Skip to main content

‘Only Belyavski is ready’ - Russian team injury news

As the Russian Championships approach, it seems that almost every leading gymnast is experiencing injury problems or a lack of preparedness for competition - with the exception of David Belyavski, 32, captain of the MAG team - he is always ready, says the head coach.

WAG injury list

Angelina Melnikova is experiencing low energy, blaming poor nutrition; there is very little protein available at the National Training centre, she says.  Boiled vegetables are the main offering.  She has Achilles pain and is finding it difficult to make her landings and to get through four routines.  Angelina is missing her personal coach from Voronezh, Natalia Ishkova, who isn’t allowed to come to camp with Angelina as she can’t coach bars.  Angelina says that they are in touch daily, and that her coach is always very supportive and encouraging.

Viktoria Listunova has back pain and won’t compete her full difficulty.

Vladislava Urazova blew her knee last week, and has had surgery on her tendons.  She will be out for six months.  

Both Diana Kustova and Alena Glotova have had pneumonia, and cannot compete.

Of the ‘others’, head coach Valentina Rodionenko mentioned Ludmilla Roschina and Zlata Osokina as being on form; she points out that they both lack experience.

MAG injury list

Daniil Marinov has experienced severe pain throughout training  and is taking treatment to his neck, back and shoulders.  He says all he can think of is getting to the competition.

Denis Ablyazin is still recovering from shoulder surgery and will not compete his full difficulty.  

Nikita Nagorny says he is unprepared for this Championships but will do his best.  He is currently in Sirius and training in the competition arena.  Sirius is located in Krasnodar in the south of Russia.  The complex was built at Putin’s and the Russian state’s commission, they say to celebrate youth and the environment.  

Nagorny has been busy attending first the Future Games in Kazan and now a Festival of Youth in Sirius, both times in close company with President Putin.  He spends a lot of time with his family and doesn’t seem to train much.  He says he could retire at any time in the next ten years, and will tell us when he has made his decision.  

It’s difficult to know how Artur Dalaloyan is faring; he does train but spends most of his quality time with his family.  Dalaloyan, like Belyavski, is very private.

David Belyavski is said, as ever, to be ready for competition.

I’ve heard nothing so far of the remaining national team members.  It’s hard to know the true extent of injuries and difficulties that the gymnasts are facing but it must be difficult to maintain full focus and concentration when they can’t compete at the Olympic Games.  If nutrition is poor at the national training centre, it doesn’t bode well for the health of the gymnasts.  

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Svetlana Boginskaya: I was always a bitch* in gymnastics

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,...

Natalia Yurchenko - an exclusive interview

Natalia wins gold at the World Championships in Budapest, 1983 1983 World Champion Natalia Yurchenko speaks directly to readers of RRG in this exclusive interview.    Early years: In the summer of 1976, at the age of 11, I was accepted to a sports boarding school in Rostov-on-Don. I remember it was a 4-level building with the cafeteria on the first floor, academic classrooms on the second floor, rooms for girls on the third floor and rooms for boys on the fourth floor. There was one TV on the ground floor and the kids who stayed at school over the summer (about 20-30 kids), were able to watch the Olympics. Nadia Comaneci’s outstanding performance made us feel jealous because usually the Soviets were the unbeatable favorites. We did feel some relief with amazing performances from Nellie Kim and Ludmilla Tourischeva. Besides Ludmilla, there was a gymnast from Rostov-on-Don, Svetlana Grozdova! And, we were really thrilled to see the very little and cute Maria Fi...

RRG Archive - scroll by date, from 2024 to 2010

Show more