Rewriting Russian Gymnastics

I love all of those Soviet era sports documentaries - the moodiness of the black and white photography, the silences, the variations in tone, in light and shade, the mystery of it all.   There haven't been many films to match them since the end of the Soviet era, and I think this latest video short, authored by Denis Mahafrov, is probably the nearest modern-day equivalent.  Do take some time to view it on Youtube if you can - find the link at the bottom of the page. Roman Lebedev, 'Romka', is a junior gymnast who trains in one of the SDYUSHOR sports schools in St Petersburg.  This short (12 minute) documentary shows him both in training and in his everyday life.  He hasn't yet made the Russian youth team - I don't know if he is even old enough to be considered - but he is an astonishingly serious and hard-working young man whose home is decorated with the many cups, medals and diplomas he has earned during his life so far.   There are interviews with his mother,...

Further exploration has uncovered these three Soviet produced films on the gymnastics competitions at the 1980 Moscow Olympics. Men's competition, part 1 There is a running commentary of the exercises featuring Alexander Detiatin, Nikolai Andrianov, Alexander Tkachev, Roland Brueckner, Michael Nikolay, the legendary Zoltan Magyar on the pommels, Danut Grecu, Stojan Delchev (double salto forward with half turn dismount off rings). Men's competition, part 2 Features an early Cuban effort at a handspring double front vault and a slow motion technical analysis of Nikolai Andrianov's Tsukahara vault, Tkachev's winning parallel bars routine including a slow motion section on the piked forward somersault with straddle, Tkachev's 10 scoring high bar routine (beautiful) including slow motion analysis of the Tkachev release element, Kovacs, Delchev, Arroya's one armed work. Dismount elements by Andrianov, Detiatin. Delchev's gold medal winning routine. ...