Dr.Hab., Professor, Honorary Coach of Russia А.D. Movshovich¹
PhD, Associate Professor V.V. Lobanov^2
1Russian State University of Physical Education, Sport, Youth and Tourism (GTSOLIFK), Moscow
²Tomsk State Pedagogical University, Tomsk

Keywords: artistic fencing, eidos, sport philosophy, Plato, sport education, ancient heritage.

Background. Objective of the study was to offer strategic reference points for the competitive performance improvement in the context of the interdisciplinary approach including the core methodological ideas of modern philosophy, psychology and pedagogics; with the core philosophical concept of the approach driven by the ancient notion of eidos in its interpretation by Plato, ancient Greek philosopher [7] who had defined it as the ontologically independent absolute peak of perfection albeit non-existing in reality.

The psychological aspect of the approach is largely based on the competitive performance classification into its results, products and effects generally driven by the P.Y. Galperin’s methodology [2] that made it possible to put in system the outcomes of the competitive teamwork. The outcomes include, among other things, progressive qualitative (skills and abilities) and quantitative (physical fitness) progresses of the individual performance parameters specific for each athlete. It should be noted that its products may be interpreted as scenarios and detailed designs of routines (in figure skating, artistic fencing, rhythmic gymnastics etc.) plus frame methods, programs and plans implementable without customisation to specific athletes, with the competitive routines (stage production) being considered the most reproducible product of the process.

And effects may be interpreted as the potentially attainable albeit not always predictable competitive accomplishments, particularly places won by individual athletes and teams. Application of the Plato’s notion of eidos to the competitive performance design in the context of the P.Y. Galperin’s methodology provides a foothold for the educational focus in the training and competitive process strategies pursued by sport teams.

Methods and structure of the study. The study methodology included a structural analysis, comparisons and expert questionnaire surveys. The structural analysis was applied to analyse the effects of the notion of eidos being used for the performance analysis in the context of the P.Y. Galperin’s methodology. Comparisons were applied to find differences in views of the athletes, referees and spectators on eidos of each competitive routine. Leaders of the Russian artistic fencing teams and referees were engaged in the study for the prior expert consideration of our findings and recommendations.

Study results and discussion. The study showed that the idea of eidos may be applied as a methodological basis for the team competitive performance analysis in a specific sport discipline. The authors analysed benefits of the idea of eidos being applied to competitive performance results, products and effects in the modern artistic fencing sport that was (in 2008) registered with the official sport register among the fencing sport disciplines [6].

It was further found that the athletes and coaches tend to accept the idea of eidos via de-personification of the top skills and physical fitness standards demonstrated by the champions (“do it like he does...”, “act like him”). Initially they tend to idealise physical qualities and skills including the technical actions – for instance, Sveshnikov’s heel or Christian d’Oreol’s jump lunge that was likened by V.A. Arkadiev to the leopard jump and staggered spectators by its “almost abnormal flexibility” [1]; albeit Arkadiev distinguished this lunge of the French master from the d’Oreol’s personality perceiving the fencing action rather as an abstraction. Generally, eidos is referred to as an abstract (ideal) performance of the “champion’s action” with perfect accuracy, speed and timing rather than the its actual execution by the top-ranking fencer or artistic fencer.

The study also demonstrated that the staged routine (as artistic fencing product) performance assessment process by the referees may be described as the performance comparison with the perceived unachievable eidos that – in contrast to the eidos of results – provides a clear quantitative measure. Performance eidos refers to the 30 maximum points applied by the referee for the performance scoring purposes. Since the refereeing process implies deductions from the maximum score (i.e. initially and ideally the performance is expected to equal eidos, with its actual drawbacks being rated and deducted from the maximum), we should underline the following three aspects.

First, consciousness of every member of the referees’ board refers to the eidoses of routine composition, specific technical actions and artistic expressivity tools as some standards. Second, experienced referees normally give fairly close points to the same performance demonstrating reasonably high agreement in their understanding of its eidos. And, third, their final score in recorded in the protocol shows how close the performance to the unachievable 30-point ideal is. Therefore, the average score may be described as the degree of correspondence of the specific performance to the aggregate eidos of the referees’ board.

Furthermore, our study found the two-way nature of the eidos of effects, with its perception in the modern sport pedagogics being different from that in psychological-didactic disciplines. Traditionally a performance effect is interpreted as the unpredictable result that means that the more comprehensive is the education process planning the more seldom are the unpredicted (unplanned) effects of the process – that may not always be desirable. The national sports community has not yet forgotten the so-called “medals winning plans” that were of negative effects on the coaches of the national USSR fencing and other teams [8].

It may be pertinent to support in this context the V.M. Likhtarenko’s opinion that artistic fencing is a highly subjective sport discipline [4] and, therefore, no competitive performance forecast may be accurate enough today. However, high rankings of some athletes may be forecasted and viewed as the natural effect of their competitive performance reflecting the first aspect of the eidos of effects. The other aspect of the latter refers to the subjective and hardly assessable spectators and referees’ impression from the competitive performance at Russian events. It should be noted in this context that the modern international rules of competitions, unlike the national ones, make provisions for the so-called wow-effect, and the relevant points are factored in the final scores of each routine.

Conclusion. The comprehension and interpretation of the eidetic (in the Plato’s interpretation) competitive performance results, products and effects gave us the means to offer the following theoretical basis for the educational process improvement in artistic fencing teams.

First, it may be beneficial for the coach to offer certain reference points for progress – not specific personalities of some champions however great they may be, but the individual physical qualities, skills and technical actions of the latter. This educational process setting will make it possible to prevent the trainees from their success underestimation when they compare themselves with top-ranking athletes as unachievable models. It should be emphasised that eidos in this case should be accepted as a specific performance option (“make the lunge like...”) rather than the abstract ideal action to step up the trainees’ motivations. The same holds true for the overall physical and special fitness standards.

Second, each competitive routine expected to yield high competitive results needs to demonstrate a high degree of compliance of the techniques, fencing skills and artistic qualities with both the rules of competitions and the subjective eidetic conceptions of the refereeing board members on the ideal routine. A special priority should be given in this context to attendance of the referees’ workshops; studies of competitive records; analyses of competitive routines in post-competitive round-table sessions; analyses of personal impressions versus actually scored points; plus analyses of the referees’ own performances when they were active competitors [5]. It should also be noted that even the “classical” fencing techniques are very different across the regional fencing schools and, therefore, it may make sense to have clarifications from the formal bodies of the Artistic Fencing Federation prior to each competition on whether or not some specific technical actions are acceptable and what performance standards are applicable.

Third, the fact that the individual competitive performance can hardly be forecast in modern artistic fencing appears to be of largely de-motivating effect on the athletes and coaches in the present situation in the sport. As things now stand, it may be beneficial for the sport education process to set more subjective goals rather than “must win” one, including “make it better than the last time”, “demonstrate your skills”, “do your best”, “enjoy your own performance”, “visualise your concept of an ideal bout” etc. [3]. The proposed resetting of the strategic goals may help the eidetic aspirations of the sport team being attained via the humanistic paradigm of the individual progress of every team member; and this revision may help consolidate the team and step up the sport popularity on the whole. However, we expect the refereeing process to become more objective with time so that the eidetic parameters of each routine are clearly defined, with the relevant positive readjustments of the athletes’ goals and motivations.

References

1. Arkadyev V.A., Lyubetskaya, T.L. Dialog o poedinke [Dialogue about the duel]. Moscow: Molodaya gvardiya publ., 1976, 192 p.
2. Galperin P.Y. Lektsii po psikhologii [Lectures on psychology]. Moscow: Universitet publ., 2002, 400 p.
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6. Movshovich A.D., Lobanov V.V. Artisticheskoe fekhtovanie: problemy mezhdunarodnogo prodvizheniya v sisteme sporta [Artistic fencing: issues of international promotion in sports]. Teoriya i praktika fizicheskoy kultury, 2016, no. 8, pp. 62-64.
7. Platon. Gosudarstvo. Sobranie sochineniy v 4-kh tomakh [Plato. The state. Collected works in 4 volumes]. Moscow: Mysl publ., 1994. vol. III, pp. 79-420.
8. Tyshler D.A. Vashu sablyu, maestro! Syuzhety sportivnoy pedagogiki [Your sword, maestro! Plots of sports pedagogics]. Moscow: Terra-sport publ., 2004, 256 p.

Corresponding author: alek-movshovich@yandex.ru

Abstract

The article considers practical grounds for integration of the relevant philosophical, psychological and educational aspects of the education and training process in competitive artistic fencing groups. The authors have demonstrated benefits of the sport process strategy designed based on the key notion of eidos in its interpreteation by Plato, ancient Greek philosopher. The core role of eidos in the sport process design is demonstrated in the article by implementation of the P.Y. Galperin’s theory in the practical education process of an artistic fencing team. The authors applied a variety of tools including structural analysis, comparisons and expert assessments to offer and substantiate their practical recommendations on how the practical goals of the artistic fencing training process should be reset with due emphasis on both the motivations of the trainer-instructors and athletes for competitive accomplishments and eidos of every competitive bout.