Elena Shushunova was born on 23 April 1969 in St Petersburg, home of 1980 Olympic Champions Elena Davydova and Alexander Detiatin. The 1985 World and European Champion, and 1988 Olympic Champion was coached by Viktor Gavrichenkov, who went on to lead Natalia Ziganshina to a World overall silver medal in 2001, and who served briefly as National coach of the Russian women's team.
Her career spanned two different eras of gymnastics, each symbolic of their times. Her earliest international competitions as a junior (1981/2) showed Shushunova to be a daring trickster, typical of the generation of female gymnasts who emerged in the late 70s and early 80s - tiny acrobats, technicians with dynamite. Later in her career, especially by the time of the Olympics in 1988, her technical prowess was enhanced by an expressive presence that positioned her firmly in the next generation of artist-acrobats who dominated the sport to 1992. Drawing on what Gavrichenkov described as a 'hidden depth of emotion', her floor performances embraced at once the pride, dedication and humour that were characteristic personal and professional traits, while her bars, beam and vault, original and innovative, leveraged her talent for daring flight to create sharp, angular and twisting shapes performed with fast-paced syncopation and rhythm. If ever there were shock and awe in gymnastics, it belonged to Shushunova.
Her first major individual international medal was a bronze overall at the 1984 Friendship Games, the alternative Olympics in Oloumoc. So effectively Shushunova won her gold medal overall at her second Olympic Games, a feat matched only by her compatriot, 1972 Olympic Champion Liudmilla Tourischeva. The Cold War affected sport directly at this time with two consecutive Olympic boycotts by the USA (1980) and Soviet Union (1984) respectively. Sport was often used as a metaphor to describe the state of relations between East and West. Thus, political tensions created media hype that saw young gymnasts portrayed as machines and robots engaged in a sporting war with the West. This partially explains the portrayal of Shushunova in many sources as a stoney-faced Soviet housewife programmed to seek victory for the motherland. The reality was in fact closer to the fearless adventurer Lara Croft embodied in the frame of a nice schoolgirl who wanted to try her to lead her team to victory. Shushunova was both ordinary and extraordinary at the same time.
In fact those who watched closely could see clearly that Shushunova had grown during President Gorbachov's era of glasnost (openness). Her communications with coach Gavrichenkov were plainly frank, candid and full of humour, even on the competition floor. While 1972 Olympic Champion Tourischeva's relationship with her coach Rotstorotsky was portrayed as involving at times brutal discipline and command, Shushunova's equal part in the coach-gymnast relationship spoke volumes of a shifting sporting attitude. Tourischeva's mid 1970s narrative had embraced such concepts as self-sacrifice and national pride, while Shushunova spoke of a liking for whipped cream and a love for family dachshund Natka. Later, however, as fierce team captain she did leverage the prevailing political narrative. 'We'll roll right over them like a tank' she said, explaining how the Soviet team would defeat their opponents in Seoul.
Shushunova's diminutive yet powerful physique has often led gym fans to the conclusion that her work lacks artistry, but this is an overly simplistic conclusion that draws on the false assumption that body type equals artistry. The unique nature of her gymnastics - modern, explosive stunts performed with classical grace - came together as a cohesive whole, frameworked with almost graphic panache to create eye catching imagery that was impossible to ignore.
1985, as a first year senior. 'Shushu' didn't quite have the amplitude of her later years here, but it is a an interesting composition with her head lifted pertly towards the end of the beam.
By 1988 Shushunova was famous for her fighting qualities, and the leading gymnast of her generation. This simple scale emphasised something intangible about both her character and her gymnastics. She often embellished the move with a flourish of the hand, stressing her control and poise. Ultra difficult innovation was second nature to this intelligent gymnast, yet outstanding basics were also in evidence throughout every routine.
Elena's world-beating floor routine in 1985 spoke volumes about the girl's humourous and playful personality.
Another well balanced pose on beam
Shushunova in typical full body movement
In training in 1988 with coach Viktor Gavrichenkov
A picture of Shushunova during the Riga International in early 1982. She would have been just twelve years old here.
Amplitude and balance beyond her years
Much of Shushunova's early floor work exploited her perky personality and drew attention to her exquisite shoulder line and head position.
Bars were Shushunova's strongest piece. She created vibrant, flighty shapes as she powered through her risky routines. Here she competes in the Moscow News competition in 1985.
Tension and parallel lines on the beam.
Thanks for writing about my all time favourite gymnast! I have admired many gymnasts from different countries in the last few decades but Shoushounova was the best and most unique gymnast in my opinion. Ever since I saw her performance in the 1985 European Championships, I was hooked! (most people would have only remembered Oksana Omelianchik from that competition). You have captured all her strengths and unique qualities in this post. I really like Mustafina but I doubt we will ever see another gymnast of that calibre again. Power, elegance, emotions, strong techniques - she had them all in her performances.
ReplyDeleteBeautifully said
DeleteI think people need to make a difference between body type and BODY BUILD. Yes Shushunova was short, had wider waist and was prone to build more muscles, but I think is a mistake from some fans to compare Shushunova with Biles when in these pictures you can tell that while Shushunova didn't have the lines of Boginskaya and other Soviet gymnasts, she didn't had the same build of Biles either. Shushunova, like the rest of the Soviets had dance training as a background for her artistry, grace and pose. She didn't excel in that like her team mate Omelianchik, but you put Shushunova on the floor and she crushes all of the Americans and also other gymnasts from other countries including some of the Russians.
ReplyDeleteThat's how dad is WAG today.
From what you say it isn't really clear what the difference is between body type and body build. I haven't made a comparison to any other gymnasts in this article, although I agree with the inference that as a power gymnast, Shushunova does share some of Biles' characteristics - although she did pay respect to the classical tradition and managed to combine incredible complexity with artistry. I wouldn't say the Biles totally lacks artistry - but the aesthetic of her work especially eg on beam leaves quite a lot to be desired. It is neither poor technique, nor poor execution. She simply hasn't been trained to have the economy of line, the quality of overcoming gravity with lightness that has been fundamental to the best gymnastics in the past.
DeleteShushunova had to perform four compulsory exercises as well as four optionals - this emphasised the importance of pure basics and expressive interpretation of bald skills. The scores for compulsories counted towards her competition results and the refinement of the basic skills filtered through into her optionals. Without compulsories the sport has become focussed on acrobatics and difficulty. Simone is exciting, explosive and very consistent but she is a totally different gymnast to anything we have seen before. Under this Code she is well ahead and deservedly so.
But take out the acrobatics and what is left? There is a sport called sports acrobatics - is gymnastics merely a version of SA, performed on different apparatus? The question is, where do we want the sport to go?
I cannot see others of the calibre of Simone on the rise. What I do, however, see are gymnasts attempting to add difficulty to their routines that they cannot perform with good technique. Some work misses the mark by a very large margin, with misshapen skills that are barely recognisable compared to their description in the Code, or that cannot be landed safely on two feet. There is a lot of characterless floor work and monotonous beam work, and this reaches right up to the very top gymnasts. Much of bars is repetitive and predictable. The standard of vaulting has fallen internationally.
The USA consistently produces the best work, because they have the highest difficulty and make the fewest mistakes. In the States and elsewhere there are flashes of the aesthetic here and there, but in general they are few and far between. This is the result of the nature of the Code allied to poor judgement and marking. It should be possible to reward acrobatics and also encourage good work in other dimensions of the sport, whilst encouraging good skills development. I am speaking here about WAG, where the Code seems to be used like a menu with very little innovation or consideration of the cohesion of the whole routine, of expression, rhythm and harmony. MAG is a different matter and seems to have adjusted to the demands of the new Code much better.
DeleteThis blog is about Russian gymnastics and I feature heritage considerations regularly. Fewer and fewer of us can remember the Golden Era, which was so called because so much of the gymnastics internationally was of a gold standard. The cultural heritage of Russia was in the forefront of the sport in this era because of the country's leading position in the classical tradition of dance, and this tradition provided a guiding principle to both MAG and WAG and created some of the most aesthetic gymnastics the world has ever seen. Now, without paying respect to that tradition, the sport - WAG, in any event, has lost the vital dimension of the visual, and has deserted its classical heritage. I find it hard to see where WAG will go from its present position without becoming completely stripped of its quality.
Heritage isn't just how things were yesterday - it is also about how things are today, and will be tomorrow. The FIG needs to fix WAG both for today and for tomorrow, paying just a little respect to the vital aspects of yesterday.
Here is what choreographer Kapitanova had to say about body type - and the comments there are interesting too - http://rewritingrussiangymnastics.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/artistry-and-body-type-choreographer.html
You aren't born with big muscles... You work your muscles to get that powerful. The two of them could have been born with the same attributes but they clearly had different training. One gymnast concentrated in every aspect of artistic gymnastics while the other is currently adding more difficulty and power to her routines.
DeleteI don't see how can it be more clear than this. I know is a touchy subject for some, but the pictures speak for themselves.
@Queen Elizabeth (sorry this is an old thread to reply to!)
DeleteI totally agree with everything you are saying. Simone is an incredible gymnast. She performs the acrobatics required on beam and floor especially with a virtuosity others cannot match. But, as you say, that is not all there is to artistic gymnastics. I watched a while ago a documentary about Ludmilla Tourischeva and there were interviews with Rastorotsky as well. He talked at length about 'artistry' over difficulty, and the need to perform the difficult acrobatics with grace, virtuosity and beauty, emphasising the exercise as a whole, rather than a mash of acrobatics and dance.
I appreciate that the sport has moved on from the days of the 1980s - I do enjoy, however, going back and rewatching the teams comp optionals from 1988, where every single Soviet gymnast hit on floor, with personalised routines that were both outstanding in their difficulty and exquisitely beautiful. I was never a fan of Shevtchenko's gymnastics, but the fx routine she showed for team optionals was superb.
I am hoping the code is revised after the 2016 season to a code which values the whole aesthetic of routines, not just 'dance' or acrobatics. It would be lovely to see more routines that are original and unique, not just fulfilling the dance requirements of the code with ugly turning leaps or horribly completed spins which add nothing to the overall impression of the routine.
Ideally I would like to see compulsories reinstated but I don't think that will be happening anytime soon. Exercises which have to be completed to textbook, emphasising expression and beauty....that would be a wonderful change.
Elena Shushunova was my all time favourite too. I still love watch her routines, she had a magical quality. She was both powerful and artistic, but never cutsy, which is rare now. And she had so much orginality. Comparisons with Simone Biles are tricky, we have no idea how it would have been different with Compulsory exercises. Simone is phenomanal but she is more power than artistry, whereas Shushunova was able to combine both. Shushunova's hands were always beautiful and her lines always good. Her handstands on bars were pencil straight too....Sometimes Aliya Mustafina reminds me of Shushunova because of that steely persona and determination to win. Aliya is similar in the sense that she could win medals on all four pieces of apparatus. Shushunova's weak piece was beam, yet she never failed to win a medal on it, even in Seoul when she failed on Vault and Floor...we have no way of knowing how different it would have been if the gymnasts had more that one day between the AA and EF's.
ReplyDeleteI know that Silivas fans dislike her but I always much prefered Shushunova and prefered Team USSR over Romania. I have no trouble why Shushunova won the Olympic AA on vault, I can see the difference. And that team was so strong that after Strejeva fell off the beam and they could not drop the scores of Baitova or Schevchenko, it made no difference and there was never any question that they were going to lose the gold medal. There is a routine of hers on beam from 1983, she was linking moves and she does a beautiful spin. She was also the first gymnast to do a full twisting double back of the beam but not at Worlds or the The Olympics.
Not quite the first to do the FTDT off the beam! But one of the first, certainly before it became well known.
DeleteThere exists video on youtube of a Chinese gymnast, Jiang Wei, competing the FTDT off the beam in 1980, at a meet in the USA, only 2-3 years after Mukhina debuted the double tuck!
Rest in peace Elena. You were a superb gymnast, sorely missed. Beautiful line, artistry, consistency and difficulty made you stand out even amongst your fantastic team mates.
Thank you, Elizabeth, for the tribute.
ReplyDeleteThe is really one of the best!
Rest in peace, Elena. You made the difference, you were a breath of fresh air.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful article to re-read now, after the news of Shushunova's death. A legend of the sport, gone too soon.
ReplyDeleteRest In Peace,Elena.
ReplyDelete