Victoria SERGIEVSKAYA: “The Online Format of the Tournament Was Such a Release in Time of the Lockdown”

The first Online SAMBO Cup (Europe) organized by the International SAMBO Federation with the support of Rosneft company, was staged on June 20-21. It welcomed sambists from 18 European countries. The winner of the tournament, German athlete Julie-Maria Horn, and the silver medalist, Spanish sambist Adrian Labrado, have shared their impressions and emotions in their interviews given to the FIAS website. Russian sambist Victoria Sergievskaya who scored third place in the tournament, told about her experience of participating in the Cup in a special interview to the official website of the All-Russian SAMBO Federation.

- Victoria, tell us about your impression of online SAMBO, please.

- This unusual format quite appealed to me. It proved to be a very useful interactive activity. I believe that all athletes need to know the sports theory, and for those who represent their country at international tournaments, English is also very important in order to be able to communicate with each other.

- What difficulties did you encounter during the tournament stages?

- I felt very nervous before the start of the Cup. Besides, the fact that for me the competition took place at night affected my condition. I was worried but everything went off fairly well. This tournament taught me an important lesson: you do not always need to do everything faster. Battling it out to reach the finals, I thought that I should finish as soon possible, but it turned out to be my mistake. And although the format of the competition itself implies promptness, at that moment I really have hurried.

- On the mat, motivation means a medal, a champion’s title, but what kind of motivation can athletes get through such a format, besides a monetary reward?

- At the Online SAMBO Cup, the leading motivation for me was the desire to learn something new. This is such an unusual experience, and, representing our country alone, I felt a very special responsibility.

- What is the most memorable task?

- In the course of the event, I’ve picked up two exercises: to do the splits and to perform the arabesque for 10 seconds. And if I did the splits without any problems, then my arabesque turned out to be a bit sleepy. But most of all I remember the task of opening the card in the semifinals. Later on, I mused for quite a while what would have happened if I had unclosed another one. Perhaps I would have perceived that image differently. It depicted a pretty rare technique: a throw with dislocation grip of both legs. I was finally able to understand what kind of technique this was only when I opened the whole picture.

- What, in your opinion, are the benefits of staging competitions in this format?

- In my opinion, the main advantage of such competitions is that all participants perform on equal terms. Also, there are no gender differences; you don’t have to be very strong to win. Besides, the online format of the tournament was such a release in time of the lockdown. When in isolation, it is difficult for athletes to find motivation for training, and these competitions, although quite simple in terms of physical fitness, forced us to get off the couch and exercise.

It seems to me that it would be great if such competitions were held at the national level. Moreover, it is unnecessary to use the same quiz format with cards. It would be possible to take some important dates related to the development of SAMBO, to ask questions on outstanding athletes. So that sambists have to learn not only the technical part but also the history of their sport.

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To recap, the Online SAMBO Cup is being held in several stages. The forthcoming continental competitions will take place: June 27, in Africa, July 4-5, in Asia, July 11-12, in the Americas. Following the continental tournaments, it is planned to stage superfinals, in which the winners of the continental stages will partake. These superfinals are scheduled for July 18.