Rewriting Russian Gymnastics

Key points of an interview with head coach Andrei Rodionenko yesterday from Allsport  http://www.allsportinfo.ru/index.php?id=82853 'Mustafina can do everything!' -  Aliya is at about 50 per cent, but she is needed as the backbone of the team.  Not to worry, at Europeans she will perform exactly as she needs to. - She is feeling pain in her ankle, but 'Aliya is somebody who does what is necessary when it is needed'.  Injuries are inherent in gymnastics - Aliya has problems, but they are coping well.  'Knowing her character , I can say that everything will be fine.' - The team needs her on vault, but not on the floor at the moment - to avoid stressing the ankle.  She'll go back to the floor when the ankle is better.  He praises her floor work as a balance between acrobatics, and artistry. - Aliya has changed and matured since the Olympics - they trust her.  Late last year, Aliya had said that she wanted to retire; she was tired and couldn't do it a...

Courtesy of Aliya's group on VK.com Today the Russian team opens its doors to the press for an open training day.  We will all be looking out for coverage and will post links as soon as available. Viktoria Komova has personally posted some news of her recovery on VK.  I can't quite get the technical medical translation of her operation so won't even attempt it here, but some work has been done on the ankle ligaments (elsewhere this is confirmed as a third operation on the same ankle). After six weeks, assuming all has gone to plan with her recovery, she will be able to resume training. The teams have now been announced officially and there are no further changes from the teams originally announced other than Rodionova's replacement of the unfortunate Kramarenko (see earlier blogs).  Thanks to Dolly-Z on Tumblr who posted this brief summary of some news from R-Sport.  Please note this will not be final at this stage!  Working orders aren't final until the gymnast...

Thanks to Vera Nikitina who posted this picture on Ksenia Afanasyeva's VK.com group Just a brief list of all the ups and downs of the past few days.  My main wish now is that all the Russian gymnasts take time to recover fully and come back to competition only when they are ready, at full physical and psychological strength.   Ksenia Afanasyeva has just (Friday) had an operation on her leg (nothing more specific, not sure if it is a re-injury) that she injured on vault in team final at Russian nationals.  She will stay in Munich for a further two weeks, and have to remain on crutches for six weeks.  'It's not easy', she says.  Thanks to Olya Terentyeva for the information. I thank Radio Moscow Echo journalist and gymnastics specialist Natalia Kalugina for the following updates from Round Lake : Ekaterina Kramarenko is very ill and in hospital; on a drip :-(  She will be replaced by Anna Rodionova in Sofia.  Anna is looking beautiful on beam, but st...

Summary of a Sports Express interview with Andrei Rodionenko, by Aleksandra Vladimirova Russia's head gymnastics coach Andrei Rodionenko tells "Sports Express" who will represent Russia at the European Championships in Bulgaria and why  most of the leaders of the women's team will  not be able to perform  at this tournament (which will be held in Sofia from 12 to 18 May). - Andrei Fedorovich, is it true that silver medallist  of the London Games, Viktoria Komova, is still listed among the injured gymnasts? - This is true, but I would add that this relates to the ankle joint, which has been an issue for some time.  Vika has been treated, recovered, operated, but maybe the last treatment was not entirely successful.  Perhaps the fact is that Viktoria is still going through puberty, and therefore everything that is connected with joints is extremely problematic. Now we will have a deeper examination, a final diagnosis. - Where will the inves...

Veteran Ekaterina Kramarenko will replace Viktoria Komova in Sofia next month Youth Olympic Champion, World and Olympic medallist Viktoria Komova has today personally confirmed that she will miss her much anticipated return to international competition.  Speaking on the Russian gymnastics site at VK.com, Komova says that she sprained her foot in training right after Russian Championships and will travel to Munich at the end of April for an operation.  No other information is available at this time. This is rather troubling news for the Russian team who are already digging deep into their reserves to field a team at this spring's European Championships, following injuries to their stars Ksenia Afanasyeva and Anastasia Grishina, and the retirement of Olympic reserve Tatiana Nabiyeva.  Russia, like Romania, is currently reliant on a team of veteran gymnasts from the London 2012 Olympics and before, and the consequences of the current injury rate is that it increasingly canno...

Viktoria Komova performs on bars in the team event earlier this week An announcement, made by Valentina Rodionenko earlier: Mustafina, Komova, Sosnitskaya, Spiridonova and Kharenkova will perform at the European Championships in artistic gymnastics.   According to the results of the Russian Championships in Penza, a decision has been made as to who will compete May 12-18 in Sofia (Bulgaria). "As a result of the Russian championship, we finally decided on the composition of the national team at the European Championships" - said Valentina Rodionenko.   "We decided not to ask Ksenia Afanasyeva to perform there.   In addition, Anastasia Grishina has an injury - a suspected partial cruciate ligament rupture. The rest are available to compete."  "At the European Championships the athletes who compete will have proven themselves in the championships of Russia.   Aliya Mustafina is certainly number one.   Viktoria Komova, did not compete on ...