Mat Fights

The traditional judo tournament for prizes from the Chairman of the Lepel District Executive Committee has concluded.

The traditional judo tournament for prizes from the Chairman of the Lepel District Executive Committee has concluded. The strongest athletes from Orsha, Polotsk, Novopolotsk, Vitebsk, and Minsk came to compete for the awards. As in previous years, the event was large-scale, with an atmosphere of fighting spirit prevailing everywhere.

Individual bouts lasted for several hours. More than seventy judokas took to the tatami. The largest team was from Lepel. However, everyone understands that the main thing here is not the quantity, but the capabilities of each individual participant. And they proved to be significant. Six first places were won by trainees of coaches Georgy, Galina, and Alexey Popov.

The solemn moment of awarding the winners in the individual competition arrived. The Chairman of the District Executive Committee, Boris Efremov, came to congratulate the young athletes on their achievements. Bronze and silver medalists received medals, diplomas, and a firm handshake from the head of the district, while the gold medalists also received valuable prizes. The quantity and variety of tournament prizes were pleasing. For example, the absolute winner in her weight category, Anna Gonchar, received a set of snorkeling equipment, and her mother, who came to cheer her on, noted that the prizes this year are particularly good. Along with Anya, Ilya Levko, Artem Glushenok, Gadzhimurad Divin, Dmitry Gruk, and Nikita Starovoytov were also pleased with their first-place awards. In addition to the standard honorary titles, the organizers recognized three judokas each in the nominations "For the Will to Win" and "For Best Technique." The "Audience Choice Award" went to Alexander Pashkevich from Lepel. Evgeny Mikhno, a silver medalist of the European Championship, was recognized for his high achievements with an electronic scale and a cash prize of one million rubles. Dmitry Gruk was awarded eight hundred thousand rubles for his gold medal at the republican championship.

A great joy for the trainees and coaches was the news: the Chairman of the District Executive Committee, Boris Efremov, personally assessed the condition of the Lepel Children's and Youth Sports School of Olympic Reserve in judo and promised to assist with repairs.

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Following the awards ceremony, the second stage of the competition began – team combat, commonly referred to as "wall-to-wall". Coaches support their trainees, and fans on the benches draw attention. Nadezhda Shaitor came to watch her grandson Dmitry Gruk compete. She often accompanies him to various competitions. An eighth-grader, Dima has been practicing judo since he was eight years old, and during this time his grandmother has learned the sports terminology, sometimes explains the rules to other fans, and comments on the course of the bouts.

The judoka has a busy schedule – sometimes three away competitions per month. However, the results bring joy to the whole family.

Lyudmila Glushenok is also overjoyed with her son. She decided to enroll him in wrestling so that he could always stand up for himself. She chose judo and has no regrets. Thanks to this sport, the child releases excess energy and shows perseverance at home, calmly does his homework, does not rush to go out to play, and does not strain his eyesight by spending hours playing computer games. It is pleasant to observe when a parent participates in a child's life and pays due attention to them. However, this requires not only moral effort… Sports equipment costs a considerable amount of money, and so do the trips. For example, kimonos are often bought second-hand, as a young and healthy body quickly outgrows them anyway. It is impossible to sew one yourself – there is special fabric and tailoring involved. In May, Lyudmila Petrovna is preparing to send her son to the Czech Republic – this will cost over two hundred euros. The caring mother expresses herself as follows: "Well, I won't buy myself a new outfit, I'll save for Artyom." During the conversation, it turned out that Anya Gonchar and Artyom Glushenok were born on the same day, moreover, both show good results and often spar in training.

In the team combat, two strongest teams were identified: Lepel and a joint team from Polotsk and Novopolotsk. The Lepel team won with a significant advantage. Sweet prizes were awarded to everyone without exception.

Evgenia LYAKH.

In the photo: Chairman of the District Executive Committee Boris Efremov presents a valuable prize to Ilya Levko; Dmitry Gruk hugs his devoted fan – grandmother Nadezhda Shaitor – after his victory.
Photo by the author.