Mikhail Shimshovich
| Mikhail Shimshovich | |
|---|---|
| Born | Mikhail Lvovich Shimshovich 29 April 1948 Kiev, Ukraine |
| 💼 Occupation | Fencing coach |
Maestro Mikhail Shimshovich (born April 29, 1948), also known as coach Misha, is a fencing coach of Soviet descent. He is a former Soviet-Ukrainian saber fencer and former member of the U.S.S.R. National Team. Currently, he works as an American saber Head Coach at Island Fencing Academy, Manhattan Fencing Center as well as an assistant coach for 2001 NCAA Champion St. John's University.[1][2][3]
Early life
Since childhood, Shimshovich was a very athletic child. He was involved in a variety of sports: wrestling, basketball, table tennis. At the age of 11, he tried fencing for the first time, to which he later committed his whole life.
He started at the sports club called "Pishevick". During one of the practices, he was noticed by Mikhail Antonovich Kogut, an Honored Coach of U.S.S.R., who trained many Olympic champions in saber. After that, Shimshovich and his friend Mark Levin moved to Dynamo Kyiv, where he began to train.
Mikhail Shimshovich was a member of the Cadet and the Junior Ukrainian National Teams. He also showed good results on the national level.
Shimshovich attended Kiev Physical Education College (now: National University of Ukraine on Physical Education and Sport) (1967-1971), where he graduated with a bachelor of arts in fencing training. After that, he obtained a master's degree in Physical Education in 1975, and served as the fencing coach for his alma mater from 1987 to 1990.
Fencing career in Ukraine
Maestro Shimshovich was a member of the Junior and Senior Ukrainian National Teams, as well as a member of U.S.S.R. Junior National Team. During his fencing career, he earned five gold medals at the Ukrainian Senior National Championship.
From 1992-1995, he was the head coach of the Ukrainian fencing team. He evaluated and recruited the best fencers from Ukraine to train and compete in national, international and Olympic competitions. He created custom-tailored training programs for each fencer based on their respective abilities. Shimshovich prepared former U.S.S.R. and Ukrainian National Team members for World Championships and Olympic Games.[3]
In 1993, Maestro Shimshovich earned the title of Honored Coach of Ukraine, which is an official recognition of coaching achievements.[2]
He was the first to organize a fencing program for kids as young as 6 years old in Kiev High School 77. This program produced many National and World Champions in the years that followed. As the head coach of the Ukrainian National Team, his students included George Pogosov, winner of the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona. Pogosov recalls his first coach, "Coach Mikhail Shimshovich knew how to organize classes in such an interesting way that he didn't want to leave the gym."[4][2]
Coaching career in the U.S.A.
Since moving to the United States in 1995, Maestro Shimshovich has produced a number of U.S. national champions and medalists in all age groups. Many collegiate students who have learned from his tutelage have won World University Games and NCAA Championship medals. He is also the International level Fencing Director representing the U.S. National fencing team.[1]
Shimshovich has coached children, as well as junior and senior men and women who wish to compete on the local and national levels of the USFA. He focuses on teaching advanced techniques and strategies for winning national and international competitions. Many of his students have been on the USFA National Point Standing List and have been USFA medalists.[3]
In addition to Manhattan Fencing Center, Misha is the assistant coach for the St. John's University 2001 NCAA Championship Team and organized an adult beginner program at the Fencers Club which was listed in the New York Times in 2005.[5] He has numerous current students who are medalists and winners of National Championships and were finalists at the Veteran World Championships in 2014 and 2016. In addition, numerous of his students have been accepted to the best universities in the country including Brown University, Columbia University, Princeton University, Stanford University, University of Pennsylvania, Yale University, and many more.[2]
Maestro Shimshovich has raised numerous coaches of the modern generation, including George Pogosov (Cardinal Fencing Club), Oleh Tretyak (Stamford Fencing Club), Alex Fotiyev (Sacred Heart University) and Alex Kushkov (Dynamo Fencing Center).
Notable Students
- George Pogosov – Olympic Champion 1992 Barcelona, six times World Champion ('83, '85, '86, '87, '89, '90) [1]
- Oleh Tretyak – 7 time National Champion of Ukraine
- Robin Pernice – Team world champion 2013, 7 National Champion titles, 8 times U.S. National Team member [6]
Numerous medalists at the Ukraine and the USA regional, national and international levels.
Nominations
- Master of Sports of U.S.S.R. – 1966
- Honored Coach of Ukraine – 1991
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 "Island Fencing Academy". Retrieved 2021-04-17.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 "Manhattan Fencing Center". Retrieved 2021-04-17.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 "St. John's University's Fencing Roster". Retrieved 2021-04-18.
- ↑ George Pogosov's Interview - Facts and Comments
- ↑ "Picking Up the Swords, Purely for Recreation" - The New York Times
- ↑ "USFA". Retrieved 2021-04-18.
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