MOUNTAINSIDE, Nj — Michael Bezrodnov, 17, of Mountainside, claimed his first ever national championship last month in Charlotte, North Carolina.
After getting silver three times, Bezrodnov won the Junior Men’s Epee Championship and got the gold. “I really didn’t expect it,” he said. “All my hard work finally paid off. I feel really proud of this achievement.”
Bezrodnov started fencing when he was 9 or 10, after watching “The Three Musketeers.” A friend of his started fencing and he thought it was a fun sport to try out. His twin brother, Alexander, who now also competes, tried it out, too.
He also has another brother who is 9 and into fencing. “He’s really good for his age,” said Bezrodnov. “He’s working to be a future champion.”
When it comes to fencing, Bezrodnov said he really likes the sport. “It’s not only about how physical it is or about how strong you are,” he said. “It’s more like a physical chess game. You have to truly think about doing something. You can’t win by strength. When I tried fencing, I knew it was going to be my favorite sport because of how much you’re going to use your mind.”
Growing up, Bezrodnov played chess and also tried a variety of sports, including tennis, badminton and dancing. “My mom and dad are professional ballroom dancers,” he said. “I stuck with fencing.”
What Bezrodnov said he finds challenging about the sport is that there are basic actions, “like a lunge, which is an attack. You have to predict what their next move is going to be. You can work off that action. Adapt to your opponent’s strategy. You have to always think in the future.”
Advice Bezrodnov would give to aspiring fencers is to trust the advice of your coach. “I’d like to thank my coach, Yakov Danilenko, for always being with me,” he said. “There’s always been a lot of differences but, in the end, he helped me progress and build my fencing up to what it is now.”
He also said he feels it’s important to be constant. “Consistency is truly key. You have to go every day to improve. I used to go five times a week to practice. I’d get better. It’s really important to be consistent. You might have talent, but you have to nurture that talent. You have to believe in yourself. When you go to a tournament, you have to believe you’re the best. You have to believe you’ll actually win an event.”
Bezrodnov said he is hoping to make the US National Team to go to the World Championships.
At Columbia University, he is studying economics. He said, “I really like finance. In my free time, I like to read about the stocks and the news.”
Photo Courtesy of Serge Timacheff