20 year old Grishina, a beautiful beam and floor worker who was once considered to have significant all around potential at world level, married recently. She has been studying journalism at a Moscow University.
Rodionenko wasted no time in ascribing Grishina's waning as an international star to her changing coaching arrangements since the Olympics. Regular readers of this blog will know that Sergei Zelikson, whose tenure as Grishina's personal coach was terminated suddenly in 2012, was recently re-appointed to the national WAG team as tumbling coach. 'The leaders of the Moscow Gymnastics Federation made a fatal mistake a few years ago, when they decided to transfer Grishina to a different coach', said Rodionenko. 'You couldn't take Grishina away from Zelikson because he knew her well, and both coach and gymnast were on the right track. Then Grishina's troubles began - first one injury, then another. The transition to the Razumovsky coaches was a wrong step. We (the management) tried to stop this. However, not only Moscow but also Grishina decided they wanted a new coach. It seems that the gymnast wanted a coach who was less demanding. In the end though, their collaboration ended in vain'.
'Grishina has lost her desire to train, and her place [on the national team] was taken up by a younger gymnast a long time ago. Frankly, we had big hopes for Grishina - most experts believed her to be one of Russia's big hopes. She was really a very capable girl.'
Grishina's coaches since 2012, Irina and Viktor Razumovsky, returned to Moscow from Japan in 2012, where they had been coaching. Rejoining the Moscow CSKA club where they had always worked during the Soviet era, their legacy includes Olympic champion Elena Shevchenko and Olga Chudina, and they also coached 1981 World Champion Olga Bicherova during the later years of her career. Former junior national team member Daria Mikhailova trained with them. CSKA is the native club of coach Alexander Alexandrov and of World and Olympic medallist Aliya Mustafina.
Kramarenko and Nabiyeva with St Petersburg promise, Elena Eremina
Both Ekaterina and Tatiana come from St Petersburg, the home of Olympic champions Alexander Detiatin and Elena Shushunova. Tatiana now coaches young gymnasts in her home gym, with her coaches Alexander and Vera Kiryashova.
Good luck to all the gymnasts and coaches mentioned in this announcement! Be happy and successful in what life brings, keep in touch - and thank you for all the fantastic gymnastics!
Source - http://tass.ru/sport/2598291
In fact, Papa Liukin has confirmed that Tatiana has seen the Tass article - and says she hasn't completely retired yet and will be at Russian Championships. Papa says Tatiana is very angry!
ReplyDeleteLook out for a Nabiyeva revival!
This is so sad. I always loved Grishina's gymnastics. She had such beautiful lines; it is a shame that she never reached her full potential. Her mental melt down at the olympics was so sad. She is so talented. I was hoping she would make a comeback.
ReplyDeleteOh, and Mustafina is back! https://instagram.com/p/BAu6IRWK_zt/
ReplyDeleteI think it's true that Tatiana's personality prevents her from becoming as big gymnastics superstars as Aliya, Komova, and Paseka. She just doesn't seem to display passion and hunger for winning and she's becoming very lazy too.
ReplyDelete"their collaboration ended in vain" (*giggles*) Grishina's most solid AA performance as a senior came when she was working with Razumovsky. She looked happy and won medals for Russia in front of her come crowd. How convinient for Valentina to forget that. Seriously the behaviour of this woman goes beyond my human common sense.
ReplyDeleteMy heart is hurting right now. Anastasia Grishina has been one of my favourite gymnasts of this decade to watch. I've spent many an hour replaying her amazing 2010 and 2012 floor routine, where her stunning interpretation of the music was second to none. Wish her all the best
ReplyDeleteI have been dreading this news. It's utterly heartbreaking.
ReplyDeletebut then now it is confirmed that all the above retirements are not true! none of them are retired!
ReplyDeleteKramarenko and Nabiyeva have both said they still train, but Kramarenko can't tumble because of an injury and Nabiyeva admits she now coaches more than trains. I haven't seen where Grishina has said anything - she has made a statement of her retirement on Facebook, but it seems this is not her.
DeleteWhat is true is that none of these girls is training with the national team this year. Rodionenko is tactless but she is only confirming what is obvious from the lists published a few days ago.
Who knows, perhaps one if the girls will try a comeback - post Olympics. I don't realistically see any of them making the standard for Rio. The door is always open.
Why not just say the girls no longer train with the national team? Infact, none of the girls are retired from the sport and it is decidedly disrespectful- tho they must be used to it- that she is trying to tell the media that they're done with sport when they are not. Whether are not she finds them useful doesn't grant her the power to try to conclude their careers, and who even says the Olympics are their goal!?! And how shabby of her to treat them like this when Russia's ass constantly gets saved in non Olympic years by these types of gymnasts, who stick around and step up when their country runs all their A-list depth into the ground.
ReplyDeleteI swear, the Rodionenko's give Team Russia such a bad look, its no wonder the less educated are always gleeful when misfortune befalls the team. They mistake their dislike of the Rods for the gymnasts.
I agree that it is impolite at least to make such an announcement without the agreement of the gymnasts.
DeleteBut the question of these girls' participation in sport or 'retirement' is really a semantic. This morning, Nabiyeva is posting videos of herself doing a fabulous double pike somi on the Tumble Trak. It is 8 months since she last tumbled and she said herself last summer that she would decide whether to try for the Games based on her performance at the Russia Cup.
Despite the poor etiquette of Valentina's announcement, in what other country would these gymnasts not be assumed at least semi-retired? Apart from respect for the girls' feelings I don't see the problem with this. There is no obligation for anyone to make such announcements except for fans' obsessive concern over such matters and it is a moot point as to whether saying a gymnast has or has not retired bears any relationship to what the gymnast does in future. Many gymnasts, Russian, American, British have made comebacks. Unlike in the US, in Russia there is no collegiate system whereby the girls can 'step down' whilst still enjoying the training and teamwork that they obviously enjoy on the national team - and continue to enjoy in their local teams.
Please can we stop this hating of the Rodionenkos? They have a difficult job and we are in no position to judge. Valentina is an outspoken lady who hasn't yet learned that it's a good idea to modulate what she says when speaking to journalists. Other national teams have publicists and administrators to support them in managing press queries. No doubt Starodubtsev telephoned Valentina, probably at home in the evening. Can't imagine Marta in the same position. The journalist might even have embellished what Valentina said, or added something he had overheard - it wouldn't be the first time.
In the meantime, let's not miss the main points. 1. Regardless of whether Valentina, Andrei or God says these gymnasts are retired, they clearly are not training with the national team at present. 2. The Rodionenkos are powerful enough to reinstate a coach to a more senior role than he held before, two years after he was dismissed summarily because his gymnast performed below expectation at the last Games and 3. The girls now have a new tumbling coach and, if you read the earlier post, they have formalised the role of a specialist vaulting coach. Point 3 addresses a distinct weakness in Russian women's gymnastics and let's hope it means that the Russians can compete more strongly in future. A good decision from the Rodionenkos and let's hope it pays off.
By the way I don't believe that fans 'take against' Russia at all, whether or not it's because they don't like the Rodionenkos. How arrogant to think that we can judge the work of these highly qualified and experienced coaches? If you want a judgement, read Alexandrov's interview. I personally believe that there is an incredibly small number of young American girls who have little to do except post clever-sounding posts on forums and blogs. The rest of us are, as Natalia Yurchenko said in her interview, captivated by the dramatic Russians, despite their flaws and failures.
I personally very much wish all the team the very best preparations for the Games, and a good competition in Rio - and the coaches - including the Rodionenkos. If you like gymnastics, you should respect the Russians.
It's my respect for the girls feelings that make me angry though! I don't care if what Valentina says is technically still correct. How is it harder to say 'I don't know their position in the sport but they are not training with the national team' as opposed to stating presumptions as fact? Like my mom always scolded, if you don't know something say you dont know. Don't lie or say what you think the person wants to hear. There are those of us who are still fans of these gymnasts and depend on any news coming from a head coach to be relevant.
DeleteI saw somewhere Rodionova has recently competed again since announcing her retirement. Is she planning a comeback? She was never going to factor into Rio was she?
ReplyDeleteComment from R - I think she is competing but at national level only. I am not sure she is intending to make a return to international competition. The clips of some of her competitions late last year were lovely, featuring some of the work she used to do (eg the BHS-arabian combination on beam).
ReplyDelete