About Lionheart Academy

We teach confidence and promote youth fitness with our fun and unique sports. Enroll your child in group classes or book a private session with any of our certified instructors.  Beginners are welcome!

Lionheart Academy offers archery and fencing lessons for kids, teens and adults. We teach confidence and promote youth fitness with our fun and unique sports.

Our club offers a multi-purpose 6,000 sq. ft. gym facility that includes a 20-meter archery range and six state-of-the-art overhead scoring machines for fencing. We have a cushioned rubber floor, a full-service equipment armory, and a pro shop. Please note that the minimum age to participate in fencing classes or camps is 7 years old and the minimum age to participate in archery classes or camps is 9 years old.

Our indoor archery range is perfect for tuning your skills for outdoor distances or training for Junior Olympic competitions.

We have excellent, award-winning coaches ready to help you reach your goals.

Our Coaches

Maestro Stu - Founder of Lionheart Academy

Maestro Stu

Head Coach

Maestro is the Owner and Head Coach Of LionHeart Fencing Academy. He is a Master of Foil Fencing, and is certified by both the British Academy of Fencing and the United States Fencing Coaches Association. Maestro has a Bachelors of Science Degree, Kinesiology (Physical Education emphasis), San Diego State, 2005, was the Former Head Coach, UCSD Men’s and Women’s Fencing, 1997 – 2004 and Founder and President of the San Diego Scholastic Fencing Conference, 2006 – 2012 (now known as the San Diego Youth Cup). Maestro has trained thousands of kids and enjoys passing on his incredible expertise, while having a little fun too.

Maestro Stu - Founder of Lionheart Academy

Maestro Stu

Head Coach

Maestro is the Owner and Head Coach Of LionHeart Fencing Academy. He is a Master of Foil Fencing, and is certified by both the British Academy of Fencing and the United States Fencing Coaches Association. Maestro has a Bachelors of Science Degree, Kinesiology (Physical Education emphasis), San Diego State, 2005, was the Former Head Coach, UCSD Men’s and Women’s Fencing, 1997 – 2004 and Founder and President of the San Diego Scholastic Fencing Conference, 2006 – 2012 (now known as the San Diego Youth Cup). Maestro has trained thousands of kids and enjoys passing on his incredible expertise, while having a little fun too.

Our Coaches

Maestro Stu - Founder of Lionheart Academy

Maestro Stu

Head Coach Foil Fencing

Maestro is the Owner and Head Coach Of LionHeart Fencing Academy. He is a Master of Foil Fencing, and is certified by both the British Academy of Fencing and the United States Fencing Coaches Association. Maestro has a Bachelors of Science Degree, Kinesiology (Physical Education emphasis), San Diego State, 2005, was the Former Head Coach, UCSD Men’s and Women’s Fencing, 1997 – 2004 and Founder and President of the San Diego Scholastic Fencing Conference, 2006 – 2012 (now known as the San Diego Youth Cup). Maestro has trained thousands of kids and enjoys passing on his incredible expertise, while having a little fun too.

Lee Taylor - Portrait of archery instructor

Lee Taylor

Office Manager & Head Coach of Archery

Lee Taylor is the Office Manager, and Head Coach of Archery at LionHeart Academy. She holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Physical Education from Southern Connecticut State College and is Certified by US Archery as a Level 2 Instructor. Lee participates in both local and National archery events. A former NCAA Swimmer, she has spent her life teaching and coaching.

Maestro Franco Cerutti

Maestro Franco Cerutti

Head Coach Epee Fencing

Coach Cerutti brings a broad range of elite coaching experience to USA Fencing, most recently as the Swiss Fencing executive director of high performance and chief-of-mission and director of performance at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. He led the Swiss to their first-ever senior world title when the men’s team epee won gold at the 2018 Wuxi Senior Fencing World Championships. Prior to that role, he coached Swiss Fencing youth squads and was the head coach for junior squads at European and World Championships. Coach Cerutti holds several degrees and diplomas in sports, including being a Maitre d’Armes from the British Academy of Fencing, a Coach in Competitive Sports with Federal Diploma of Professional Education and Training from the Swiss Federal Office of Sport (BASPO) and an Entraineur Diplome de Sport d’Elite from the same office. As the Epee Director, Cerutti will oversee both the men’s and women’s epee programs and help build a pipeline of epee athletes and coaches in order to achieve sustained international success at the highest level.

Conner Johnston

Conner Johnston

Fencing Coach

Conner Johnston assists Maestro Lee and Maestro Cerutti, instructing both foil and epee at every level. A fencer from the age of 10, Conner is currently ranked by US Fencing as an “A” in epee. He is an Engineering Major at Cuyamaca College in El Cajon and is currently studying to be certified by the US Coaches Association.

Philip Han - Archery Coach

Philip Han

Archery Coach

Philip is a recurve archer and coach with a focus on traditional and barebow styles. He’s previously won local, state, and national level tournaments. Philip also has a bachelors of science in International Business from Arizona State University. Prior to archery he was in a long fight with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma but has since been in remission with support from family and benefits of what a sport like archery can provide.