Rewriting Russian Gymnastics

  Croatia has denied visas to nine members of the Russian national gymnastics delegation. Croatia says the applications were refused because insufficient information was provided about the purpose of travel for those nine individuals. Russia disputes this explanation, arguing that more than 60 other gymnasts, coaches and officials received visas after submitting applications containing the same information. Significantly, three of the gymnasts denied visas — Angelina Melnikova, Anna Kalmykova and Viktoria Listunova — could reasonably have been expected to contend for medals in Zagreb. This has inevitably led to allegations that the visa refusals were intended to weaken Russia’s team. At full strength, Russia’s women’s team would have been among the strongest — and quite possibly the strongest — competing at these European Championships. However, there is currently no evidence establishing that the refusals were deliberately designed to influence the sporting outcome. The impor...

 Visa Delays Leave Russia’s European Championship Plans in Doubt Russia will probably be unable to field full-strength teams at next week’s European Gymnastics Championships, according to the Russian Gymnastics Federation (RGF). Croatia has still not issued visas to most of Russia’s leading gymnasts, coaches and medical staff due to attend the championships. The applications were submitted several weeks ago; Angelina Melnikova even delivered hers in person. The team is booked to travel tomorrow and faces a seven-hour journey, including a connecting flight. With so little time remaining, Russia is unlikely to be able to send its strongest teams to Zagreb. As the European Championships are an important qualifying event, this could seriously disrupt the federation’s plans. The RGF regards the delay as a deliberate obstruction. Without several of its leading gymnasts, Russia’s chances of finishing first in the team competition—and thereby qualifying a full team for the World Championsh...

  Part 2 – Women’s Uneven Bars: Difficulty Makes the Difference Uneven bars produced some of the highest technical standards of the 2026 Russian Championships. The event featured the championship’s highest D scores in the women’s competition and rewarded gymnasts capable of combining complex release sequences and transitions with clean execution. Although several routines were closely matched for execution, difficulty ultimately proved decisive in separating the medal winners.   The Podium Medal Gymnast Region Score 🥇 Gold Lyudmila Arkadyevna Roshchina Krasnodar Krai 14.633 🥈 Silver Anna Dmitriyevna Kalmykova Moscow 14.300 🥉 Bronze Leila Dmitriyevna Vasilyeva Vladimir Region 14.266 Highest Difficulty Scores Rank Gymnast Region Best D 1 Lyudmila Arkadyevna Roshchina Krasnodar Krai 6.5 2 Anna Dmitriyevna Kalmykova Moscow 6.4 2= Viktoria Viktorovna Listunova Mo...