Your fight with Tomek Szewczyk was very exciting. You fought on equal terms. Can you comment on the fight?

It was a very even bout, I put up good defense, but my lack of stamina kept me from launching an effective attack, which led to a foul. We had a break in the second bout, and in third we were strapped. Tomek attacked very quick and strong, I couldn’t defend and I lost.

What are your feelings on your achievements in Nemiroff? Did you expect more, are you satisfied or disappointed?

My scores are not satisfactory for me, but even though I placed low, I’m at least happy to see a big progress in my strength and I know that if I go on like this, I can soon stand up to the top guys on equal terms. Nemiroff is very unpredictable, a lot depends on the luck of the draw. A top contender can draw someone lesser, lose a lot of strength and fall to a much weaker guy, in theory at least. I drew a German guy first and beat him. My second fight was with a Russian, Imran Navruzaliev, who also eliminated me in the World Cup in Gdynia. Third fight was Tomek, and unfortunately he won, which put me out of the tournament.

What is your opinion on the contestants in the Nemiroff?

It’s really very high. I’m sure that if half those guys entered the World Cup in Gdynia, the podium would have looked much different.

IM