The head coach of the Russian national fencing team, Ilgar Mamedov, at a press-conference dedicated to the opening of the upcoming Fencing World Cup in Moscow, shared his impressions of the First European Games held in Baku on June 12-28 with Vestnik Kavkaza. According to Mamedov, the second part of the Russian fencers who participated in the Games showed a good result, collecting nine medals: one gold, five silver and three bronze. "We are very pleased that the first team couldn't win so many medals," he said.
Ilgar Mamedov stressed that Baku is worthy of becoming the capital of the Summer Olympics. "I'll tell you honestly that Azerbaijan can apply for the biggest and major events, such as the Olympic Games, because these games were held at the highest level. It is worth noting the excellent infrastructure and the Athletes Village, and the work of the Organizing Committee. I have travelled around the world my whole life, I have been at many competitions, and I can tell you that the overall impression was that in Baku we participated not in the European Games but the Olympic ones," the head coach of the Russian fencers explained.
According to him, the athletes that fought for medals at the Games in Baku, will form the basis of the Russian national team at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo. "If we had a task to win these competitions, we could just like Ukraine, Romania, France, bring the whole first part. But the team has to look further, and if after five years another Olympic Games will be held in Tokyo, it is already necessary to think about who will fence, so those athletes who participated in Baku, and those who now participate at the Universiade in South Korea, will become the backbone, which will represent Russia in 2020. So only the most positive emotions remain from the Russian participation in the First European Games," Mamedov noted.
