Skip to main content

Kharenkova takes two medals on final day of Cottbus

By
Russian gymnasts in Cottbus last weekend - from left to right - back row - Polina Fedorova, Maria Kharenkova, Daria Spiridinova; front row - Yulia Inshina (Azerbaijan), Anna Rodionova, Marina Nekrasova (Azerbaijan)


In her first senior international, Maria Kharenkova secured two medals last Sunday, taking a silver on beam, and a bronze on floor.  Not a bad result considering the jitters she suffered in the early part of the competition, and one that underlines the worth of a strategy that favours the selection of young gymnasts for these smaller competitions.  Russia now enters the pre-Europeans preparation with two more tried and tested medalists on its roster (Rodionova, remember, gained a silver on bars on Saturday), and this can only add to an impression of strength in depth, greatly needed in the run up to the major competitions this year and beyond.  

Kharenkova's performance was not as confident as she had presented during her medal winning routines at the 2012 Junior European Championships, but she still has some impressive routines and the fact that she made fewer errors as she progressed through the stages of the competition suggests she may have a 'big match temperament' and is still finding her feet at senior level.  Russia has found it difficult to transition its junior gymnasts to senior level in the recent past, so any indication of progress from this youngster from Rostov on Don is a matter for optimism.

Less encouraging is that Russia could field no gymnast at all on WAG vault ...

In the men's competition Ablyazin made a small but costly error and couldn't follow through with a second day gold to match his first day victories.  However, he did enough here to signal his determination to use this year to best effect as he prepares for the a Rio Olympics.

Russia continues with its preparations for Europeans with the Russian Championships in Penza, beginning on the 1st April with the first stages of the women's competitions, junior and senior.  Good luck to all the gymnasts!  

You can view videos of many of the best routines from Cottbus (MAG especially) at this YouTube channel http://m.youtube.com/user/jackmcpheepr/videos?sort=dd&shelf_id=2&view=0

Judith Radloff, hero of the gymternet, was present at the competition and took the trouble to video routines live - a big thank you, Judith!  Her videos, including Maria's floor and beam finals, can be found here https://www.facebook.com/judithradloff?ref=ts&fref=ts.

You will find the final results here, or can view them below.  http://cottbus-2014.dtb-liveticker.de














Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Svetlana Boginskaya: I was always a bitch* in gymnastics

By
Svetlana Boginskaya, 15 years old, with her medals from the Seoul Olympics Nico translates the latest interview with gymnastics legend Svetlana Boginskaya, during a recent visit to her home country of Belarus. Svetlana Boginskaya: I was always a bitch* in gymnastics, so now I ask for forgiveness from everyone who came in contact with me. The National Olympic Committee of Belarus held a press conference with three-time Olympic Champion in artistic gymnastics, Svetlana Boginskaya. The meeting was devoted to the 25th anniversary of the Olympic Games in Seoul. In South Korea the Belarussian won two gold medals in the team competition and vault. As a gift to the Olympic Hall of fame, the famous gymnast, now living in the United States, donated one of her trophies that she won at the 1990 European Championships and a pennant for Best Female Athlete of the USSR in 1989. How happy we were when we could share with such stars as Boginskaya, Scherbo, and Ivankov,...
14 comments
Read more

Mustafina Interview 2 of 2 : 'I will only perform under the Russian flag'

By
Argumentyi i Fakti interview with Aliya Mustafina Translated by Marina Vulis ‘I have no fear’, says Aliya Mustafina.   ‘My father [Farhat Mustafin, the bronze medallist in Greco-Roman wrestling at the 1976 Olympics] took me to my first gymnastics class.   In his opinion children need to do sports, and he saw gymnastics as useful for my general development.   He had no goals – just to let us practice.’ It did not end with ‘just practice’ – she became the World Champion at 16, but then had an ACL injury the next year (2011) at the Europeans.   Even just returning to gymnastics is a feat; then she came back to win four medals at the 2012 Olympics. Aliya Mustafina – That injury.   I do not know why I was ashamed – so many people were watching me and I could not even walk.   My parents!   They saw everything on TV (the coach had to carry her from the podium).   Of course I was aware that anything could happen in gymnastics, but I di...
4 comments
Read more

Marinov planning a partial comeback at the Russian champs

By
 ðŸŽ¤ "Plans for August: work, work, and work some more!" — Daniil Marinov on the training camp in Sirius, summer, and preparation for the Russian Championship ❓ How productive was your time at the training camp in Sirius? "Personally, I viewed this training camp not only as a recovery camp, but also as a preparatory one. My teammates had just recently returned from competitions, and yes, they needed a rest. But I, on the contrary, needed to start working hard, because there wasn't much time left before the Russian Championship. At the training camp in Sirius, I was able to work hard, and at the same time swim in the sea, change the scenery. I'm glad I went with the whole team!" ❓ Did you manage to regain your physical fitness after shoulder surgery? "More or less, yes. I remembered many elements from my routine. But I still continue to treat and pump up my shoulder, in parallel with getting into shape." ❓ Are you already working on all the apparatus...
Post a Comment
Read more

RRG Archive - scroll by date, from 2024 to 2010

Show more