Fencing Prepares for Penn State Open – Ohio State Buckeyes
11/7/2000 12:00:00 AM | Fencing
Nov. 7, 2000
This Week
The Ohio State fencing team will travel to State College, Pa. to compete in the Penn State Open. The event will feature seven schools including Penn State, St. John’s, Yale, Harvard, Notre Dame and The University of Pennsylvania. The event is open to all college undergraduates
Gaining Experience
The Buckeyes will use the Penn State Open to measure the competition they will face in the NCAA District Regional and NCAA Championships.
“All the teams that compete this weekend will be the same teams we will face during the NCAAs,” Yelena Kalkina, OSU assistant coach, said. “We take this meet seriously because it gives us feedback for future dual meets.”
Last Weekend
The Ohio State fencing team played host to the OSU Open, Saturday Oct. 28, in French Field House. Freshman Colin Parker (Fr.,Fayetteville, Ga./The Heritage School) led the Buckeyes with a first place finish in men’s sabre.
The Buckeyes played host to the OSU Dual Meets Sunday, Oct. 29. The event featured eight schools including Cleveland State, Detroit Mercy, Chicago, Michigan, Northwestern, Case Western and Michigan State. The men’s squad finished the meet a perfect 7-0, while the women’s team posted a 6-1 finish after losing to Northwestern.
Meet Ilgar Mamedov
The Buckeye fencing team welcomes new assistant foil Coach Ilgar Mamedov. He was a member of the Russian National team for almost two decades. He was an Olympic Champion in Seoul in 1988 and Atlanta in 1996. Mamedov was crowned World Champion in 1989 and recieved a silver medal at the World Championships in 1995. He also won four European Championships (1995,’96, ’98, ’00).
Mamedov is excited about the level of fencing here at Ohio State. He is eager to start coaching.
” I want to dedicate my time and share my experiences with the young fencers and help them to become the best,” he said.
More Helpful Hands
Doug Findlay and Neil Siebert will provide assistance to the foil teams this season. Findlay is a former fencer at Ohio State and competed for four years. Siebert has ten years of fencing experience. The Newest Buckeyes
Among the newest Buckeyes are Colin Parker (Fr., Fayetteville, Ga./The Heritage School) and Amanda Nelson (Fr., Lincoln, Neb./Lincoln). Parker won the bronze medal in sabre at the World Championships in 1999 and the gold medal in the 2000 Junior World Cup. Nelson, who competes in both sabre and foil, won the gold medal at the 1999 Overland Park women’s foil championships. Another newcomer in men’s sabre, Can Aydin (Fr., Istanbul, Turkey/Ted Istanbul), was named the Fencer of the Year in Turkey in 1997-98.
The OSU Coach
Fencing head coach Vladimir Nazlymov began his quest to develop the Ohio State program last season. Nazlymov led the men’s team to a 14-8 record and the women’s squad to an 18-8 mark. He also guided two Buckeyes, Fane Groes and Geoff Kane, to All-America status.
Before coming to Ohio State, Nazlymov spent eight years as the head coach for the Kansas City, Mo., School District where he designed and developed an Olympic-caliber fencing program.
From 1986-1988 Nazlymov served as the USSR National Team’s head coach. The USSR went on to win the gold medal at the 1986 World Championships and silver medals at the 1987 Worlds and 1988 Olympics
Nazlymov was the head coach of the Soviet Union Military Fencing team from 1976-1990. He guided his students to two Olympic gold medals and 12 World Championships, as well as eight European Championship crowns.
Competing for the Soviet Union, Nazlymov was a three- time Olympic Champion (1968, 1976, 1980). He earned the Olympic silver medal in 1972 and 1976, while notching the Olympic bronze medal in 1972.
Recapping 1999-00
Last season, the Ohio State fencing team, under then-first year head coach Vladimir Nazlymov, placed 12th at the NCAA Championships. The men’s squad posted a record of 14-8, while the women were 18-8 overall. The men’s squad placed third at the Midwest Championships, while the women finished second.
The Schedule
The Buckeyes will travel to face many of the top teams in the nation this season. One of the squad’s toughest weekends will be the Penn State Dual Meets, Jan. 29-30, 2001. The host Nittany Lions won the NCAA national championship last season, while Notre Dame and St. John’s tied for second place.
The Buckeyes will compete at the Midwest Fencing Conference Championships Feb. 24-25. Last season the squad placed third, behind Notre Dame and Northwestern. The season ends with the NCAA Regionals in Detroit, Mich., March 10 and the NCAA Championships, March 21-25 at Wisconsin-Parkside in Kenosha, Wis.
