Iāve questioned myself time and again about gymnastics, ever since the āMe Tooā messages began appearing on my Twitter feed. Are we, fans, culpable of supporting a sport which is inherently brutal? Have we elevated our sport because of the brutality involved in making it to the top? What is it about gymnastics that has somehow led to the tacit acceptance of abuse as a way of life? Only a few years ago Dominique Moceanu published her book, calling out her parents and her coaches, the Karolyis, as abusive. Did we stop and listen? No. We labelled Dominique an āattention seekerā. And what about āLittle Girls in Pretty Boxesā? Did we rush to support the injured parties? Insist on a sports-wide review of coaching practice? No. There was a media storm and lots of huffs and puffs, but we never got round to blowing the house down. At the end of the day, werenāt we mesmerised by the promise of gold? Ab...
Reporting and analysing Russian gymnastics since 2010. Includes original and exclusive interviews with leading coaches and gymnasts, and historical issues dating back to the Soviet Union. The first blog to report extensively on the sport using Russian language sources.