Skip to main content

Andrei Rodionenko 'I am not looking for a replacement for Ablyazin'


Head coach Andrei Rodionenko today confirmed that, by hook or by crook, Denis Ablyazin will travel to Nanning and participate in World Championships.  Ablyazin missed key finals in last week's Russia Cup, and has been suffering severe knee pain.  He is undergoing investigations in Munich at present.  An announcement about the nature of his injury is expected in the next few days.

Rodionenko said he would be ready to take Ablyazin for his rings exercise only, where the Olympian has a realistic medal chance.  He also suggested that vault might be a possibility - 'even on one leg'.  

In a report in Pravda, Rodionenko is also reported as saying that the knee injury was 'nothing serious'.

Source : http://www.temapenza.ru/news/sports/item/7997/

Comments

  1. [sigh]

    I believe that Rodionenko must care about his athletes, but he can come across as crass and ruthless. I cannot believe Rodionenko would so cavalierly dismiss Ablyazin's severe knee pain as "nothing serious." An athlete's pain should always be taken seriously. Ablyazin took himself out of two event finals that he was certain to win. That does not mean "nothing serious." And it would be highly irresponsible to let Ablyazin vault on an injured leg at Worlds. That could be career ending for a potential Olympic gold medalist.

    I suspect that there are cultural communication differences between Americans and Russians, but I am often appalled by what Rodionenko says about his team and his athletes.

    I do hope Ablyazin is healthy to go to Nanning. Since teams have room for six athletes this year, they could use Ablyazin on rings only, if necessary to protect his knee.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Please, tell me there is something wrong with this translation. He can't be that crazy can he?

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Dmitri Zanin on Melnikova and the Russian team in Zagreb

Melnikova’s gesture on the podium, the "Slavic face," the coldness of rivals—Zanin captures the details of gymnastics at the Euros. Natalia Maryanchik, sports.ru  Жест Мельниковой на подиуме, slavic face, холод соперниц – детали гимнастики на Евро от Занина - Дальний лес - Блоги Sports.ru The European Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Zagreb concluded with a triumph for the Russian women, even though Melnikova and Kalmykova only made it to the tournament following intervention by the Foreign Ministry and competed practically straight off the plane. Melnikova and Kalmykova took first and second place in the all-around event. Competing under a neutral status, the Russian women won the team competition. Melnikova also claimed gold in the vault, as well as bronze on the balance beam and in the floor exercise. Match TV commentator Dmitry Zanin, who covered the tournament, recounted that Melnikova was moved to tears during the vault medal ceremony. He described her standing in h...

No Paseka for Russia in Berne

Barely two weeks will elapse before the WAG European Championships begin in Berne, Switzerland, and the news we had been fearing has been confirmed : world vault gold medallist Maria Paseka is  off the Russian team while she nurses a back injury.  This leaves Russia significantly weakened for the coming competition, with co-star Viktoria Komova also missing from the line-up.  It is a little disappointing, but it seems the right decision to rest the gymnasts so that they can be at their best when and where it really matters. Who will replace Paseka?  Valentina Rodionenko says that the youngster Natalia Kapitonova, who trains in Penza, has been chosen on the basis of her solid performances at national championships.  Well, we will have to wait and see - these announcements often turn out to be unreliable.   I personally would prefer to see the dynamic Seda Tutkhalyan be given a chance at this level, but Kapitonova has certainly shown herself to be more reliab...

Aliya Mustafina - 'each medal is very special'

'I'm very happy that everything turned out well today  ... Each medal is very special.  The UK team made mistakes, so there was a wide margin [of victory]... But naturally, [what I did] is not enough for the Olympics.  I prepared well for beam and bars but I am not ready for floor, I stepped up to help the team. ... To be honest, I did not look at the scores [when asked how the team reacted to the 6.5 gap before the final apparatus].  Gelya (Melnikova) is a good girl, she did everything and did not falter ... Seda fell on quite a complex element.  There is more work to do, but everything else went well.' [About a protest taken by the coaches on her beam score]. 'I am used to my protests being rejected, everything is normal!' Via vk.com I n other news , the UEG has confirmed that Spiridonova will replace Melnikova in tomorrow's bars final. No reason is given, but it is generally considered that Dasha has a better chance of gold.  This decision also means tha...

RRG Archive - scroll by date, from 2024 to 2010

Show more