Vladimir Maksimenko (Hartman Enon), 

fighter of “Lubeck” club (Latvia), 

captain of the National Team of Latvia 

… Concerning his way to HMB sport 

I started practising full contact fighting in armor by chance. There was no HMB movement in Latvia, there were reenactors and role players. When I was a teenager, I was on friendly terms with some guys from a role-playing club called “Frontier”, located in Dvinsk (Daugavpils, Latvia). We had fun chasing each other through the woods, being armed with clubs, and we had not the slightest idea about HMB sport. The paradox is in the fact that I have never never been to any role-playing game.

Later, when I was 19, my fate brought me to Riga, and I began to look for ways of killing my free time. And once, I saw a man in armor in a social network. I looked at the photo closely and realized that was not a screenshot from a computer game,

…Concerning armor and weapons

I have a lot of armor. The question is whether it is suitable for HMB, where not only safety but also historicity is important. 

I fight in armor of the XIVth century, with some elements of the XVth century (gloves, shin protection). My region is Germany. Our club reenacts Germany of the XVth century, hence the choice. 

My favorite weapons are falchion and targe (elbow shield). I also like pole arms,

halberd for example. But here, in Latvia, there’s nobody to beat with such weapon. I have a workpiece of grand falchion, I want to take it to “Battle of the Nations”-2015. But I’m not sure whether I’ll be able to finish it in time.

… Concerning workouts and physical training 

My training process has not yet been worked out. I constantly change something. The only thing that remains unchanged is tyre striking.

Nowadays we are having a lot of sparrings using LARP. I’ve a plan to buy tatami for practising wrestling techniques.

I’ve been pumping iron for two years. I stick to the slogan of “Do base exercises!” (squatting, deadlift, bench press). I played football when I was a teenager. 

… Concerning the qualities needed by any HMB fighter 

The most important features are strength, endurance, speed, striking and wrestling techniques. Depending on the category to which the fighter is preparing, features can change in order of importance. 

I think that “5 vs 5″ is the most popular and spectacular HMB category. There, as for me, the most important individual quality of a fighter (besides strength and endurance) is his weight (preferably if it’s muscle mass). 

… Concerning classification of HMB fighters

I divide them into 3 categories, namely tournament fighters, buhurt and professional fighters.

Professional fighters may have a specialization, as some of them are better at fencing, so they can work at a distance, some can wrestle, crush the opponent.

Buhurt fighters should be able to work in a team, to see the lists.

Tournament fighters are individual fighters.

… Concerning categories and combat preferences 

I like “Triathlon”. I love the longsword. Unfortunately, it’s not always possible at “Battle of the Nations” to participate in “Triathlon” and “5 vs 5″.

In the offseason, I go to near-abroad countries to participate in professional fights. I faced such stars as Robert Szatecki and Alexander Nadezhdin.

You have to feel the difference between the categories and be able to switch over. I often forget to strike with my shield edge in professional fights, as I used to fight by the rules of the tournament, where it is forbidden, but the experience still accumulates.

… Concerning the last season 

This year, I travelled a lot together with the team and without it. We went to Estonia, to visit our comrades, several times. We were at tournaments in Lithuania a couple of times. And we attended almost all local festivals. Among the visited places were Tervete, Kaunas, Sigulda. Unfortunately, I failed to visit Ventspils.

Well, and I was at “Battle of the Nations”-2014 of course.

Interview by

Miroslav Eremenko,

HMBIA News

but a living person. I wrote a message and the next day, in the evening, I was dressed in armor, waved a sword and protected myself with a shield circling around Yuriy Terekhin. It was the way I had my debut in “Excalibur” club, whose permanent leader is Konstantin Yatskov.

At the moment I’m a member of “Lubeck” club whose head is Vladimir Lebedev. I joined “Lubeck” just before my first participation in “Battle of the Nations” (Warsaw, 2012).

There, in Poland, I clearly saw that Historical Medieval Battle was a sport where you had to try hard, do your best and fight for victory.

I’ve been training regularly for over 8 years, and I’ve been teaching historical fencing in Latvia for about 4 years. HMB sport has become quite a significant part of my life.