Vladimir Smirnov (fencer): Difference between revisions
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| name = Vladimir Viktorovich Smirnov |
| name = Vladimir Viktorovich Smirnov |
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| image =Смирнов.jpg |
| image =Смирнов.jpg |
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| caption = |
| caption =Tombstone of Vladimir Smirnov on his grave |
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| birth_name = Влади́мир Ви́кторович Смирно́в |
| birth_name = Влади́мир Ви́кторович Смирно́в |
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| fullname = |
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| country = |
| country = |
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| sport = [[Fencing]] |
| sport = [[Fencing]] |
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|event = [[Foil (fencing)|Foil]] and [[ |
|event = [[Foil (fencing)|Foil]] and [[épée]] |
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| medaltemplates = {{MedalSport|Men's [[Fencing (sport)|fencing]]}} |
| medaltemplates = {{MedalSport|Men's [[Fencing (sport)|fencing]]}} |
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{{MedalCountry | {{URS}} }} |
{{MedalCountry | {{URS}} }} |
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{{MedalSilver|[[1980 Summer Olympics|1980 Moscow]]|[[Fencing at the 1980 Summer Olympics – Men's team foil|Foil team]]}} |
{{MedalSilver|[[1980 Summer Olympics|1980 Moscow]]|[[Fencing at the 1980 Summer Olympics – Men's team foil|Foil team]]}} |
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{{MedalBronze|[[1980 Summer Olympics|1980 Moscow]]|[[Fencing at the 1980 Summer Olympics – Men's team épée|Men's team épée]]}} |
{{MedalBronze|[[1980 Summer Olympics|1980 Moscow]]|[[Fencing at the 1980 Summer Olympics – Men's team épée|Men's team épée]]}} |
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{{MedalCompetition|[[World Fencing Championships|World Championships]]}} |
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{{MedalBronze|[[1977 World Fencing Championships|1977 Buenos Aires]]|Foil team}} |
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{{MedalBronze|[[1978 World Fencing Championships|1978 Hamburg]]|Foil team}} |
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{{MedalGold|[[1979 World Fencing Championships|1979 Melbourne]]|Foil team}} |
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{{MedalGold|[[1981 World Fencing Championships|1981 Clermont-Ferrand]]|Foil individual}} |
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{{MedalGold|[[1981 World Fencing Championships|1981 Clermont-Ferrand]]|Foil team}} |
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{{MedalGold|[[1982 World Fencing Championships|1982 Rome]]|Foil team}} |
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{{MedalCompetition|[[Universiade]]}} |
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{{MedalSilver|[[1979 Summer Universiade|1979 Mexico City]]|[[Fencing at the 1979 Summer Universiade|Foil individual]]}} |
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{{MedalGold|[[1979 Summer Universiade|1979 Mexico City]]|[[Fencing at the 1979 Summer Universiade|Foil team]]}} |
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{{MedalGold|[[1981 Summer Universiade|1981 Bucharest]]|[[Fencing at the 1981 Summer Universiade|Foil individual]]}} |
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{{MedalSilver|[[1981 Summer Universiade|1981 Bucharest]]|[[Fencing at the 1981 Summer Universiade|Foil team]]}} |
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}} |
}} |
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'''Vladimir Viktorovich Smirnov''' ({{ |
'''Vladimir Viktorovich Smirnov''' ({{langx|ru|Влади́мир Ви́кторович Смирно́в}}, {{langx|uk|Володимир Вікторович Смирнов}}; 20 May 1954 – 29 July 1982) was a [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] [[Foil (fencing)|foil]] and [[épée]] [[fencing (sport)|fencer]]. He was the 1980 Olympic champion in men's foil, and the 1981 world champion in men's foil. He was killed accidentally in a bout during the [[1982 World Fencing Championships]] in Rome, Italy. |
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==Early life== |
==Early life== |
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==Fencing career== |
==Fencing career== |
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At the [[1979 Summer Universiade]] in [[Ciudad de México]] Smirnov won a gold medal in foil team, and a silver medal in individual foil.<ref name="auto1">{{Cite web|url=https://www.olympedia.org/athletes/23606|title= Vladimir Smirnov|website=Olympedia}}</ref> At the [[1981 Summer Universiade]] in [[București]] he won a gold medal in individual foil, and a silver medal in foil team.<ref name="auto1"/> |
At the [[1979 Summer Universiade]] in [[Ciudad de México]] Smirnov won a gold medal in foil team, and a silver medal in individual foil.<ref name="auto1">{{Cite web|url=https://www.olympedia.org/athletes/23606|title= Vladimir Smirnov|website=Olympedia}}</ref> At the [[1981 Summer Universiade]] in [[București]] he won a gold medal in individual foil, and a silver medal in foil team.<ref name="auto1"/> |
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At the [[1977 World Fencing Championships]] in Buenos Aires he won a bronze medal in foil team, and at the [[1978 World Fencing Championships]] in Hamburg Smirnov again won a bronze medal in foil team.<ref name="auto1"/> At the [[1979 World Fencing Championships]] in Melbourne he won a gold medal in foil team, and at the [[1981 World Fencing Championships]] in [[Clermont-Ferrand]] he won gold medals in both individual foil and foil team.<ref name="auto1"/> At the [[1982 World Fencing Championships]] in Rome he was awarded the gold medal in foil team.<ref name="auto1"/> |
At the [[1977 World Fencing Championships]] in Buenos Aires he won a bronze medal in foil team, and at the [[1978 World Fencing Championships]] in Hamburg Smirnov again won a bronze medal in foil team.<ref name="auto1"/> At the [[1979 World Fencing Championships]] in Melbourne he won a gold medal in foil team, and at the [[1981 World Fencing Championships]] in [[Clermont-Ferrand]] he won gold medals in both individual foil and foil team.<ref name="auto1"/> At the [[1982 World Fencing Championships]] in Rome he was awarded the gold medal in foil team.<ref name="auto1"/> |
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Smirnov won the [[gold medal]] in individual men's |
Smirnov won the [[gold medal]] in individual men's foil at the [[1980 Summer Olympics]], as well as a [[silver medal]] in foil team and a [[bronze medal]] in [[épée]] team.<ref name="databaseolympics">{{cite web|url=http://www.databaseolympics.com/players/playerpage.htm?ilkid=SMIRNVLA02 |title=Olympics Statistics: Vladimir Viktorovich Smirnov |access-date=2011-04-25 |work=databaseolympics.com |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110816042546/http://www.databaseolympics.com/players/playerpage.htm?ilkid=SMIRNVLA02 |archive-date=2011-08-16}}</ref><ref name="sports-reference">{{cite web |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/sm/volodymyr-smyrnov-1.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200417230803/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/sm/volodymyr-smyrnov-1.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=2020-04-17 |title=Vladimir Viktorovich Smirnov Olympic Results |access-date=2011-04-25 |work=sports-reference.com}}</ref> |
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==Death== |
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During the [[1982 World Fencing Championships]] in [[Rome]], Italy, in the team foil event the 28-year-old world champion Smirnov, ranked #1 in the world, was fencing 27-year-old [[Matthias Behr]] of [[West Germany]], ranked #2 in the world, on 19 July in the quarter-finals of the team event.<ref name="auto4">[ |
During the [[1982 World Fencing Championships]] in [[Rome]], Italy, in the team foil event the 28-year-old world champion Smirnov, ranked #1 in the world, was fencing 27-year-old [[Matthias Behr]] of [[West Germany]], ranked #2 in the world, on 19 July in the quarter-finals of the team event.<ref name="auto4">{{cite journal |first=Michael |last=Dittrich |journal=Journal of Olympic History |volume=25 |number=3 |publisher=[[International Society of Olympic Historians]] |issn=1085-5165 |page=41 |access-date=13 November 2023 |url=https://isoh.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/342.pdf |year=2017 |title=A tragic story and a wonderful reconciliation }}</ref><ref name="auto">{{cite book |first=Richard |last=Cohen |year=2007 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=inND87EFFF4C&dq=Vladimir+Smirnov+%22fencer%22&pg=PA296 |title=By the Sword; A History of Gladiators, Musketeers, Samurai, Swashbucklers, and Olympic Champions |pages=296–97 |publisher=Random House Publishing |isbn=9780307430748 }}</ref> The two fencers initiated a simultaneous attack.<ref name="auto4"/> Behr's foil blade broke during the action, and the jagged broken blade penetrated through the mesh of Smirnov's fencing mask, through his left [[Orbit (anatomy)|eye orbit]], and into the [[frontal lobe]] of his brain.<ref name="auto2" /><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1982/07/20/sports/sports-people-fencer-hurt-in-match.html|title=Sports People; Fencer Hurt in Match|date=July 20, 1982|work=The New York Times}}</ref><ref name="auto3">{{Cite web|url=https://www.upi.com/Archives/1982/07/21/Smirnov-champion-fencer-on-life-support/9108396072000/|title=Smirnov, champion fencer, on life support |website=UPI|date=July 21, 1982 |access-date=13 November 2023 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |first=Nick |last=Evangelista |year=1995 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TyJ8ebnS1HMC&dq=Vladimir+Smirnov+%22fencer%22&pg=PA163 |title=The Encyclopedia of the Sword |pages=163–64 |publisher=Bloomsbury Academic |isbn=9780313278969 }}</ref> |
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An [[Agostino Gemelli University Policlinic]] spokesman said "Smirnov's heart is still functioning, but other bodily functions are being maintained by artificial means."<ref name="auto3"/> State-run television said he was "[[clinically dead]]".<ref name="auto3"/> A later communique from the hospital said he was in a deep coma, was not responding to treatment, and had no brain reflexes.<ref name="auto3"/> |
An [[Agostino Gemelli University Policlinic]] spokesman said "Smirnov's heart is still functioning, but other bodily functions are being maintained by artificial means."<ref name="auto3"/> State-run television said he was "[[clinically dead]]".<ref name="auto3"/> A later communique from the hospital said he was in a deep coma, was not responding to treatment, and had no brain reflexes.<ref name="auto3"/> |
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Smirnov died nine days later.<ref |
Smirnov died nine days later.<ref name="auto2"/> He was buried in [[Kyiv]], where he had been living.<ref name="auto4"/> |
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===Aftermath=== |
===Aftermath=== |
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Smirnov's accident was the driving force behind the significant improvement of safety gear in fencing.<ref name="auto4"/><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.taipeitimes.com/News/sport/archives/2012/06/27/2003536360|title= |
Smirnov's accident was the driving force behind the significant improvement of safety gear in fencing.<ref name="auto4"/><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.taipeitimes.com/News/sport/archives/2012/06/27/2003536360 |agency=Reuters |title=London 2012 Olympics: Tragic death 30 years ago still makes fencing safer |work=Taipei Times |date=June 27, 2012 |access-date=13 November 2023 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |first=Daniel |last=Bases |date=June 25, 2012 |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/oly-fenc-safety/olympics-fencing-safety-aided-by-death-in-the-family-idUSL5E8HN0DN20120626 |title=Olympics-Fencing safety aided by death in the family |work=Reuters }}</ref> For example, the use of [[maraging steel]] blades (less likely to break than the [[Plain-carbon steel|carbon steel]] ones of the day),<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.pressreader.com/india/the-free-press-journal/20160727/282282434662260|title=Remembering Vladimir Smirnov|website=The Free Press Journal|date=July 27, 2016}}</ref> [[kevlar]] (or other [[ballistic nylon]]) in the uniforms,<ref name="auto5">{{Cite web|url=https://www.grunge.com/285751/the-tragic-death-of-olympic-fencer-vladimir-smirnov/|title=The Tragic Death Of Olympic Fencer Vladimir Smirnov|date=November 28, 2020|website=Grunge|author=Cody Copeland}}</ref> and masks two to three times stronger than the one he wore,{{citation needed|date=August 2021}} all came about because of his death. The improvements greatly decreased the number of severe injuries in fencing, making it one of the safest competitive sports in the world.<ref name="auto5"/> A five-year study by [[Willamette University]] sports science professor Dr. Peter Harmer in 2005 found that fencing is especially safe for children and novices; that soccer was 14 times more dangerous than fencing, and basketball 10 times more dangerous, and that of the 22 sports examined in the study, fencing was tied with golf as having the lowest risk to competitors.<ref name="auto5"/> |
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Forty years later, amidst the [[Russian invasion of Ukraine]], Behr called Smirnov's former wife in Ukraine, and gave her son-in-law and two grandchildren refuge during the war.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/2022/07/28/ukraine-invasion-unites-two-families-40-years-after-fencing-tragedy/7824582001/|title=A tragedy transformed: 40 years after fencing accident, Ukraine war reunites impacted families|website=USA TODAY|author=Josh Peter|date=July 28, 2022}}</ref> |
Forty years later, amidst the [[Russian invasion of Ukraine]], Behr called Smirnov's former wife in Ukraine, and gave her son-in-law and two grandchildren refuge during the war.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/2022/07/28/ukraine-invasion-unites-two-families-40-years-after-fencing-tragedy/7824582001/|title=A tragedy transformed: 40 years after fencing accident, Ukraine war reunites impacted families; Matthias Behr killed Emma Smirnova's first husband - Ukrainian Vladimir Smirnov - in a fencing accident in 1982. Now, Behr is giving Smirnova's son-in-law and two grandchildren refuge during the war.|website=USA TODAY|author=Josh Peter|date=July 28, 2022}}</ref> |
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==References== |
==References== |
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{{reflist}} |
{{reflist}} |
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==External links== |
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*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PyUGk1BCkOc "1980s Vladimir Smirnov Documentary, 'Duel,'"] explaining fencing, structured around the story of the leading fencer, Smirnov (''video; in Russian)''. |
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*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pKL0r9cJmgw "Smirnov Fencing 1982 Part 1"], Smirnov taking a lesson, training for the 1982 Rome World Championships (''video''). |
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{{Footer Olympic Champions Fencing Men Individual Foil}} |
{{Footer Olympic Champions Fencing Men Individual Foil}} |
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[[Category:Soviet male épée fencers]] |
[[Category:Soviet male épée fencers]] |
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[[Category:Ukrainian male épée fencers]] |
[[Category:Ukrainian male épée fencers]] |
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[[Category:Ukrainian foil fencers]] |
[[Category:Ukrainian male foil fencers]] |
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[[Category:Sport deaths in Italy]] |
[[Category:Sport deaths in Italy]] |
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[[Category: |
[[Category:Summer World University Games medalists in fencing]] |
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[[Category: |
[[Category:FISU World University Games silver medalists for the Soviet Union]] |
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[[Category:Soviet male foil fencers]] |
[[Category:Soviet male foil fencers]] |
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[[Category:Sportspeople from Luhansk Oblast]] |
[[Category:Sportspeople from Luhansk Oblast]] |
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[[Category:20th-century Ukrainian sportsmen]] |
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{{USSR-Olympic-medalist-stub}} |
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{{USSR-fencing-bio-stub}} |
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{{Ukraine-fencing-bio-stub}} |
Latest revision as of 06:30, 5 December 2024
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Birth name | Влади́мир Ви́кторович Смирно́в | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Born | Rubizhne, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union | 20 May 1954||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Died | 29 July 1982[1] Rome, Italy | (aged 28)||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Height | 185 cm (6 ft 1 in)[2] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Weight | 78 kg (172 lb)[2] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sport | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sport | Fencing | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Event(s) | Foil and épée | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Vladimir Viktorovich Smirnov (Russian: Влади́мир Ви́кторович Смирно́в, Ukrainian: Володимир Вікторович Смирнов; 20 May 1954 – 29 July 1982) was a Soviet foil and épée fencer. He was the 1980 Olympic champion in men's foil, and the 1981 world champion in men's foil. He was killed accidentally in a bout during the 1982 World Fencing Championships in Rome, Italy.
Early life
[edit]Smirnov was born in Rubizhne, Ukrainian SSR, in the Soviet Union.[2]
Fencing career
[edit]At the 1979 Summer Universiade in Ciudad de México Smirnov won a gold medal in foil team, and a silver medal in individual foil.[3] At the 1981 Summer Universiade in București he won a gold medal in individual foil, and a silver medal in foil team.[3]
At the 1977 World Fencing Championships in Buenos Aires he won a bronze medal in foil team, and at the 1978 World Fencing Championships in Hamburg Smirnov again won a bronze medal in foil team.[3] At the 1979 World Fencing Championships in Melbourne he won a gold medal in foil team, and at the 1981 World Fencing Championships in Clermont-Ferrand he won gold medals in both individual foil and foil team.[3] At the 1982 World Fencing Championships in Rome he was awarded the gold medal in foil team.[3]
Smirnov won the gold medal in individual men's foil at the 1980 Summer Olympics, as well as a silver medal in foil team and a bronze medal in épée team.[4][2]
Death
[edit]During the 1982 World Fencing Championships in Rome, Italy, in the team foil event the 28-year-old world champion Smirnov, ranked #1 in the world, was fencing 27-year-old Matthias Behr of West Germany, ranked #2 in the world, on 19 July in the quarter-finals of the team event.[5][6] The two fencers initiated a simultaneous attack.[5] Behr's foil blade broke during the action, and the jagged broken blade penetrated through the mesh of Smirnov's fencing mask, through his left eye orbit, and into the frontal lobe of his brain.[1][7][8][9]
An Agostino Gemelli University Policlinic spokesman said "Smirnov's heart is still functioning, but other bodily functions are being maintained by artificial means."[8] State-run television said he was "clinically dead".[8] A later communique from the hospital said he was in a deep coma, was not responding to treatment, and had no brain reflexes.[8]
Smirnov died nine days later.[1] He was buried in Kyiv, where he had been living.[5]
Aftermath
[edit]Smirnov's accident was the driving force behind the significant improvement of safety gear in fencing.[5][10][11] For example, the use of maraging steel blades (less likely to break than the carbon steel ones of the day),[12] kevlar (or other ballistic nylon) in the uniforms,[13] and masks two to three times stronger than the one he wore,[citation needed] all came about because of his death. The improvements greatly decreased the number of severe injuries in fencing, making it one of the safest competitive sports in the world.[13] A five-year study by Willamette University sports science professor Dr. Peter Harmer in 2005 found that fencing is especially safe for children and novices; that soccer was 14 times more dangerous than fencing, and basketball 10 times more dangerous, and that of the 22 sports examined in the study, fencing was tied with golf as having the lowest risk to competitors.[13]
Forty years later, amidst the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Behr called Smirnov's former wife in Ukraine, and gave her son-in-law and two grandchildren refuge during the war.[14]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c "Soviet Fencer Dies of Injuries". The New York Times. July 29, 1982.
- ^ a b c d "Vladimir Viktorovich Smirnov Olympic Results". sports-reference.com. Archived from the original on 2020-04-17. Retrieved 2011-04-25.
- ^ a b c d e "Vladimir Smirnov". Olympedia.
- ^ "Olympics Statistics: Vladimir Viktorovich Smirnov". databaseolympics.com. Archived from the original on 2011-08-16. Retrieved 2011-04-25.
- ^ a b c d Dittrich, Michael (2017). "A tragic story and a wonderful reconciliation" (PDF). Journal of Olympic History. 25 (3). International Society of Olympic Historians: 41. ISSN 1085-5165. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
- ^ Cohen, Richard (2007). By the Sword; A History of Gladiators, Musketeers, Samurai, Swashbucklers, and Olympic Champions. Random House Publishing. pp. 296–97. ISBN 9780307430748.
- ^ "Sports People; Fencer Hurt in Match". The New York Times. July 20, 1982.
- ^ a b c d "Smirnov, champion fencer, on life support". UPI. July 21, 1982. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
- ^ Evangelista, Nick (1995). The Encyclopedia of the Sword. Bloomsbury Academic. pp. 163–64. ISBN 9780313278969.
- ^ "London 2012 Olympics: Tragic death 30 years ago still makes fencing safer". Taipei Times. Reuters. June 27, 2012. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
- ^ Bases, Daniel (June 25, 2012). "Olympics-Fencing safety aided by death in the family". Reuters.
- ^ "Remembering Vladimir Smirnov". The Free Press Journal. July 27, 2016.
- ^ a b c Cody Copeland (November 28, 2020). "The Tragic Death Of Olympic Fencer Vladimir Smirnov". Grunge.
- ^ Josh Peter (July 28, 2022). "A tragedy transformed: 40 years after fencing accident, Ukraine war reunites impacted families; Matthias Behr killed Emma Smirnova's first husband - Ukrainian Vladimir Smirnov - in a fencing accident in 1982. Now, Behr is giving Smirnova's son-in-law and two grandchildren refuge during the war". USA TODAY.
External links
[edit]- "1980s Vladimir Smirnov Documentary, 'Duel,'" explaining fencing, structured around the story of the leading fencer, Smirnov (video; in Russian).
- "Smirnov Fencing 1982 Part 1", Smirnov taking a lesson, training for the 1982 Rome World Championships (video).
- 1954 births
- 1982 deaths
- Fencers at the 1980 Summer Olympics
- Fencers from Kyiv
- Medalists at the 1980 Summer Olympics
- Olympic bronze medalists for the Soviet Union
- Olympic fencers for the Soviet Union
- Olympic gold medalists for the Soviet Union
- Olympic medalists in fencing
- Olympic silver medalists for the Soviet Union
- People from Rubizhne
- Soviet male épée fencers
- Ukrainian male épée fencers
- Ukrainian male foil fencers
- Sport deaths in Italy
- Summer World University Games medalists in fencing
- FISU World University Games silver medalists for the Soviet Union
- Soviet male foil fencers
- Sportspeople from Luhansk Oblast
- 20th-century Ukrainian sportsmen