Rewriting Russian Gymnastics

The videos you have been able to see in the previous posts come from a Youtube channel entitled Fizicultura . In addition to the videos embedded on the pages of this blog, you can find the following; they are a fascinating document of the Soviet Union's training regime and show familiar gymnasts in a relatively unfamiliar role. Basic women's gymnastics, 1990 Featuring Svetlana Baitova, Svetlana Kozlova, Irina Viatinina, Elena Abrashitova, Tatiana Gutsu, Oksana Chusovitina, Tatiana Lyssenko, Tatiana Ignatova and Tatiana Toropova. Men's all around, compulsory programme, 1989 Video features Valeri Belenkyi, Dmitri Vorobaev, Valentin Mogilnyi Consultant video editors, Nikolai Andrianov and Alexander Alexandrov Compulsory programme (men) for the 1980 Olympic Games  Compulsory programme for Candidate Master of Sport, (women and men) 1981 Features Tatiana Frolova, Elena Polevaya, Tatiana Arzhannikova, Pavel Sut, Vladimir Artemov, Stanislav Sitnik, Artur Ako...

Albert at the All Around Forum posted a link to these two videos, produced by Soviet sports committee Goskomsport in 1990. This was at the very cusp of the breakdown of the Soviet Union and represents perhaps a final record of their sporting educational legacy. Top gymnasts demonstrate basic skills, and we are reminded why the Soviet Union is considered to be a leader in technical excellence twenty years after its last appearance at major competition. The videos are punctuated by character shots of major national championships, and some performances of the then current (1989) USSR All Around Champion Natalia Laschenova, whose complex skills such as the full twisting double somersault dismount from beam appear both powerful and faultless (the take up and twist in the first somersault is almost in the straight position - I think this is the best I have seen the skill performed). The Youtube videos are annotated with the names of the gymnasts appearing, but for the sake of keeping the...