Marli Vlok

Marli is a PhD researcher and former competitive target shooter, who starter her HEMA journey in 2013 at Academie Duello in Vancouver. She immediately fell in love with the art and grace of rapier fencing and Bolognese single sword. She became an instructor in 2014 at Academie Duello and holds the rank of free-scholar at the school. In 2020 she expanded her practice to include Italian classical foil and historical European flagwaving. Her flagwaving research has focussed primarily on 17th century Italian and German sources, to gain a better understanding of how this art evolved from a battlefield essential, to a performance and training tool, and finding congruence between the living performance art practiced in Europe and the historical practice described in text.

Marli is a dedicated and meticulous practitioner and teacher who finds great joy in sharing her knowledge and passion with students, whether it be in a group class or one-on-one setting. To further develop her teachings, she started attending the SSU Fencing Masters Certificate Program in 2023 and is looking forward to continuing that journey. She has recently joined Valour Historical Fencing in Winnipeg and is excited about contributing to this vibrant community.