On November 8, 2026, the Israeli Wingate Institute announced that it is hosting the Ukrainian national fencing team for a joint eight-day training camp with the Israeli team. The athletes are preparing for the World Cup stage, which will take place from November 12-14 in Bern, Switzerland. Ukrainian coach Igor Reizlin explained why the invitation was especially important: due to the war, his team cannot train properly at home.
Author: Lev Varshavsky, NANews
“We cannot train in Ukraine as usual, so I am grateful for this invitation. This is a wonderful training camp. Thank you very much for the invitation,” said Reizlin, a bronze medalist at the Tokyo Olympics.
Eight days on Israeli fencing pistes
Ukrainian athletes arrived at the Wingate Institute — Israel’s national sports training center located near Netanya. Here they train together with the Israeli men’s épée team, one of the strongest teams in the world.
In photos published by the institute, a hall with several fencing pistes is visible. Athletes in protective suits and masks conduct training bouts, and electronic equipment for recording hits is installed on the platforms. This is a working preparation directly before the international tournament, not demonstration performances for guests.
Joint sessions allow Ukrainians and Israelis to test tactics against opponents from another sports team. For a fencer, this is significant: when athletes constantly train with each other, they know the opponent’s usual movements and manner well.
The training is led by Israel’s national coach Alexander Ivanov and Igor Reizlin, responsible for the Ukrainian men’s épée team. In this discipline, unlike foil and sabre, hits are allowed to any part of the body. Therefore, the outcome of a bout can depend on one precisely calculated movement.
Wingate did not disclose the detailed schedule of the camp, the number of bouts held, or the full composition of the Ukrainian delegation. However, the purpose of the training is clearly defined — to prepare both teams for the World Cup in Bern.
What is the Wingate Institute and why is it so important for Israel
The Wingate Institute (מכון וינגייט) opened on April 7, 1957. It was named after British officer Orde Charles Wingate, who in the 1930s helped prepare Jewish defense formations in Mandate Palestine. For his support of the Jewish population, he earned the nickname “Friend.”
Initially, the institute was created to train physical education teachers, coaches, and sports instructors, conduct research, and develop mass sports. Over time, it became the main sports training complex in the country. In 2017, the Knesset passed a special law on Wingate, and since 2018 it has operated as a state organization under the Ministry of Culture and Sports of Israel.
On the extensive territory near the Mediterranean coast, there are Olympic pools, an athletics stadium, a football field, tennis courts, gyms, and specialized areas for various sports. In 2013, a new national Olympic pool opened here.
However, Wingate is not only sports facilities. It houses the Ribstein Center for Sports Medicine and Research, the Nat Holman School for Coaches Training, founded in 1965, and a sports academy opened in 1990 to train talented young athletes. The “Athena” Center is engaged in the development of women’s sports. The institute also has an archive of the history of physical culture and sports named after Zvi Nishri.
For long-term camps, there are residential facilities, the “Beit Ha-Nivcharot” hotel (“House of Teams”) with 37 rooms, a dining room with sports nutrition, classrooms, and conference halls. Athletes can undergo medical examinations, engage in recovery, and receive consultations from sports physiology specialists.
In 1989, the Wingate Institute was awarded the Israel Prize — one of the country’s highest state awards — for its contribution to the development of national sports.
More about the history and structure of the complex can be read on the official website of the Wingate Institute.
Why Ukrainian athletes need such camps
Reizlin’s words explain the circumstances of the trip better than official sports formulations. The Russian war disrupted the usual training conditions in Ukraine. International sports require regular training, a stable schedule, and constant competitive practice, and providing all this in a warring country is significantly more difficult.
Reizlin knows the demands of big sports from his own experience. At the Tokyo Olympics, held in 2021, he won bronze in the individual épée event. He also has three World Championship medals to his name. Now he is preparing the Ukrainian team for competitions as a coach.
The invitation to Israel does not mean that Ukrainian fencers have completely stopped training at home. It is about the opportunity to train in a normal sports regime — with suitable conditions and strong partners before important starts.
Three months ago, Ukraine defeated Israel by one hit
Interestingly, recent opponents from the World Championship met at Wingate.
On July 29, 2026, in Hong Kong, Ukraine defeated Israel in the semifinals of the team épée tournament with a score of 45:44. The winning hit in extra time was delivered by Roman Svichkar. The Ukrainians advanced to the final, where they lost to Kazakhstan 40:45, and won silver medals.
The Israeli team lost to Egypt in the match for third place — 38:39 — and took fourth place, setting a national achievement in men’s team épée. According to the results of the International Fencing Federation, Ukraine and Israel finished the championship in second and fourth places, respectively.
In June, the Israelis achieved another success: 20-year-old Alon Sarid won silver at the European Championship in Antony, France, losing in the final to Italian Simone Mencarelli.
Thus, the Israeli team got the opportunity to train with the current world vice-champions, and the Ukrainians — with opponents who almost stopped them on their way to the final.
Cooperation that continues despite wars
The current camp renews long-standing sports ties. Back in July 2023, Wingate hosted a large international training camp with the participation of Ukraine, Canada, Poland, Argentina, and the USA. Among its participants were already Igor Reizlin and Alexander Ivanov.
After the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023, holding international camps in Israel became more complicated. Wingate’s management views the arrival of the Ukrainian team as an important stage in restoring normal sports activities.
At the same time, foreign fencers had visited here before: in November 2025, the institute held an international camp for Paralympic fencing, in which Ukrainian Oleg Naumenko and coach Gennady Yanovsky participated. Therefore, the current visit is more accurately called a return to joint preparation of national épée teams, rather than the first visit of foreign athletes after October 7.
Wingate Chairman Ari Steinberg emphasized the importance of the return of international training and friendship between the teams. CEO Guy Atias stated that the institute once again provides foreign athletes with professional training and support in Israel.
Ukrainian-Israeli sports contacts continue beyond fencing. In the summer of 2026, as reported by NANews, a delegation of “Maccabi-Ukraine” consisting of 50 athletes representing 13 sports performed in Israel.
From Wingate — to the World Cup in Bern
The next stage is already scheduled. According to the calendar of the International Fencing Federation, individual épée competitions will be held in Bern on November 12-13, 2026, and the team tournament on November 14.
There, Ukrainians and Israelis will once again become sports rivals. But before that, they will use the opportunity to prepare together.
For Ukraine, eight days at Wingate is an opportunity to conduct a full-fledged international camp in conditions that are currently lacking at home. For Israel, it is the return of strong foreign partners to the national training base. And in both cases, there is a very specific sports goal behind this story: to prepare for the World Cup and achieve results.
