Instructors – Instructeurs

Maxime Chouinard

Maxime started training in 1997 with Kyokushin karate in his hometown of Sainte-Anne des Monts. In 2002, he started to practice and research Historical Martial Arts, focusing on military sabre, La Canne and Le Baton. The same year, he also started practicing Japanese kenjutsu, becoming an instructor in Shinkendo, Toyama Ryu and Hyoho Niten Ichi Ryu. Over the years, he also trained in Canne de combat, Yagyu Shinkage Ryu, Brazilian jiu-jitsu and Olympic fencing, and participated in Dog Brothers events. In 2007, he travelled to Ireland, where he was introduced to Antrim Bata, a style of bataireacht or Irish stick, which he started teaching in 2009. He now works to promote this art around the world, and is heading Antrim Bata internationally. Maxime is also an affiliate member of the HEMA Alliance and a member of the the French HEMA Federation.

Maxime has been teaching, competing and researching historical fencing ever since, specializing in sabre and Irish stick. He organized training groups in Quebec City and Kingston, before moving to Ottawa in 2018. He also organized three editions of the Symposium des Arts Martiaux Historiques in Quebec City and Montreal, and has taught workshops and seminars in Canada, USA, Ireland, Mexico, France and Norway. He publishes regular articles on his blog Hema misfits (I don’t do longsword) on the history and practice of martial arts.

In his daily life, Maxime works for Parks Canada, where he supervises the national historical collection. He holds a BA in Archaeology from Laval University, and a Master in Cultural Heritage from Deakin University, and is trained as an Historical Weapons Supervisor with Parks Canada.

Depuis, Maxime enseigne et compétitionne en escrime historique, surtout en escrime au sabre et en bâton irlandais. Il a mis sur pied des écoles à Québec et à Kingston, avant de déménager à Ottawa en 2018. Il a également organisé trois éditions du Symposium des Arts Martiaux Historiques à Québec et à Montréal, et a donné des ateliers et des séminaires au Canada, aux États-Unis, en Irlande, au Mexique, en France et en Norvège. Il publie régulièrement des articles sur son blog Hema misfits(I don’t do longsword) portant sur l’histoire et la pratique des arts martiaux.

Dans son quotidien, Maxime travaille pour Parcs Canada, où il supervise la collection historique nationale. Il détient un baccalauréat en archéologie de l’Université Laval et une maîtrise en patrimoine culturel de l’Université Deakin, et a reçu la formation de superviseur des armes historiques avec Parcs Canada.

Callum Carmichael

Callum is a lifelong martial artist, and sometime reenactor, with a background in Judo, Olympic Fencing, and HEMA. He competes in Rapier, German longsword, and Broadsword tournaments and even designs tournament rules. He has demonstrated medieval armoured combat at the Canadian War Museum on several occasions, and taught at the SOHFA Kings Cup tournament.

Callum has trained for many years in Olympic fencing, and has practiced Historical fencing since 2012. He began practicing Antrim Bata regularly in 2019 and earned the rank of assistant instructor in 2020.

Callum est un artiste martial de longue date, et parfois reconstitueur, avec une formation en judo, en escrime olympique et en AMHE. Il participe à des tournois de rapière, d’épée longue allemande et de sabre et conçoit même des règles de tournoi. Il a fait plusieurs démonstrations de combats blindés médiévaux au Musée canadien de la guerre et a enseigné au tournoi SOHFA Kings Cup.

Callum s’est entraîné pendant de nombreuses années à l’escrime olympique et pratique l’escrime historique depuis 2012. Il a commencé à pratiquer régulièrement l’Antrim Bata en 2019 et a depuis obtenu le grade d’assistant instructeur.


Ryan Fleming

First picking up a longsword in 2020, Ryan has also since took on rapier and sabre. Specializing in the Germanic longsword tradition, and strong of 15 years as an archer, he brings a well-rounded background of competitive and independent disciplines to Historical European Martial Arts.

As an assistant longsword instructor, Ryan also has a rich teaching history beyond the world of historical fencing; a licensed snowboard instructor, an elementary volleyball coach, and a camp counselor, he has even been a D&D dungeon master for nearly two decades, wrangling friends and teaching complex systems in an engaging way.

Ryan believes HEMA is for everybody, and is passionate about helping students discover their potential. As a lifelong lover of history and fantasy, he is excited to share the art of historical fencing with others.