The discipline is governed by a board comprised of three of the trainers (who make administrative decisions for the discipline, in consultation with the other trainers), and is run generally by all the trainers together. As a group of trainers who have a passion both for historical methods of riding and using weapons as well as incorporating a higher level of equitation within the practice of horse archery (as well as the equestrian martial arts community more widely), we work within a flexible confederation while still maintaining proper standards and quality. For details on how to become a HEC Trainer, see the link at the bottom of this page. To arrange a clinic with one or more of the trainers, please contact us at hec.trainers@gmail.com.
The HEC Foundational Trainers are:
Alan Le Gall
Qualifications:
• DEJEPS (Le Diplôme d’Etat de la Jeunesse, de l’Éducation Populaire et du Sport)
Specialisations:
• Starting horses
• Natural horsemanship
• Saddle fitting
• Balance on horseback
• Rider biomechanics
• Jumping
Location: Bellac, France
Biography:
Alan has been the national French Horseback Archery trainer since 2017. He is the owner of Gauchoux Equestrian Centre since 1999. Besides having his BEES 1 (1997) and DEJEPS (2022), he has been a national level rider in Showjumping from 1989-1992, and a national level rider in Eventing from 1994-2012. He is an officially recognised riding instructor and a horse trainer. He manages the education and training of 55 horses at his centre.
Alperen Alkan
Qualifications:
• Mamluk Academy Head Coach
• 15 years professional riding experience
• National athlete licence
Location: Bandırma, Türkiye
Biography:
Alperen Alkan was born in 1994 in Ankara. In his professional horseback archery career, which he started in 2012, he won 30 gold, 19 silver and 32 bronze medals in national and international competitions. While continuing his active career as an athlete, Alperen Alkan has spread this culture to 78 countries by producing and exporting archery and equestrian equipment with the Mamluk Archery company, he founded in 2017. With the Anok Talimhane, which he founded in Ankara in 2017, and with the Mamluk Equestrian Sports Club, which he founded in Bandırma in 2021, he provides Mamluk equestrian archery training to more than 1000 students from 18 countries and works on the board of the International Horseback Archery Alliance. He is also the founder of Mamluk Reenactment team.
Andrew Ó Donnghaile
Qualifications:
• British Horseback Archery Association (BHAA) Advanced Coach Qualification
Specialisations:
• Dynamic Balance training for equestrian martial arts
• Cataphract training, using bow in combination with kalkan (shield), sabre, Mamluk lance techniques, and East Asian polearm for skill-at arms and certain applied exercises
• Historical research into and practical knowledge of Eurasian warhorse education, historical riding, tack, armour, and weapons
Location: Galway, Ireland
Biography:
Andrew began training in horse archery in 2014, but started horse riding long before. Having received training in equestrian martial arts under Dimitar Trukanov and Mihai Cozmei, he also holds a Ph.D in Medieval Studies and has combined his historical expertise with practical knowledge and experimentation to research and reconstruct Eurasian weapons and riding techniques from a variety of historical sources. He has also trained up many horses for the practice of equestrian martial arts in Co. Galway, Ireland, where he teaches. Based on this experience, combined with historical dressage training in Switzerland with Julia Thut and his own historical research, he has also developed a detailed horse education system for equestrian martial arts. This has contributed significantly to the Eurasian Warhorse Education System used in the HEC discipline. He also has taught many workshops abroad, both focusing specifically on comprehensive horse archery training as well as on equestrian martial arts more broadly, notably expanding his pedagogy to more aspects of the comprehensive weapons and riding system of Eurasian cataphracts (heavy cavalry).
Deirdré Janse van Rensburg
Specialisations:
• Starting horses
• Natural horsemanship
• R+ Trainer
• Dressage Training
Location: Pretoria, South Africa
Biography:
Deirdre is a full time horseback archery coach. She is the head coach, trainer and founder of Barebow Mounted Archers, a horseback archery school and club in South Africa. She travels the country presenting horseback archery clinics as well as training horses for horseback archery. She specialises in working with difficult horses, helping them to become safe and steady horses for horseback archery, using natural horsemanship and attunement techniques. With over 35 years in the saddle, Deirdre has extensive riding experience and participates in disciplines such as dressage, working equitation, jumping, cross country, western games and of course horseback archery. Deirdre has obtained her Protea colours several times and has formally represented her country in international competitions overseas in Hungary and South Korea. She won the title of Senior National Champion in 2021. She has been practicing horseback archery since 2014 and has been teaching HBA full time since 2018. She has a passion for teaching balanced riding and shooting and believes that a HBA horse should do more than just be able to run in a straight line. She places a lot of emphasis on biomechanically correct suppleness and strength training of both riders and horses.
Fuad Almudahka
Qualifications:
• WHAF Level 1 Instructor
Location: Doha, Qatar
Biography:
Fuad began training in horseback archery in 2012 and started competing in 2014. He has been organising and participating in equestrian martial arts reenactment shows since 2016 in Kuwait and Qatar, as well as preparing others for taking part in such shows. He has presented a reenactment show for the royal family in Qatar 2022 at the Tedex Gala Dinner and for National Qatar Day in 2022 and 2023. He has also played polo in England for National Universities Polo Championships in 2016 and also attended a special polo camp in 2018. Fuad has also received some reining fundamentals and La Garrocha training in Romania in 2019.
Hazar Mahir Akçeken
Qualifications:
• Horse Archery Coach Level 1 (Türkiye)
Specialisations:
• Martial arts training involving Turkish kılıç (sabre), lance, mace, and dagger
Location: Kayseri, Türkiye
Biography:
Hazar Akçeken was born in 1992 in Kayseri, Türkiye. He has been riding horses since 2011. Hazar has been practicing Turkish historical martial arts for a long time in his Aksungur Martial Arts Academy. Specialising in the use of spear and sabre on horseback, Hazar has become a well-known figure in this field with the international sword fighting competitions which he organises. He has won 2 gold and 1 silver medal in his sabre-fighting career.
Katariina Cozmei
Qualifications:
• Equestrian Sport Trainer Qualification (Vierumäki Sport Institute)
• Saddle/tack production qualification (Ypäjä Equine College)
• Animal trainer, Axxels Brusaby
• Solution-based Coaching diploma
• Craniosacral therapy for horses and humans diploma
• Special Expert in Animal Training qualification (specialised in sport horses) in Taitotalo Helsinki
Specialisations:
• Starting and training horses for different disciplines
• Historical dressage training for horse and rider (Academic Art of Riding and French classical dressage)
• Horse and rider synchronised biomechanics
• Tack: production, fitting, repair
• Historical style clothing
Location: Salo, Finland
Biography:
Katariina has been a part-time equestrian coach since 1996 and a full-time equestrian since 2006 with her own company. She specialises in dressage, specifically the Academic Art of Riding and French classical dressage. She has developed her own ‘methodology’ which she terms ‘Sophisticated Riding’, which combines old and new knowledge, historical tradition alongside modern science. She is based currently in Salo, Finland, where she has a stable together with her husband Mihai Cozmei.
Wojtek Osiecki
Qualifications:
• Equestrian Sport Instructor (University of Physical Education, Wrocław)
• Horseback Archery Instructor Certificate (Arma Ferre)
Specialisations:
• Natural horsemanship
• Physical education methodology to improve balance, riding style, and archery on horseback
• Rider biomechanics
Location: Wrocław, Poland
Biography:
Wojtek is a graduate of the University of Physical Education in Wrocław, he started his adventure with horse riding in 1981 in Opole. He has extensive experience as a showjumping and horseback archery competitor, as well as a trainer of both of these disciplines. Since 2012 he has been devoted to horseback archery and is one of the most successful competitors and trainers in the world.
His achievements include: current World Champion titles in both Korean and Polish styles (IHAA, Hungary 2018), current European vice Champion in Horseback Archery Eventing (IHAA, Poland 2019), title of European Champion (IHAA, France 2015), vice World Champion (WHAF, Korea 2015) and 2nd vice World Champion (WHAF, Korea 2014). His students can also boast medals at the largest events, including the two-time vice World Junior Champions (WHAF, Korea 2015 and 2016), two-time vice Polish Junior Champions (IHAA, Poland 2020 and 2021) or Polish Young Junior Champion (IHAA, Poland 2021). Wojtek’s effective training methods are based on extensive knowledge and many years of experience in working with horses and riders.
Historical Eurasian Cavalry Discipline 