FIS plans to help women athletes resume competitive fencing after maternity leave Giorgio Scarso, President of the FIS, is very sensitive to the issue of equal opportunities for women and he hopes that new changes he is promoting within the FIS will become a model for other national federations around the world to follow.
The Italian Fencing Federation under his leadership is addressing the situation of
female competitive athletes having to reconcile the difficult choices between sport career and personal life, maternity leave in particular. This was also prompted by the recent cases of
Valentina Vezzali and
Giovanna Trillini, new mothers returning to compete after giving birth. Vezzali won the World Championship just 4 months after her baby was born.
Here is what President Scarso said on March 8 (excerpts)
http://www.federscherma.it/news.asp?34376 "The Italian Fencing Federation (FIS) wants to take into consideration the special needs of women athletes, especially for what concerns their maternity conditions. In our next executive meeting we'll table these new and interesting proposals:
1. keeping the scholarships during maternity leave
2. keeping their national ranking position during maternity leave
3. automatic qualification to compete in Italian championships for women athletes which resume fencing after maternity leave
4. participation to some World Cup tournaments, paid for by the national federation, outside the normal selection process by the national directors of each weapon [i.e., these costs are not part of the budget of each weapon program]
to allow young mothers who resume competing to improve their international rankings."
The pilot test for this new program is what happened with
Giovanna Trillini at the
World Cup tournament in Cairo this weekend. She was sent to compete in the WC in Cairo, the only female athlete from Italy at this event, to give her a chance to improve her international ranking ... and it worked!
http://www.federscherma.it/news.asp?34458
3/18/2006, Cairo, Egypt –
...
Giovanna Trillini, at her second World Cup tournament after giving birth, won in Cairo in a competition where no other Italian women fencers competed. The FIS sent her "solo" for the purpose to give her a chance to improve her world ranking after the long maternity leave. Obviously, this strategy worked beautifully (note that this was a Grand Prix competition with double points).
......
In the semifinal Giovanna Trillini met the Polish fencer
Sylwia Gruchala and defeated her 15-5, while in the other semifinal the German
Anja Mueller defeated the French
Adeline Wuilleme, 10-6. In the final Trillini won 15-5 over Mueller.
.........
The next day the team event did not have the Italian girls fencing, since only Trillini was sent to Cairo for the above mentioned reason.
CAIRO, WORLD CUP WOMEN'S FOIL INDIVIDUAL (GP FIE) Semifinals: Giovanna Trillini (Ita) b. Sylwia Gruchala (Pol) 15-6; Anja Mueller (Ger) b. Adeline Wuilleme (Fra) 10-6.
Final: Giovanna Trillini (Ita) b. Anja Mueller (Ger) 15-6.
Final results (top 8):
1. Giovanna TRILLINI (Ita)
2. Anja Mueller (Ger)
3. Sylwia Gruchala (Pol)
3. Adeline Wuilleme (Fra)
5. Corinne Maitrejean (Fra)
6. Delila Hatuel (Isr)
7. Indra Angad Gaur (Ned)
8. Olga Leleiko (Ukr)
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