Recently, Olympic fencing champion Alina Komashchuk met with young fencers at KDYUSSH №13 as part of the NOC Ukraine project #OlympicLab, which focuses on Olympic and universal values. According to the press service of the NOC in the Odesa region, such meetings have become a wonderful tradition for Odesa's fencers and their young protégés.
This was Alina's first meeting with the young musketeers, although previous #OlympicLab events featured prominent athletes like Olena Kravatska and Andriy Yahodka. This year, Alina visited Odesa for a short time due to her packed competition schedule, with the Cup of Ukraine set to take place in Kyiv next week. Meanwhile, the young fencers are preparing for the cadet European cycle tournament in Istanbul on October 11-12, and the meeting took place in the sports hall of KDYUSSH №13 (Novoselskogo St., 75, Odesa).
At the beginning of the event, Alina, who achieved significant success at the World and European Championships this year, shared key moments from her career and answered questions from the young athletes. Also present was her coach Oleksandr Vasyutin, a distinguished coach of Ukraine and mentor at KDYUSSH №13.
Champion's Advice
It's crucial not only to train hard but also to recover properly. You need good nutrition, rehabilitation, and rest. These are essential aspects that I didn't always consider in my youth. Now I understand how important it is to pay attention to all these components of preparation.
You must act like professional athletes and take into account all the factors in your training.
I lost many times in critical competition moments, but at the World Championship, I simply told myself, "I won't give up the medal!" I focused solely on fencing and didn't allow myself to think about losing. And it worked.
During the event, the young sabre fencers received not only valuable advice but also a motivational boost for their future competitions, connecting with Alina's achievements – her medals from the World and European Championships.
At the end of the event, the athletes received gifts from the NOC of Ukraine in the Odesa region and had the opportunity to get autographs from Alina. The champion signed shirts, gloves, and, of course, her weapons.
