Rewriting Russian Gymnastics

Irina Baraksanova on her best piece, beam, in 1985.  Photocredit : Tom Theobald The gymnasts you will see in the following videos are all astonishingly athletic and powerful.  They are innovative.  They aren't performing on the most up to date sprung floors, and they don't have to rely on muscle to perform their difficult acrobatics.  They have outstanding line and choreography (in the fullest sense of the word).  They are individuals, each performing routines with a unique style. Their work goes beyond difficulty + execution, embracing the principles of risk, originality and virtuosity. They don't rely on rushing from skill to skill to blind the judges to the odd unbalanced landing, imperfections in their technique, or ragged performance. They haven't picked their skills from a catalogue of moves (the Code) or assembled requisite combinations so as to maximise their D value.     What they do is pretty impressive, ahead of its time.  The...