Skip to main content

Provisional Russian team for Glasgow - Mustafina will now prepare, says Valentina Rodionenko

Image
By
Aliya Mustafina - competitive status has been veiled in mystery.  Photograph is by leading Russian photographer, Sergei Bermeniev


The mist surrounding Aliya Mustafina's official competitive status lifted just a little this afternoon as head coach Valentina Rodionenko first announced one set of names for the forthcoming World Championships, then added another to the roster.  'Yesterday, Mustafina decided to clench her teeth and prepare for Worlds, despite her back pain.  We know her condition and cannot force her to train ... We will take seven gymnasts to Glasgow', said Rodionenko.  Later, Andrei Rodionenko added that ten gymnasts will join a training camp tomorrow at Round Lake to prepare for Worlds - and participate in final selection.  Names are given below.

We will have to look for Mustafina's own words to provide the definitive account of her miraculous return, and of course the only team that will matter is the team that marches out into the arena in October!  But if Aliya eventually says she will be ready ... she will be ready.  We don't know the context and the perameters, let alone the background to all this, but if it turns out to be true, the big questions will be -

-  Will Aliya compete all around?

-  How will her selection sway the chances of other gymnasts on the team?

-  How will her presence impact the results of the team as a whole?  We know of her as a fantastic team captain who can be a stabilising and inspirational influence on the gymnasts.

-  How ready will she be to face the strong competition from overseas, in particular the gymnasts from the USA, Romania and China?

-  Has Mustafina's position been one of indecision, defiance, self protection - or part of a wily master plan devised by the national coaches to secure a seventh berth for the team?   It could simply be a matter of a painful back - but we all want to know more than it is probably our business to know.  It's only human nature to ask : what on earth is this all about?  

One thing is for sure - Mustafina's charismatic presence in gymnastics is strongly missed, not just in Russian gymnastics, but internationally.  We need Aliya, not just for the soft performance quality of the hyper difficult gymnastics she brings to the stage ... Not just for the fantastically creative way she and her personal coaches and choreographer find to maximise the codified value of her routines ... But also for the enigmatic charm and powerful aura she transmits.  It is a relief to hear that she intends to participate - as long as she is properly healthy.  We have to trust her to make that decision.  From Valentina's words - 'we cannot force her to train' - it seems that this point has been made.

We can only get behind this amazing personality and give her OUR best support in the only ways we can - imagery, sound, words and lots and lots of cheers on the day.  It really does make a difference - Aliya and Russia needs you as they prepare for the big fight in Rio.

Don't miss Aliya's riposte - this is still a will-she-won't-she situation - 
http://rewritingrussiangymnastics.blogspot.co.uk/2015/09/mustafina-riposte-i-will-decide-if-i.html?m=1
The preliminary teams Valentina Rodionenko announced are - 

WAG - (AA) Tutkhalyan, Spiridonova, Kharenkova (specialists) Komova, Afanasyeva, Paseka.  Valentina added that there would be a seventh athlete to be announced later, perhaps Alla Sosnitskaya or 'maybe a completely different gymnast' - :-))

MAG - (AA) Nikita Ignatyev, Nikolai Kuksenkov, David Belyavski, (specialists) Ablyazin and Nagorny.  The sixth gymnast is still to be decided - Ivan Stretovich is mentioned as being in the mix, but presumably Mattvei Petrov may also have a say - and perhaps rising star Dmitri Lankin.

Andrei Rodionenko's announcement of the training teams - 

WAG - Aliya Mustafina, Viktoria Komova, Ksenia Afanasyeva, Seda Tutkhalyan, Daria Spiridonova, Evgeniya Shelgunova, Maria Paseka, Maria Kharenkova, Anastasia Dmitrieva, Allla Sosnitskaia.

MAG - Denis Ablyazin, David Belyavski, Nikolai Kuksenkov, Nikita Ignatyev, Nikita Nagorny, Ivan Stretovich, Dmitry Lankin, Matvey Petrov, Alex Rostov, Vladislav Polyashov.

Sources - Valentina Rodionenko Aliya Mustafina announcement - https://sport.mail.ru/news/gymnastics/23364765/
Valentina Rodionenko announcement of prelim team - http://tass.ru/sport/2276365
Andrei Rodionenko announcement - http://www.allsportinfo.ru/index.php?id=97647
Andrei Rodionenko's training team list - http://www.allsportinfo.ru/index.php?id=97646


Labels:

Comments

  1. Anonymous20 September 2015 at 19:39

    check out Aliya words about Worlds on today's RSport article

    ReplyDelete
  2. Anonymous20 September 2015 at 19:43

    sorry i forgot the link on todays Rsport articl http://rsport.ru/artist_gym/20150920/864966470.html

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Queen Elizabeth20 September 2015 at 20:13

      Thank you very much - I have added a new post. And now, hopefully, I can get some dinner! :-)

      Delete
  3. Anonymous20 September 2015 at 21:04

    bon appetite :-)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Anonymous25 September 2015 at 20:41

    Off topic, but how gorgeous is that photograph?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Queen Elizabeth25 September 2015 at 21:31

      It's one of a series by the same photographer.
      Aliya is a beautiful young woman. To me, these photos bring out a hidden aspect of her character - the girlish side that still prefers to let her hair down and be herself than to get herself up for the cameras. There is something essentially whimsical about her that these pictures capture and to that extent I think these are better than the Bolshoi Sport shoot, which played up to the idea of her as a super photogenic athlete. Aliya will always be more than a fashion model and not just because she is an Okympic champion. Boguinskaia has the same gritty yet playful allure.

      Delete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Dmitri Andreev - we are building towards long term goals

By
  Dmitri Andreev, Russia’s gymnastics leader now that Andrei Rodionenko has stepped into an advisory capacity, is a long standing national coach and well respected international judge.  Now, as gymnastics in Russia steps forward onto the international arena once more, (via its neutral athletes, coaches and officials), it’s up to Andreev and his team to support and structure the growth and development of gymnastics.   Russia’s first big goal as neutral athletes is to qualify for the Olympics at the October World Championships.  Many of the gymnasts have limited experience on the big stage.  The necessary placements are therefore a big ask - especially emotionally and psychologically.   Here is how Andreev sees things working. 1. Transition Phase: Building Toward Major Goals The Russian team is in a deliberate rebuilding and preparation phase. Early-season competitions like the Russian Cup serve more as evaluation tools than peak performances. The primary o...
1 comment
Read more

Our future is our past - Soviet and Russian propaganda from 1950 to today

By
 As Russian state restrictions on the use of social media and the internet take hold in Russia, we are seeing changes in the way that fans all over the world can access information about gymnastics in Russia.   It is no longer easy for gymnasts to post their opinions, training updates and life events on social media because the State is blocking the use of social media, and even entire mobile internet networks, in certain parts of Russia.  You can read about this more broadly on BBC's Moscow correspondent, Steve Rosenberg's, channel on Youtube. Russia’s attitude to sports is still very much focussed on elite sport, state involvement, and international competition.  Private gyms where anyone can participate are gradually opening, but gymnastics clubs, in the main, are still focussed on elite sport and training to compete at the top level.  We need to go back a few years, to a time when Russia was part of a larger country, the Soviet Union.    E...
2 comments
Read more

Viktoria Komova - back pain has forced me to step down

By
I awoke this morning to a very simple statement from Viktoria Komova, on her vk.com site, which Papa Liukin has translated (via the IG forum): 'Dear friends, fans, and gymnastics lovers. Unfortunately back pain isn't allowing me to train to my full potential and get ready for competitions. I've made the very difficult decision to stop training and take care of my health. I want to thank everyone for their support! Without your love and warmth it would've been more difficult to go all the way. Thanks everyone and see you soon! Love and kisses.' Well, first of all, good wishes and best of luck to Viktoria, who has struggled since 2012 to re-establish herself fully as a competitive gymnast, whose talent was so great that she secured gold on bars at two different World Championships, four years apart, whose career was littered with controversy, who must be allowed to live her life as she wishes.   I know that the 'gymternet' will now be overflowing...
43 comments
Read more

RRG Archive - scroll by date, from 2024 to 2010

Show more