Rewriting Russian Gymnastics

Interview with Andrei Rodionenko Translation by Liubov Baladzhaeva The interview was recorded after CAS decision, but before IOC decision, when the team was still in Russia. Rodionenko is not happy with how much power WADA currently has and he thinks that it should be reformed and limited in its power over athletes. He thinks that the current doping scandal is a misunderstanding. There were some doping issues with Russia, but the reaction of the international sport community to these issues was exaggerated. Russia is not the only country that had issues with doping, there were athletes caught in USA, Kenya and many other countries. He thinks only the athletes who were caught doping should be punished, he opposes a blanket ban. Russian athletes were denied the presumption of innocence and that is not OK. He says that the Russian lawyers and representatives who went to the CAS hearing weren’t really heard, no one cared what they had to say, everything was already decided before ...

Head coach Valery Alfosov has unreservedly supported Russian AA champion Nikolai Kuksenkov, naming him to a group of ten gymnasts eligible for participation in Rio even though the gymnast's selection for international competition is currently impossible due to a positive drugs test. The RGF is employing Swiss lawyers to defend Kuksenkov's 'honour and innocence'.  Russian gymnasts stopped taking meldonium last August 2015 although the drug is known for remaining in the system for long periods of time.  Other gymnasts have shown traces of the drug in their samples, but Kuksenkov's was 'scanty' but minimally over the limit.  No Russian gymnast should have this problem, says Alfosov. (Rodionenko earlier pointed out that gymnasts only take those supplements and medications given to them by the team doctor; they are not even permitted to buy over the counter cold medications or to self medicate at all). Alfosov said that five gymnasts would travel to Rio, and two ...

Initial reports coming out of Russia suggest that Kuksenkov's absence from today's event finals at Russian nationals were the result of his withdrawal on the basis of a positive drugs test taken on 15th March. Valentina Rodionenko says the test showed a 'minimal' measure and stresses that gymnasts stopped taking Mildronate last August.  Investigations are taking place to understand how long the substance can remain the bloodstream after withdrawal. This is obviously disappointing for the gymnast, coaches and the wider team.  We wait to hear more and to consider the implications. Source -  http://www.allsportinfo.ru/index.php?id=102904 Update 3/4 - WADA conducting research into the rate of excretion of meldonium.  Decisions about athletes' guilt are pending.  http://www.sports.ru/biathlon/1038710792.html

Russia's leading male all around gymnast, David Belyavski, with head coach Andrei Rodionenko As the first big competition of the year approaches for Russia's male gymnasts - the national championships in Penza, which begin in just three days' time - Irina Stepantseva of MK.ru has focussed on the team's preparation, with a visit to Round Lake.  There she interviewed many of the gymnasts, and head coach Andrei Rodionenko.  You can view the full piece in Russian here .   The context : As I have said before, Russian sport has been hit hard by all the doping bans, particularly in track and field athletics.  RUSADA, the national anti-doping agency, has been accused of falsifying documentation.  Tennis has taken a hit, with Maria Sharapova testing positive for the controversial drug Meledonium, and now swimming appears to be being targeted.  I think we can probably expect that all Russian sport will be under the microscope for months to come.  It'...

More than forty Russian athletes across ten different sports have tested positive for the recently banned drug meledonium, but Valentina Rodionenko has firmly pointed out that Russian gymnasts do not have a problem. Doctors closely monitor the gymnasts' diet and intake and in the sport of gymnastics they have to be especially careful as even a small change in what the gymnasts consume can affect balance, eg on the beam.  Valentina says that the doctors were aware of the change to the list of banned substances, and no problems are anticipated. Source -  http://m.rsport.ru/artist_gym/20160317/905190441.html