Patricia Howes is the long-time head coach of the RMC men's and women's fencing programs. She is a graduate of the National Coaching Institute, with a focus on High Performance Coaching. Howes is one of only two female Maître d’armes (fencing masters) in Canada, training athletes in all three fighting disciplines of fencing: epee, foil, and sabre. A full-time coach, she joined RMC in 2002, and has led the Paladins to five OUA titles, several CAF Sports awards, and many medal performances provincially, nationally and internationally. In 2020, Howes earned her fourth OUA Coach of the Year award at the OUA Men's Fencing Championship and was awarded the
2020 Hydro Safe Play Award by the Coaches Association of Ontario.
Howes has coached at five Canada Games, numerous international events including Junior Pan Ams, Junior World Championships, and was selected as the first female head coach for Team Canada Fencing at the 2013 and 2015 University Games in Kazan, Russia and Gwangju, South Korea, respectively.
Since 2005, Howes has also served as the Head Coach of the Canadian Military National Team, where military athletes compete around the world at fencing championships. In 2015, she led the team to bronze at the World Military Games in Mungeong, South Korea. In 2019, Howes was once again at the helm while the Canadian military fencers competed at the 7th World Military Games.
Howes is married to fellow fencing master, and former National & Olympic Team Coach, David Howes Ch.P.C., who is an assistant coach at RMC.
