Krovopuskov Viktor Alekseevich fencing 4 gold. Viktor Krovopuskov: it’s funny to look at the fencing in The Three Musketeers. Do you give advice to Lesha Yakimenko?

Viktor Alekseevich Krovopuskov (born in 1948) is a Russian athlete, four-time champion of the Olympic Games in 1976 and 1980: in individual tournaments and as a member of the USSR national team. He was a world champion several times in individual and team competitions. Champion of the USSR.

Viktor Krovopuskov was born on September 29, 1948 in Moscow. He first took up fencing at the age of fourteen, but gave up training a year later. He returned to them only two years later and immediately caught the eye of coach Lev Koreshkov.

Victor's character was distinguished by firmness, pride and a desire to constantly win victories. There was no need to force him to train; rather, on the contrary, he almost had to be taken away from the gym by force. The young man was confident that he was the best and would definitely win the USSR championship.

Until 1968, there were no tangible results other than persistence. Krovopuskov did not know how to lose. Often, not understanding the reason for the loss, he argued with the judges and was often incorrect with them. The coach struggled with the student’s temper, explaining that with his rudeness he was turning the referee against himself. Gradually, such a simple truth firmly entered the head of the young athlete, and conflicts with judges became fewer and fewer. At the same time, the number of victories began to increase.

Krovopuskov won his first major victory at the All-Union Youth Tournament, which took place in Voroshilovgrad in 1967. Exactly a year later, in London, Victor won the World Youth Championship. At the championship, he is noticed by coach David Tyshler, with whom Krovopuskov begins training immediately after returning from London.

Tyshler trained such strong fencers as Rakita, Sidyak and Nazlymov. All three were Olympic champions. Thus, Victor found himself in the fertile environment of the aces. The champions, together with the coach, pulled the newcomer up, not suspecting that one day he would beat them and achieve the greatest success that no Russian fencer had ever had.

Krovopuskov was very upset when they decided not to take him to the team for the 1972 Olympic Games. The coach did not know how to reassure his student, but he said that he was going to beat everyone at the next Olympics.

Two years before the start of the Montreal Olympic Games, Tyshler headed the fencing department at the Central Institute of Physical Education, transferring his students to Rakita. The fact that the new coach had known Krovopuskov for many years not only as a fencer, but also as a person, made it easier for him to work with his former sparring partner.

Victor won his first gold medal at the Olympic Games in 1976 in Montreal, as he promised his former coach. He held the final meetings with his comrades, Nazlymov and Sidyak. Their fights could not be called interesting, because over many years of joint training and competition, they had studied each other’s techniques so much that no trap, even the most ingenious one, could take the enemy by surprise. But Krovopuskov still won, believing that he was simply lucky.

Having won the battle against his own, Victor could no longer afford to lose to foreigners. His victories came to him quite easily, despite the fact that his opponents were famous fencers in the world. Only once, in a fight with the Italian Michele Maffei, he won with a minimal margin of 1:0.

The meetings between Sidyak and Nazlymov were no less successful. As a result, all the medals went to Russian athletes. Krovopuskov won two gold medals in Montreal, in the individual and team championships.

The following year, Victor was injured - he tore his Achilles tendon. Everyone thought that he would no longer be able to continue his sports career, but Krovopuskov again took to the stage and in 1978 won the world championship for the second time, and in 1979 he became second in similar competitions.

At the Olympic Games held in Moscow in 1980, there were two contenders for the gold medal: Russian saber fencers - Krovopuskov and his friend Burtsev. It was difficult to say who would win in the outage; they had one coach and one school. However, Victor managed to change tactics and, having confused the enemy, won the fight.

Viktor Krovopuskov won his last gold medal in 1986, once again becoming world champion.

Brief biographical dictionary

"Krovopuskov Victor" and other articles from the section

“For more than a decade and a half, the first roles in saber fencing have belonged to Soviet athletes, among whom there were many bright stars. Perhaps the star of the world’s first saber, Viktor Krovopuskov, has shone most brightly in the last five or six years.”
"Equip", September 25, 1980

It seemed that that evening in the fencing hall of the CSKA football and athletics complex everything was as always: the attention of the spectators, who filled the stands to capacity, was riveted on the track raised above the floor; the clanking of blades, the blinking of colored lamps indicating the blows struck, the French patter of the referee. This evening - July 25, 1980 - the individual championship of the Games of the XXII Olympiad in saber fencing - the fastest, most dynamic, explosive type of weapon - was played here. But at the same time, this evening was not entirely ordinary. For the first time in Olympic history, two students of the same coach met in the final. Moreover, two very close friends, two sparring partners who always train together. These are Viktor Krovopuskov and Mikhail Burtsev - students of the Honored Trainer of the USSR, Honored Master of Sports Mark Rakita.

From the very beginning until the last fight, Mikhail Burtsev held the lead. He beat all his opponents, including Krovopuskov. Everyone was convinced that he would become the champion.

But it’s not for nothing that Krovopuskov is famous for his strong nerves and excellent fighting qualities. He calmly and prudently forced all his other rivals to capitulate one by one. Burtsev lost his last match to the famous Hungarian saber fencer Imre Gedovari, and as a result, the rival friends had the same number of victories. An additional match was scheduled to determine the champion. On the path of Bloodletters and Burtsev. Mark Rakita was most worried, although there was no reason to worry: in any case, his student became the Olympic champion. How many times had they exchanged blows like this in training?

But today is the Olympic final. And probably their calmness is only external. The victory for Krovopuskov is an opportunity to repeat the achievement of the remarkable Hungarian saber fencer Rudolf Karpathy, who won the Olympic Games twice in a row. And for Burtsev, victory is an opportunity to immediately become the first saber in the world. Viktor Krovopuskov won with a score of 5:3. And four days later, Victor, together with his teammates, again climbed to the highest step of the Olympic podium and became the only Soviet saber fencer who managed to win four gold medals at two Olympics in a row. Now Viktor Krovopuskov has all the possible titles in fencing: he is an Olympic and world champion, a multiple winner of the largest international tournaments, a winner of championships and Cups of the Soviet Union, and the Spartakiad of the Peoples of the USSR.

Several times the International Fencing Federation recognized him as the best saber fencer of the year. The Soviet government highly appreciated Krovopuskov's outstanding sporting achievements and successes in the development of physical culture and sports, awarding him the highest order of our Motherland - the Order of Lenin and the Order of the Red Banner of Labor.

Victor has been achieving high awards and titles for many years. And this path was not strewn with roses. How much titanic work and perseverance was invested in what I loved, how many times I had to overcome myself so as not to give up. Sometimes, looking back, Victor may be surprised at how he was able to go through such a difficult path. Or maybe he’s not surprised at all and from the very beginning believed that he would become the first saber of the world.

Working on a bicycle ergometer is an integral part of medical training support

Four-time Olympic champion in saber fencing in 1976 and 1980: won individual tournaments, was part of the USSR team that won the Olympic championship. Repeated world champion in individual and team competitions. Champion of the USSR. Krovopuskov, the only Soviet fencer, is twice the champion of the Olympic Games in individual competitions, and in total four times together with team competitions.

Viktor Alekseevich Krovopuskov born on September 29, 1948. After training for a year, Vitya gave up fencing. But a year later - he was already sixteen years old - he returned (the guys persuaded him) and immediately liked the new Lokomotiv coach Lev Koreshkov. I liked him for his rare ability to work - he did not have to be forced to train seriously, rather, on the contrary, he was almost forced out of the gym, and also because from the very first days he turned out to be very inclined to practice, he was soft, flexible, and the process of technical drill did not affect on his face, like on other newcomers, there is “deep melancholy.” Usually left-handed people are not very technical, simply put, they are clumsy and “wrong.” Viktor Krovopuskov is so correct that at first glance you cannot even tell that he is left-handed.

The coach also liked the fact that the new student was a sociable, cheerful guy, he studied at school without C grades, and therefore there were no problems with participation in competitions - he was always released unconditionally. What attracted the coach most to Krovopuskov was his character. Vitya was firm, proud and always wanted to win. From the very first days, he had an unshakable confidence that he was stronger than everyone else. And although until 1968 he essentially had no major results, no evidence of his priority, when losing, he invariably repeated: “I’m stronger anyway, I’ll still win the USSR championship.” And perhaps a true great champion is unthinkable without such self-confidence?

In some fights, he really demonstrated strength and extraordinary skill. True, the other side of this “coin” was that he reacted violently when he lost a fight, was not always able to immediately comprehend the reason for the loss, was quick-tempered and therefore sometimes incorrect with the judges. I had to stop the fights, explain to him how indisputable the referee is on the track and that by arguing with him, he only turns him against himself, misses the thread of the fight. The coach had to hammer these simple truths into the student’s hot head again and again. And gradually there were fewer disputes in the battles of Krovopuskov, and more victories.

His first major success in 1967 was the victory at the All-Union Youth Tournament in Voroshilovgrad, and the following year in London he already won the World Youth Championship. Just at this time, David Tyshler notices him, and after London, Vitya begins to take lessons from him.

“Do I regret that I parted with Krovopuskov? Of course not,” Koreshkov answers sincerely. “I was always sure that Vitya should become a top-class fencer. At that time I was still a young, inexperienced coach. Of course, he achieved serious results with me.” success, but then I thought that it would be better for him if in the future he began to take lessons from the famous “saber professor” David Abramovich Tyshler. I can’t compare anyone with Tyshler in saber fencing yet.

We can say that both of us - Vitya and I - then entered his apprenticeship. Vitya learned to fencing, and I taught fencing. Vitya took lessons with arms in hand, and I went to CSKA with a notebook, watched these lessons, caught every word of Tyshler and wrote down, wrote down..."

Soon Victor Krovopuskov was drafted into the army. Koreshkov remained at Lokomotiv and was rightfully considered one of the best saber coaches in. Krovopuskov entered Tyshler’s “classes” just at the time when the famous saber fencing aces Rakita and Sidyak were training there. Nazlymov also trained here, in the CSKA gym. All three had already become Olympic champions as a team in Mexico City ’68. So Viktor Krovopuskov not only ended up with the “saber professor”, but also in the “porch of champions”, so invaluable for a fencer. Now all these champions, together with the coach, pulled the rookie up, without thinking, of course, that perhaps the day would come when he would beat everyone, including them, and, in the end, achieve such success , which none of the Soviet fencers had yet. Naturally, this did not happen right away.

“When in 1972, at the last pre-Olympic training camp in Kyariku, they decided not to take Krovopuskov into the team,” says Tyshler, “he was terribly upset (at that time he was already quite strong, had already made it to the finals of international tournaments, beat many foreign whales, but this is still traditionally losing to his eminent compatriots Rakita, Nazlymov, Sidyak). We are sitting after the coaching council, and I am painfully thinking about how to calm him down. And then he says: “Don’t worry so much, David Abramovich, I still want them all. I’ll beat him at the next Olympics." Clutching a bag of sweets in his hand, with which he was going to sweeten the student’s inconsolable grief, Tyshler thought: “We’ll have to wait four whole years. Well, okay, let's wait."

From Tyshler’s point of view, Krovopuskov was brave and could think as quickly in battle as Rakita, held a saber in his left hand like Sidyak, but surpassed both in speed and power of movements. “Neither arrogance nor grief due to loss are unfamiliar to him,” Tyshler characterized Viktor, “he trains and unshakably believes in his star. Of course, he also has shortcomings, but I cannot reveal this secret, because he is still on the track. .."

Two years before the Olympics in Montreal, Tyshler, having headed the fencing department at the Central Institute of Physical Education, handed over all his students to Rakita. “I had never aspired to become a coach before,” said Rakita. “David Abramovich literally forced me to choose this profession, for which I am now, of course, very grateful to him and cannot imagine myself outside of coaching. Was it difficult for me to start? Giving lessons to Krovopuskov? Of course, there were and are difficulties. However, since Vitya (like the rest of Tyshler’s students) was my sparring partner, a junior comrade, for many years, I knew him well both as a person and as a fencer, and this, naturally, made it easier for me to work with him. as with a student. In addition, Tyshler’s single line and direction continued. And finally, it’s always easy for me to work with people who believe in me, and Vitya really believed in me.”

In Rakita’s opinion, in terms of her interests, in terms of her open-mindedness Victor Krovopuskov richer than many of his students. He was always faithful in everything - devoted to duty, idea, sport, coaches. And he is one of those who are called unmercenary. “At first glance, he may seem involuntary, unpurposeful. However,” said Rakita, “this is not so. He, like no one else, is capable of accumulating the volitional efforts of a coach and, transforming and correcting them in his “I”, clearly use them on benefit of the matter. In a word, as a student he is brilliantly managed.

In competitions he is absolutely independent and confident... up to a certain point, until the final. During the preliminary competitions he asks not to approach him, but before the final, before each final fight, he needs prompt “tuning” from the coach. As if he is exhausting his volitional resources and requires additional power injections. Being very sociable, cheerful, it is not easy to find true friends and opens up to people with difficulty...

Being a diligent student, Victor is able to perform any of the saber techniques, but at the same time skillfully selects the one that suits him best and uses it flawlessly. He has a number of difficult opponents, as well as those, and there are more of them, that are always “on hand” for him, no matter what condition, no matter what form he is in.

Particularly strong in moments of highest responsibility. And that’s why I still haven’t won a single tournament. But he has the most prestigious sports awards - gold medals of the Olympic Games." He won the first of them, as he promised Tyshler, in Montreal. This happened on July 22, 1976. Having reached the finals, he spent the initial and most painful battles with his own - Sidyak and Nazlymov. At training camps and competitions, these three have studied each other so well that none of their most ingenious traps will catch the opponent by surprise, all phrases and feints have long been calculated and therefore their fights with each other are, as a rule, ineffective and stingy. Krovopuskov succeeded that day. He spoke briefly about those battles: “Maybe I was a little better prepared, or maybe I was a little more lucky.” Of course, it is not customary to talk about victories over my comrades. But in Montreal it was all about him. time was “a little more lucky.”

“When I won these difficult battles against my own people, I was inspired. I thought, now I can’t lose to foreigners.” And he won all the remaining meetings quite easily. Although his opponents turned out to be entirely saber celebrities - the Romanian John Popp, and the Italian Mikkele Maffei (he met the frantic Maffei in Montreal twice and in the semifinals almost tripped over him, winning with a minimal advantage - 1:0), as well as another no less the frantic Italian, twice world champion Mario Aldo Montano.

The Montano - Bloodletters duel was destined to become the most extravagant, most eccentric presentation of the personal saber final of those Games. Unable to find “his” fight, Montano angrily threw his saber and mask onto the platform and passionately appealed for the sympathy of the audience. Naturally, this did not impress the referees, just as the famous Italian’s fencing did not impress that day, because, running furiously, he got confused in the maze of his own combinations and fell into a simple and short attack by Krovopuskov. In a word, Victor was, as they say, on a roll and resolutely cut off all his opponent’s phrases mid-sentence, summing them up with a clear and biting touch. Nazlymov and Sidyak fenced equally successfully against foreigners. In short, essentially, our team then competed for personal medals among themselves (Nazlymov became second, Sidyak third), and then won the team tournament, that is, they won all the medals that could be won.

Thus, Victor Krovopuskov in Montreal he became the owner of two Olympic gold medals at once - personal and team, and it seemed that he had a smooth path of continuous triumphant victories ahead of him. However, the very next year he was not even able to compete at the World Championships - shortly before that, at a tournament of socialist countries, in one of the important direct elimination battles he received a serious injury - he tore his Achilles tendon. The result was surgery, crutches and complete inactivity for four months.

They began to say that Krovopuskov was finished as a saber fencer and that he would never recover. But he not only recovered, he demonstrated stability rare in fencing: in 1978 at the World Championships he again became first, and in 1979 - second. And the 80 Olympics came. The brilliant success that our saber fencers achieved in Montreal cannot be surpassed. You can only repeat it. And shortly before the XXII Games, Victor admitted that he hoped to repeat the Montreal success.

At that time, such hopes seemed somewhat bold to many. Moreover, our other two saber heroes of Montreal - Nazlymov and Sidyak - did not separate them.
Victor Krovopuskov began his performance at the Olympics quite modestly, as if gradually picking up the pace of his procession along the fencing tracks of the Moscow Games. In the lower level, he allowed himself to suffer two defeats, while winning only two victories - the minimum sufficient to advance to the next level. But then, without losing a single fight, he ensures himself a direct “hit” in the finals. As for our other two individuals - Burtsev and Nazlymov - they, having received a defeat in the direct elimination round, were forced to go on the difficult path of consolations, where Burtsev still managed to make it to the finals, but Nazlymov did not have the chance to “consolate”.

So, this time in the Olympic final there are only two of us, Italian Mikkele Maffei, Hungarian Imre Gedevari and two Bulgarians - twin brothers Vasil and Hristo Etropolski. They are so similar that they constantly bring additional “turmoil” to the ranks of fans already excited by the final intrigue - which of them gains more victories and can compete with ours? And will the judge confuse them? Because they are so similar that they could easily replace each other on the path. So, the first battles between our own: Krovopuskov - Burtsev.

On a narrow metal strip, two crossed their views, thoughts, wills and weapons. They - students of the same trainer - have done this hundreds of times and have learned each other by heart. Their techniques are so elusively subtle that it seems as if the blades are simply sparkling in their hands. This first fight is incredibly important for both, because to start victoriously in the finals means to psychologically rise above your opponents. Krovopuskov almost succeeds in this. He leads 3:0, fencing cleanly, elegantly, confidently, maintaining that same Olympic calm that is so valuable in intense saber matches. He, it seems, is even too calm and allows Burtsev, blow by blow, to level the score - 4:4. However, they are close friends with Burtsev, and their “saber dance” is emphasized by mutual and impeccable correctness. Someone, however, still has to win! And Burtsev wins 5:4.

“Having lost the fight, I was, of course, upset, but I didn’t despair,” said Victor Krovopuskov, - I remembered that our Olympic champions Belova and Sidyak also lost the first final fights of “their” Games, but then, having won all the remaining meetings, they nevertheless became champions. I believed that it was unlikely that any of the finalists would be able to avoid defeat - the composition of the final was quite strong - including Misha Burtsev... In short, the final had just begun, although not in the best way for me..."

Further, both Burtsev and Krovopuskov win fight after fight and, impressing the spectators and referees with the virtuosity of the dueling game, they are far ahead of their competitors. But at the same time, Burtsev always stays one victory closer to the gold medal. He is light, active, technical. Finally, in the final there is only one left who has not been defeated by him - the Hungarian Gedevari. Win Burtsev from him - and he is unattainable. If he loses, his and Krovopuskov’s chances for the championship title will be equal.

By the time of such an important fight, the champion of the Montreal Games had already completed his final fights and was now tensely waiting for whether Gedevari and Burtsev would present him with this amazing, very last chance?

As you can see, the proximity of the gold medal completely blinded Mikhail Burtsev, and his opponent was pretty strong. Having lost confidence, Burtsev suddenly makes one mistake after another and, in the deathly silence of the stands, loses - 3:5.

And a break is assigned for first place. Now Burtsev seemed to easily defeat Krovopuskov. He leads 3:1, playing out the stereotypes of saber combinations like clockwork. He has only two blows to victory - two moments, and Krovopuskov - an eternity - four. But it so happened that Krovopuskov’s path turned out to be shorter...

“This was my most difficult fight at the Moscow Olympics,” said Krovopuskov, “after all, Misha is well aware of my strengths and weaknesses. True, I know him too. Still, it was he who managed to win the first fight and “catch” me at the beginning of the interruption But when the score was 3:1, I completely changed my mind. Misha continued to play according to the same “notes.” And, in the end, I was able to quickly calculate the moves he had planned...

Misha launched a complex attack, knowing that in such cases I, as a rule, take defense. I casually indicated a false defense, but in fact I did what he did not expect - I counterattacked."

The rules of fencing courtship require opponents to shake hands after a fight. They hugged and kissed deeply. And later, at a press conference, Krovopuskov will say: “What a pity that there is only one gold medal.”

Once again, as in Montreal, Victor was among the winners. “He has such a surname,” they joked on the sidelines of the Moscow Games, “fencing, striking.”
However, when at one of the Olympics press conferences Victor was asked about the origin of his “bloodthirsty” surname, he smiled and replied that the meaning here was not bloodthirstiness at all, but, on the contrary, kindness, since bloodletting had long been revered as an act of mercy.

As for the team competitions, our team again, just like in Montreal, confidently outplayed all our opponents. Perhaps the most stubborn was the semi-final (meeting with Hungary). But with the score 8:6 in our favor, the Hungarians abandoned further competition, because even if they managed to equalize the score in the remaining battles, it would not give them anything: they had already lost in blows anyway. Viktor Krovopuskov became the hero again, winning all four of his fights, that is, half of the team’s victories were on his account.

And in the final, where, as at the previous four Olympics, the teams of Italy and the USSR met, the Italians were unable to provide serious resistance to ours (the final score was 9:2). So Krovopuskov’s hopes of repeating the Montreal success were justified.

Unusually simple in life, Victor remained the same in fencing. He did not try to overwhelm the audience with the extravagance of his tricks and seems to have been devoid of any flashy fencing prowess. Krovopuskov gave everyone the opportunity to find almost any merit in him to choose from and absolutely did not succumb to the general formula. For example, the famous children's trainer Marina Dorokhova considered his main trait as a person to be respectfulness: “No matter where and no matter how in a hurry you are, if you turn to him, he immediately stops running and is ready to seriously listen, sympathize, help...”

However, the main thing that Krovopuskov the saber-player was endowed with more than others was quick reaction and intuition of battle. He could foresee the actions of his opponents, but he himself, as a rule, acted contrary to them, creating the impression that the enemy was doing everything at the wrong time. This, strictly speaking, is the highest meaning of fencing. And one more thing: even in the hottest fights, he knew how to control himself. Victor, entering the decisive matches of the Moscow Olympics, was outwardly completely calm, so much so that sometimes it even seemed that this calmness was turning into indifference. World champion Victor Krovopuskov became for the last time in 1986.

About whether his native walls help, what kind of fencing is shown in movies and who he liked to fight with.

I joined the adult national team quite late - at the age of 25, but I was always eager to get there, being a reserve. They always took any substitute except me (laughs). True, at my first championship I made it to the finals, where there were six people, and I came fifth. And we lost as a team. We had silver. Yes, then we considered it a loss. In general, the saber fencers of those times, I mean our team, did not want any other medals other than gold. The remaining prizes were considered failures. So we can say that my first world championship in Gothenburg was, in fact, unsuccessful.

- Do you remember the city itself?

The only thing I remember is that back then you could watch films like “Emmanuelle”. We didn't have that then. We went to look.

- Was it a completely different story in Grenoble?

I was second in the individual competition and we won as a team. We had a very strong team back then. Vladimir Nazlymov, Victor Sidyak, Eduard Vinokurov. Some names speak for themselves. And in 1975 I didn’t make it to the finals and realized that silver in the previous year did not mean getting into the finals the next year. In general, even then the competition was very serious - any athlete from the top twenty could win.

- Were the main competitors the Italians or the Hungarians?

At the Olympics we always fought with the Italians. They said: we and the Russians are the strongest. The continuity in Italian fencing is certainly impressive. I fought Aldo Montana, and his son is now an Olympic champion. This is the kind of school they have, the Hungarians too, and now the French. There are many individually strong athletes, but the concept of school still dominates.

- Do you speak French?

I don’t speak any language fluently except Russian.

- How did you communicate with your opponents?

After the banquets we somehow found a common language (laughs).

- What was your attitude towards home competitions?

I can say that, for example, I did not win the Moscow Saber. In general, he won only one tournament at home - the Olympics.

- You were probably hyped up before the Games in Moscow.

They cheated me and said that you had no right to lose. We lost the first meeting for the draw, they immediately called us to the carpet and started shouting. A gold and silver medalist stands in front of them, and they are told off as if they didn’t want to win. Sometimes people lose in sports, it happens (laughs). In general, many were afraid of burning out, I just tried to remove all these cheats from my head.

- How?

I just told myself “I’m getting this out of my head” (laughs). In general, you never need to think about the end result, you need to think about the next fight, about the next fight, how to strike the first blow, how not to miss the first blow. Without this there will be no final result.

- Were there any inconvenient opponents?

I didn’t like to fight with the Hungarians, I liked to fight with the Italians.

- Do you think they liked to fight with Krovopuskov?

Don't know. I think not very much (laughs).

Golden Olympics

- How did the day begin when you won gold at your home Olympics?

It was probably a normal morning, like at all competitions. Such days, as a rule, begin the same, but end in a special way. True, awareness still happens later.

- You also didn’t immediately realize the significance of that victory?

Then it came. In addition, after the personal competitions we have team competitions. Do you know what they say here? When you win individually, you win alone, when you win as a team, everyone wins.

- You probably remember the finale in all its details!

The finals went well. In general, our semi-finals have always been difficult. In fact, when I lost in the semi-finals, I no longer wanted to fight for third place, because for us this bronze was a loss.

- What impressions do you have from the 2012 Games in London? There the saber fencers failed to win gold.

The Olympics are special competitions, a special status, a special approach. Literally anything can happen at the Olympics in fencing - remember the Beijing Olympics, when the Chinese won. It’s not about the rating anymore, it’s one day that decides everything.

- Do you give Lesha Yakimenko any advice?

I give advice only when asked. He has his own coach. My view is the view of a person from the outside. And Lesha, he is a world-class athlete with vast experience. He himself has known everything for a long time.

- They say he might just burn out before the competition.

This is common to everyone to some extent. I'm sorry that he often gets injured.

- Have you ever been invited to act in films?

I once participated in the filming, but it was not a feature film. Do you remember the film “The Blackamoor of Peter the Great” (the film “The Tale of How Tsar Peter Married the Araba”, based on the work of A.S. Pushkin “The Blackamoor of Peter the Great”)? That's where our army athletes took part in the filming. In general, there is no fencing in the movies. Stage fencing should not be confused with sports fencing.

- Is it funny to watch fencing in feature films?

Have you seen how they fence in "D'Artagnan and the Three Musketeers"? It's really funny.

- But the musketeers sing songs!

Yes! It's a musical! And it is not at all necessary to do everything there according to the rules of sports fencing.

Viktor Alekseevich Krovopuskov(born September 29, 1948, Moscow, USSR) - Soviet fencer, saber fencer, Honored Master of Sports of the USSR (1976).

Biography

In 1963 he began fencing at the Lokomotiv club. At the age of 16, L. S. Koreshkov became his coach. Then he moved to the CSKA club, where he trained under the leadership of D. A. Tyshler.

In 1968 he won the World Youth Championship.

Olympic champion in 1976 and 1980 in individual and team competitions. He trained in the USSR national team under the leadership of M. S. Rakita. World champion 1974, 1975, 1979, 1983 and 1985 in team competitions, world champion 1978 and 1982 in individual competitions, USSR champion 1976 in individual and team competitions. Silver medalist in 1973, 1978, 1981 and bronze medalist in 1982 in the team championship. In 1979 he was recognized by the International Fencing Federation as the best saber fencer in the world.

He was distinguished by his quick reaction, maintaining composure at the decisive moments of the fight.

Graduated from GCOLIFK.

After finishing his sports career, he worked as a coach in the USSR, Russia, Japan, and Iran. Now he is a coach-teacher at the Moscow sports school for children and youth of the Olympic reserve “Chertanovo”.

In 2006 he was inducted into the Russian Fencing Hall of Fame.

Awards

• Order of the Red Banner of Labor (1976)
• Order of Lenin (1980)
• Medal "For Labor Valor" (1985)