Rewriting Russian Gymnastics

There is a very interesting discussion going on at the IG Forum currently that is full of different taste judgements and perceptions across the generations of gymnastics afficianados.  Some people prefer Boguinskaia, others Kalinina.  Many do not understand how Tatiana Groshkova failed to make a Soviet worlds team, but this was down to sheer unreliability and most seem to agree that she was a genius on the beam and floor.  Perhaps most revealing, however, is a preference for the 1992 model of Roza Galiyeva.  Cultural taste, preference and appreciation is considered to be at least partly influenced by prior experience of or exposure to different art forms.  Thus if your main artistic reference point is a form or forms of popular culture, you will prefer that particular aesthetic and only come to enjoy different types of culture if they are presented in an accessible way taking into account your existing preferences.  In this way an individual's taste can...