Porto-Franco City

Olympic fencing champion Alina Komashchuk met with young athletes from KDUSSH No. 13 as part of the NOC of Ukraine's #OlympicLab project focusing on "Olympic and universal values." This was reported by the press service of the NOC of Ukraine in the Odesa region.
Meetings between top Odesa fencers and young trainees from KDUSSH No. 13 have become a wonderful tradition. Previously, events featuring Elena Kravatska and Andriy Yahodka were held under #OlympicLab. For Alina, this was her first such meeting, but her competition schedule has been very tight this year, allowing her to visit Odesa only for a week before the next competition block, starting next week with the Ukrainian Cup in Kyiv. The young fencers have their own concerns, preparing for a cadet European circuit tournament to take place in Istanbul on October 11-12. The meeting took place in the sports hall of the fencing department of KDUSSH No. 13 (75 Novoselskogo St., Odesa).
At the beginning of the event, Alina, who achieved her best results this year at the world and European championships, winning bronze and silver respectively, spoke about key moments in her career and answered numerous questions from the young athletes. The event also featured Alina's personal coach, Oleksandr Vasyutin, a distinguished coach of Ukraine and mentor at KDUSSH No. 13.

Champion’s Advice

We need rest for recovery, proper nutrition, and rehabilitation. These are all essential components. I wasn't always this professional and mindful, but now I understand that neglecting these aspects held me back from achieving even better results.
You must start behaving like professional athletes and consider all the aspects I mentioned in your training.
How many times I lost – in getting into the "4" or the "8"?! I defeated strong opponents, but at the last moment, I couldn't win because I didn't believe in myself. You have to believe!
At the world championship, I fenced against Sara Balzer, whom I had never beaten in team or individual competitions. I simply told myself: “I won't give up this medal! No way!”
And then I only focused on fencing. I didn't even allow myself to think that I could lose. And it worked.
During the event, the young sabre fencers not only received champion’s advice but also motivation for future victories, inspired by Alina's achievements – her medals from the world and European championships.

At the end of the meeting, the athletes received gifts from the NOC of Ukraine in the Odesa region, after which they eagerly asked Alina for autographs. The champion signed not only on t-shirts and gloves but also, of course, on her weapons.