Coaching Staff

Atilio Tass, Camp Director

Head Coach Atilio Tass has been involved in the sport of fencing for over 20 years. Not only as a coach, Tass is also a world class competitor, referee and teacher. His training as a coach comes from the Hungarian Sport University, where he earned his coaching diploma in fencing in 1988. He coaches all three weapons.

A native of Buenos Aires, Argentina Tass competed in the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics and 1980 Olympics in Moscow, as well as six different World Championships from 1985 to 1991, and three Pan American Games. He was the South American Champion in 1980, 1983 and 1986, the Argentinean National Champion in 1983 and 1984, and earned a bronze medal at the 1979 Pan Am Championship.

Tass has been an official referee for the US Fencing Team since 1990 and was selected to referee the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games. He was also invited to referee the last six NCAA Championships.

Tass worked as an assistant coach at the University of Notre Dame in 1988. He was proprietor, manager, and head coach of the Tucson (AZ) Fencing Club, coaching there from 1990-1999 at all levels, from beginners to competitive members.

Tass, who is fluent in English, Spanish, Italian, and Hungarian, has also worked in TV, producing and directing a two-hour show, "The World of Fencing", for cable. He also created a magazine format show titled, "Fencing Action News".

Most recently, Tass won a bronze medal at the 2009 Veterans World Championship in Moscow, Russia.

Arpad Horvath

Arpad began his fencing career in 1989 in Budapest, Hungary. He was a National Champion on all levels winning 16 gold medals as an Epee and Foil fencer, Cadet World and Junior European Champion, and Junior World Cup winner. Arpad received a full scholarship to St. John's University where he became a two time NCAA Individual Champion. IFA Champion and a four time Regional Champion. He received First Team All-American honors twice, St. John's Fencing Team MVP and 2005 St. John's Athlete of the Year Award.

Arpad has been coaching at the North Shore Fencers Club since 2005 and was the Assistant coach at Stevens Institute of Technology in the 2005-2007 seasons.

Attila Luckacs

Attila Lukacs was born in Hungary, Budapest in 1981. He started fencing at the age of 9, and started to competing at the age of 12. He is a multiple National Champion. He placed 9th at the Cadet World Championship, 3rd place in Junior European Team Championship, and is a multiple Junior World Cup medalist.

Gamal Mahmoud

Gamal Mahmoud started working at Harvard in 2005 as an assistant coach for both the men's and women's fencing team. Before Harvard, he coached at Northeastern University, Phillips Academy Andover, the Boston Fencing Club and Prise de Fer Club. In 2006 he was selected to coach the American team at the World Cup in Germany at Tauberbischofsheim, where Harvard fencer Benjamin Ungar won the gold medal. His coaching success began by studying under maitre d'arm Michel Perrin of France who is the coordinator of the French national team. He then coached at the Alexandria (Egypt) Fencing Club from 1984-87. He worked in Saudi Arabia from 1987 to 1997 then again in Egypt from 1998-99 before coming to the United States in 2001. Mahmoud has coached many athletes that have reached high levels of success including three standouts. Mohamed el Kaimy finished 19th at the World Championships in 1993, El Sager was the Asian champion in Indonesia in 1996 and Mohamed El Assal placed second in the Africa Games in 1999. Mahmoud earned his bachelor's degree in Agricultural Engineering in 1980. He became a Level A fencer in all three weapons and was a member of the Egyptian national team.

Mahmoud was born in Egypt in 1954 and currently resides with his wife and two children in Boston, Ma.