Rewriting Russian Gymnastics

Matthew Hicks translates this 28th December interview with Aliya Mustafina, from Novaya Gazeta . The last year more than compensated for all that Aliya went through in the year leading up to the Olympics in London – a serious injury, surgery and a long recovery. Not surprisingly, Aliya won Sportswoman of 2012 at a post-Olympic Kremlin-hosted ball. Novaya Gazeta interviewed the champion: NG: Aliya, back in London, responding on the significance of your victory, you spoke that your greatest achievement is yet to come. AM: I’m simply a sportswoman, a normal person. In the real world, I’m a nobody. In gymnastics, yes Olympic Champion, but in everyday life I’m just another person...like in school studies NG: Do you study sports? AM: No, I am at the Gubkin Oil and Gas Institute, in the economics and management department. I’ve always liked exact sciences. At school, physics and mathematics are my favorite subjects. They come easiest to me, probably because I’m...

Alexandr Alexandrov, former Russian national gymnastics coach,  stated that, most probably, he’ll stay in Russia and will train Olympic champion А liya Mustafina further.   The Ministry has asked me to stay, with the same salary I was earning. Some people want me to be in the team, so I rather think I’ll stay in Russia. At some meetings, some people expressed their claims against me. I don’t know if they were right or wrong. Time will tell. I was offered to work abroad, but I told them to wait. I was born in Moscow, I grew up and I spent all my life here. Only if something doesn’t turn right, then... I’m not 15. I went abroad only because I was obliged to, when everything collapsed.  All this concerned Mustafina, as if she was to blame because she didn’t train well in the team. I don’t understand. If someone doesn’t train well, how can this affect the rest? We’re not a football team, where, because of someone, everything can go wrong. Could s...

The organising committee of the London Olympics (LOCOG) has finally published full details of ticketing at the Olympic Games, including how many were eventually sold to the public rather than given away to sponsors and dignitaries , and how many tickets were available in each price category. Despite the fact that the public and press have been baying and begging for this information for most of the past year, LOCOG have chosen to publish their report as quietly as possible, without any accompanying press releases or events, and right upon the cusp of Christmas, at the same time as the UK media is sizzling with news stories left, right and centre.  Almost as though they would like to keep some of the facts as quiet as possible; after all, they have managed to convince us that the Games were an immense success. Which, in the main, I agree with.  I don't want to say goodbye to 2012; the Olympics brought much happy spirit to the city of London and its people, and I don't ...

The Russian Gymnastics Federation has a gallery of Elena Mikhailova's excellent photographs of the Voronin Cup.  You can view a selection of the edited highlights at RRG's Facebook page.  There are some stunning photographs of Anna Dementyeva in particular. All around Voronin Cup champion performing at the Voronin Cup this weekend.  Courtesy RGF

Junior champion on floor, Artur Dalolyan You will find full results at the Russian Gymnastics Federation's website .  Highlights are reproduced below. Junior MAG All Around Miscellaneous all around senior results (place 21 onwards; edited highlights)   Full team results can be found here (junior) and here (senior) . Apparatus finals Junior men Floor Pommel horse   Rings  Vault Vault scores are not available at the moment. Parallel Bars  High Bar Senior men Floor Pommel horse Rings Vault Results not available at present Parallel Bars High Bar  

Fan favourite Anna Dementyeva took three golds in Moscow this December The Russian Gymnastics Federation has now published the full results of this competition which I will  reproduce below (WAG first, MAG in a separate post). I think the most significant outcomes are the junior women where Evgeniya Shelgunova, who turns senior next year, took the gold in the all around and beam.  Maria Kharenkova, who will train with the seniors next year but won't have senior competitive eligibility till 2014, also rounded out the year nicely with a silver in the all around and a the gold medal on floor. It is good to see Dementyeva pick up some gold (gold all around in the senior competition, and gold on bars and beam where she scored 15.6 with an SV of 6.6).  With Anna Pavlova taking silver in the all around and golds on floor and vault, this must have been a pretty competition to watch.  Olympic team members Komova and Mustafina were present and appeared on individual ...

Olympic all around silver medallist Viktoria Komova confirmed her continuing presence in gymnastics today at Moscow Dynamo's Voronin Cup with a strong winning performance leading to four golds - all around, floor, bars and beam. In the junior competition national team member Evgeniya Shelgunova also did well, securing gold medals overall, on vault and on floor, while Maria Bondareva sealed a recent comeback to competition with silver all around and gold on bars and beam. In the men's competition there was strong international rivallry with Russia's Andrei Cherkasov coming out on top in the senior all around and Japan's Takumi Sato taking the junior.  Olympic team member Denis Ablyazin achieved a gold medal on floor but was forced to settle for bronze on vault behind Britain's Kristian Thomas.   The junior men's apparatus saw Japan and Britain sharing the gold, with Frank Baines taking home three gold medals to add to his silver in the all around. Full r...