The head coach for the Russian women’s foil fencing team, Dmitriy Shevchenko, summed up individual event results of the FIE World Cup in Kazan.
– What do you think of the athletes’ performance in the individual event?
– Candidates for the Russian national team, Inna Deriglazova and Adelina Zagidullina, showed excellent results. They have been included in the top eight fencers, and Adelina won bronze. Marta Martyanova fenced excellently and entered the top 16. These girls are in great shape, and they have shown a high level of excellence. Adelya Abdrakhmanova demonstrated good skills, but she is still getting in shape after an injury. It was her first competition after recovery. I have no complaints about these girls. And I can say the same thing about other fencers as well, but there are still some issues. We shall work. Ahead of the Olympics, we have three more tournaments and the Russian championship. We will try to organize the training process is such a way that the team will be competitive at the Olympics.
– What did Deriglazova and Zagidullina fail to do in fights against China’s Yue Shi?
– The Chinese fencer is really experienced. At the Cairo World Cup, she was second, and she beat Di Francisca in the semifinal match. She is highly skilled and experienced enough. The competition in the women’s foil is quite high, the fencers gear up to compete against specific rivals. Inna Deriglazova is the world number one in fencing. To fight against her, everybody prepares with exceptional diligence. Nothing unusual happened in my opinion. The Chinese athlete studied all Inna’s best fencing tricks and was able to counter them.
– Kazan is hosting major fencing events again. What is opinion on the event management?
– Kazan has already held fencing events, including the World championships. Kazan cordially agreed to host the World Cup leg. Everything is organized to the highest standard. Event delivery, logistics, and everything else. Everyone is happy.
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