Ludlow’s Northern Kentucky Fencing Academy driven by Ned Kalapasev’s passion for the sport

By Vicki Prichard
NKy Tribune reporter

Just as The Hunger Games prompted a new generation to take aim with bow and arrow, firing a renewed interest in archery, Star Wars, The Force Awakens may well spur a generation to lift the saber and duel.

Aspiring Jedi’s — and their parents — need look no farther than the Northern Kentucky Fencing Academy (NKFA) in Ludlow to take a stab at the sport.

Located at 301 Elm Street, the NKFA is an Olympic sport fencing club. They focus on epee, one of the three weapons used in fencing. The other two are foil and saber. Classes in epee are offererd to students age nine and up. They offer six beginner classes, designed as an introduction to fencing.

“I started fencing in my high school years, Novi Sad, Serbia,” says Ned Kalapasev, who teaches fencing at the Northern Kentucky Fencing Academy at 301 Elm St. “I always enjoyed sports and played tennis and basketball growing up. Then, one day, I came across fencing and I was instantly hooked.”

For Kalapasev, fencing was like no other sport.

Often referred to as “physical chess,” Kalapasev says the sport is a great way to exercise, relieve stress and improve balance, speed, hand-eye coordination and confidence.

Over the last five years, NKFA has grown to 40-plus fencers. They moved into the Ludlow location last June, with a fencing site that is state of the art, featuring eight electronic scoring strips with multiple monitors per strip keeping score and time.

“My neighbor suggested I check out the space above the coffee shop in Ludlow,” so I did,” says Kalaplasev. “Ken Wynn, the owner of the coffee shop below, Wynners Cup Cafe, and the mayor of Ludlow, loved the idea of my unique business being in Ludlow.”

In addition to the coffee shop, the 301 Elm St. location houses an artisan distillery, Second Sight Spirits.

Kalapasev says the three businesses work great together to created fun events to attract fencers and customers to the Ludlow business district.

While some fencing students are content fencing at a recreational level, some like to compete and fence at local, regional and even national level. The competition level fencing requires a strong mental and physical game, says Kalapasev.

“The basics of fencing are easy to learn — how to move, how to parry, or block, and how to attack, are simple actions. Putting those simple actions in longer, smooth sequences takes time and focus,” he says.

So far, NKFA has hosted three tournaments, attracting fencers from Louisville, Cleveland and Indianapolis.

“The word is getting out about our great facility, well-run tournaments, the coffee shop and rum distillery combo, and the positive energy in our space,” says Kalapasev.

Fencing tournaments are generally long affairs. Since fencing is an individual sport, competitors fence many folks in one day.

“An event could be weapon, skill, age or gender specific,” says Kalapasev. “At a national level, it is not unusual to have over 250 fencers show up for an open men’s epee event. Start time would be 7 a.m., and final bout would be happening in the afternoon, making it a very long and grueling day of fencing.”

Kalapasev says the first tournament they hosted was born out of “pirate-themed shenanigans.”

“The rum guys were thinking about having some kind of promotion for international talk like a pirate day (Sept. 19th), so we all decided to create a Pirate Day event in Ludlow, celebrating its river heritage and offering pirate-based activities for all ages.”

The event drew a crowd of 41 fencers in three events.

NKFA’s tournament on January 30 — The Bloody Winter Wonderland — drew more than 55 pre-registered fencers competing in three events.

The St. Patrick’s Slay tournament takes place March 19 and The Widowmaker on May 7.

While the NKFA was created for love and instruction of the sport, it plays a much larger role in Kalapasev’s life.

“I started the NKFA as a way for me to release stress, doing something that I love, and to help my family raise awareness and funds for research and high medical costs associated with my son’s condition,” says Kalapasev.

His son, Milosh, has a rare metabolic condition called Barth Syndrome which causes low muscle tone, fatigue, neurtropenia, growth delays, and most horrifyingly, cardiomyopathy heart issues,” says Kalapasev.

Milosh received a heart transplant in April 2011.

All profits from NKFA tournaments go to support life-saving research from the Barth Syndrome Foundation (BSF) and Cincinnati Children’s Hospital.

For more information on the Northern Kentucky Fencing Academy, click here .