,’05,’06,’08
Ibtihaj Muhammad – Women’s Sabre, ’09
Erinn Smart – Women’s Foil, ’98,’02,’04,’07,’08
Keeth Smart – Men’s Sabre, ’02,’04
Akhnaten Spencer-El – Men’s Sabre, ’99,’00
Men’s Sabre - ’97-’99,’01-’03,’05-’06,’08,’10
Men’s Epee – ’02,’09
Women’s Foil – ’06-’08
Women’s Sabre – ’07
Ben Bratton – Men’s Epee, ’06,’09,’10
Adam Crompton – Men’s Sabre, ’05
Rashaan Greenhouse – Men’s Epee, ’01
Kamara James – Women’s Epee, ’01,’02,’03
Ivan Lee – Men’s Sabre, ’01,’02,’03,’05,’06,’07
Ibtihaj Muhammad – Women’s Sabre, ’09,’10
Nzingha Prescod – Women’s Foil, ’09,’10
Herby Raynaud – Men’s Sabre, ’99,’01,’02
Erinn Smart – Women’s Foil, ’98,’99,’01,’02,’03,’07
Keeth Smart – Men’s Sabre, ’97,’98,’99,’01,’02,’03,’06,’07
Akhnaten Spencer-El – Men’s Sabre, ’97,’98,’99,’02
Junior National Champions - Individual
Ben Bratton – Men’s Epee, ’00
Ivan Lee – Men’s Sabre, ’98
Erinn Smart – Women’s Foil, ’97
Nzingha Prescod – Women’s Foil, ’06,’08
Marty Williams – Men’s Sabre, ’08
Junior National Champions – Team
Men’s Sabre – ’98,’00,’09
Women’s Foil – ’06
