Valentina Rodionenko has reported that Aliya Mustafina yesterday said she would take a two year break, then begin to train again for the Tokyo Olympics.
I'm unsure what to make of this ... I can see Aliya of all people being the one who pulls this off, but it seems quite a bit too soon for her to make such a decision with any certainty, and of course only today Aliya was telling journalists 'let my dreams stay with me'. Aliya is a young woman and all sorts of adventures are ahead of her. Not sure what authority Rodionenko had to make such a far reaching announcement on behalf of another. Let's wait and see.
http://tass.ru/sport/3537359
Why does Valentina always have to take the spotlight away from "the moment" Let Aliya be Aliya. I am pretty sure at 22 she knows what she wants in life and I am sure it came as a shock to the Rods that their prize gymnast still confides her beloved former coach Alexandrov about her career.
ReplyDeleteLets say Angelina Melnikova was winning the medals Aliyah is, would she be saying Milnikova is going to train up until 2024? Give it a rest Rodinarsehole, she just defended her UB Gold, let the girl ENJOY it.
I guess it's better than her typical practice of retiring gymnasts without consulting with or informing them of it. Haha.
ReplyDeleteI guess it's better than her typical practice of retiring gymnasts without consulting with or informing them of it. Haha.
ReplyDeleteI agree it is bad when Valentina tries to take spotlight away from a gymnast.
ReplyDeleteAliya can make her own decisions and she deserves all of the credit.
Shame on Valentina.
Todd
I doubt she will and she definitely hasn't made any decisions so you know Valentina is just talking as usual. Aliya is tired, she has said so many times. Can't they just let her enjoy her medals without trying to make declarations?
ReplyDeleteI hope you soon give us the news that Valentina is officialy out, she is just poison.
ReplyDeleteValentina and Andrei Rodionenko head a gymnastics program which has just acheived a remarkable feat. They have won a Olympic team silver medal, together with a vault silver and UB gold and have done so despite losses to injury and strong opposition. They had only two athletes with Olympic experience and a group of highly skilled teenagers. And together, this program has done incedibly well in Rio.
ReplyDeleteThe whole program, from top to bottom, including Valentina, Andrei, Evgenny Grebenkin, their trainers, medical staff, choreographers and the athletes themselves deserve our praise and respect.
Dave, no. Just no. The injuries and the lack of depth is the Rodios fault. The Russians can't do floors anymore. The goal for Russia should be team and AA gold like it was back in the soviet union but now only one gold by a gymnast that was trained by the man who was fired by the Rodios is the Russian consolation for its thirst of gold.
DeleteNow, let's hope Grebenkin doesn't get fired as well.
Serguei Starkin has supported Grebionkin and gave him credit for Mustafina's medals in London and in Rio.I don't think he is responsible for the amount of injuries or the lack of depth.
DeleteReapeting....Dave, no. The medals came because Mustafina's and Paseka's experiente. The lack of deapth and injuries are Rodienkos fault. There is no more Russian floor. The only Gold medal came from Aliya's Who was trainned by Alexandrov. The man Who was fired by the Rodienkos. The Silver medal came from Paseka Who trainned by Alexandrov's coach. The team was not able to try the Gold medal as London, when the russian team had Alexandrov was Head coach. In Rio, the gold medal to the team was impossible. The team don't have good difficult and execution as the team in London had. Aliya coulfn't defat her bronze medal on floor. She had só many injuries and só many pain. How many times she'd carried on the russian team when she had must rest and recovery hetself? The Gold medal in AA was impossible. And If Simone Biles doesn't existe, another American would Win. There was no fight for Gold in AA or for the team. The MAG results, for me, are Alfonsov and V. Starkin and S. Starkin work. I hope Rods are gone for good. PS: Sorry for English mistakes.
DeleteAnd Aliya must rest and recover hetself before. WillValentina try to protect her job on Alexandrov's work till death?
DeleteThank you. You said it better than me.
DeleteFirstly, Alexander Alexandrov was not Andrei Rodionenko's employee, he was employed by the Russian Gymnastics Federation and was released by them as the Federation saw a conflict of interest in Alexandrov being the head coach of the national team and Aliya Mustafina's personal coach at the same time. A head coach cannot be a personal coach of a national team member as this leads to bias in team selection. I don't believe any country would allow that.
DeleteThe injury list is caused by the Code of Points and the 'stick' rule. China, Russia, Romania, Australia, all Olympic programs wrecked by injury. How many athletes did not make the Games due to injury? The list is a long one. The Rodionenkos are not responsible for that. All this current CoP has brought about is a gigantic medical bill and absolute domination by the US. That would have happened no matter who was in charge at Round Lake.
Russia cannot do floor? Well, apart from the Americans, who can? Nobody. The second best floor team right now is Japan. There are a very few genuine medal contenders on floor.
There was no fight for AA gold by anybody except the US. China and Russia were two of the youngest teams at the Games. Romania didn't qualify a team but if they had, it would have been very young too. Most of the experienced athletes from these countries didn't make it to Rio. Great Britain struggled throughout the competition. Germany, Brazil, Italy too. Netherlands did remarkably well in EF's but they were never in the AA hunt. Nobody was except Aliya and Shang Chunsong. Giulia Steingruber struggled. Wang Yan was magnificent but she is young and inexperienced. Mao Yi, Seda Tutkhalyan and Angelina Melnikova too. In two years, hopefully, these girls will challenge the US but right now, nobody can and you cannot blame the Rodionenkos for that.
As for the lack of depth in Russia, that is a worldwide problem (the US excepted, of course). China, Romania, Great Britain, all struggling to fill their teams. Australia just closed it's most successful gymnastics training program in Western Australia.
This sport is in real trouble but as long as the American dollars keep rolling in the FIG and Nelli Kim and her Technical Committee will keep it this way. The scoring system is a joke but the people in charge don't care. To them a little controversy is a good thing. It brings media attention. And a hundred injured athletes? What do they matter? Clearly, they don't matter. No other sport would accept an injury list like gymnastics has. What sport would allow four gold medals in an event? Only women's gymnastics...
Idiocy and greed govern this sport.
Dave, would you be able to facilitate an interview for me with Andrei Rodionenko?
DeleteDave, I'm gonna guess you are one of the Rodios or personal friend or family member of theirs lol
Delete"Firstly, Alexander Alexandrov was not Andrei Rodionenko's employee, he was employed by the Russian Gymnastics Federation and was released by them..."
If I'm correct this is incorrect. The federation wanted him and he left after he was jumped by the rest of the coaches and Rodios who put the blame for their own failure on him.
"A head coach cannot be a personal coach of a national team member as this leads to bias in team selection. I don't believe any country would allow that."
Incorrect, the team selection wasn't the issue. They were arguing that he pay more attention to her than the rest of the team. He argue if that was an issue then someone else should have become her coach but she was technically left alone so he took her. If we want to talk about team selection then we should talk about the whole Grishina mess which was the Rodios fault.
"The injury list is caused by the Code of Points and the 'stick' rule."
True, however the Russians are getting injured way too much and not healing good enough compare to other countries. Also, another solution is replacements that can be done to share the load of competitions. That gets us back to depth.
"The Rodionenkos are not responsible for that..."
So how is the USA immune to this issues and while Russia shouldn't do exactly the same why aren't they doing something to compete with their level?
"Russia cannot do floor? Well, apart from the Americans, who can? Nobody."
Nobody cares about the rest of the world. I don't. I care for what Russia is doing to beat them. This "everyone else can't too" is dodging the blame and responsibility those two idiots have.
"Wang Yan was magnificent but she is young and inexperienced. Mao Yi, Seda Tutkhalyan and Angelina Melnikova too."
That's not an excuse. Seda already had experience in big competitions as junior and senior. Biles went to win at her first senior meet and other Americans have done that too just like Russia once did.
"nobody can and you cannot blame the Rodionenkos for that." Yes, we can and I believe I just did.
"As for the lack of depth in Russia, that is a worldwide problem (the US excepted, of course)."
Again, the world doesn't matter here. It is what Russia will do to fix this problem.
"This sport is in real trouble but as long as the American dollars keep rolling in the FIG and Nelli Kim and her Technical Committee will keep it this way."
We can accuse the Americans of buying the FIG and implementing this code but at the end of the day the Americans aren't responsible for Russia and the rest falling on their asses. On the beam final we saw that execution and also competing under the same code without big acrobatic skills can win medals but Russia couldn't stay on that beam to qualify and win that gold. Is it the USA's fault that Russia didn't have a better plan? That Seda's leaps are worse than the leaps the Americans have done? That Paseka should have tried a different vault than the Cheng? And Daria couldn't hit at finals after winning at worlds?
"The scoring system is a joke but the people in charge don't care... Idiocy and greed govern this sport."
Yes, but what makes you think the Rodios are somehow excluded from idiocy and greed. It wasn't only Alexandrov who left. Many have and they don't have good things to say about them, the federation who has them in charge and of course the government and how things are done in Russia.
We can add a lot of things to this issue but at the end of the day what have the Rodios done to make things better at least in Round Lake? The two of them especially Valentina could keep their mouths shut instead of saying stupid things, but they can't even do that.
"The injury list is caused by the Code of Points and the 'stick' rule." Yes, maybe. BUT, remeber that you don't need to follow it. Biles won Gold on Vault and Floor, with a great difference. Without stuck her landing, I'm pretty sure that her coach says that she doesn't need to stuck the landing, but needs to have a great form in the air. Not even in the Nationals the American had the "stick bonus", because they doesn't need it and that's why they didn't have a lot of gymnasts injured this year. And Russian Gymnastics has some examples to follow for all the team, like Afanasyeva's Floor and Wevers' Beam. They used the code in their favor
Delete"...And Russian Gymnastics has some examples to follow for all the team, like Afanasyeva's Floor and Wevers' Beam"
DeleteWevers is a gymnast for the Nederlands. I assume you know that (she did win the Gold after all). I was just lost in the point you were trying to make.
Maybe Aliya will go to Tokyo as a competitor, maybe she won't. But for now, we can rejoice the two time consecutive Olympic Uneven Bars champion.
ReplyDeleteAnd consecutive Bronze AA medalist.
DeleteI take anything said by Rodionenkos with a grain of salt. That being said, with the different rules for Tokyo, if Aliya's body can recover and heal while she takes time off, I think she could very realistically go in a specialist spot for ub. Beam was never her best event (2013 ef being a big exception), but if she focused on ub and beam, and didn't do vault or floor, I think she might even be able to challenge there. If she does make a full comeback, I truly hope it isn't at the expense of her body or health. She's young, and while she would be old for a gymnast in Tokyo, she wouldn't even be middle age. She'll need her body for awhile still.
ReplyDeleteEarth to Valentina: Go AWAY!!! There will be NO Russian Gold medal with Valentina Rodionenko. In fact, Aliya Mustafina or Svetlana Khorkina (or Zamo) should take over managing the women's team after this (Or Alexandrov, or Starkin)...Anyone but the Rodionenkos. Also, this is the LAST time I hope to ever hear of any more unofficial announcements from this woman. So sick and tired or her. Please take Marta Karolyi's retirement as a hint to leave the Russian federation alone.
ReplyDeleteAliya Mustafina has stated in several interviews that after Rio she will be taking a break from competitive gymnastics at the international level to complete her Degree. Valentina Rodionenko was asked in an interview whether Aliya had confided in her about her future plans (since Aliya's Rio campaign was now over) and she repeated what Aliya has already said. Aliya will make the decision after completing her studies as to whether she can contribute competitively to Russia's medal chances in Tokyo based on her own fitness and the strength of Team Russia. This is not a quote, this is my interpretation of their interviews.
ReplyDeleteThis is an emotive sport. It involves National pride, a century of history, artistry and power, athletes of all ages and from many countries. It also involves politics, egos, crippled kids and a scoring system other sports laugh at. Few of us are truly happy with Artistic Gymnastics in it's current form, even some Americans. It is easy for us to vent on those at the top and blame them for the woes in this sport but let's keep it civil, shall we? And remember, we the viewing public made this sport what it is. We all bear responsibility for the ills in gymnastics.