Rewriting Russian Gymnastics

Daria Spiridonova will compete at her first World Championships this autumn.  Picture : RGF Natalia Kalugina has confirmed the Russian team for Nanning : Aliya Mustafina, Maria Kharenkova, Tatiana Nabieva,Ekaterina Kramarenko, Alla Sosnitskaya, Daria Spiridonova.  Reserve : Polina Fyodorova Here is a paraphrased translation of a comment by Natalia Kalugina on her Facebook page : 'Aliya has confidence in competition and she is, kind of, a coach to this team.  In Europe she succeeded in this role and she has told the coaches that she even liked it. The main fighting force will be Kharenkova, Sosnitskaya and Spiridonova.  Accordingly, the strongest apparatus will be beam (Marina Bulashenko With God!).  The Chinese women, of course, have been known to win that apparatus, but if one falls, they all fall.   Alla Sosnitskaya could compete in the vault final, and - in theory - on the floor. On bars, of course, Russia will probably lose to the Chinese women, but the...

Yay!  First news available now of the BBC TV coverage of the Nanning Championships.  Starting on Tuesday 7th October at 3.00 pm until 5.15 pm BST, BBC2 will be covering the men's team final.  Gymnastics will be covered at the same time every day of that week.  Still waiting to hear what the weekend schedule will be.  Given the time difference between Nanning and London it looks as though this is delayed live coverage of the events.  If there is further news about live red button coverage I will update this page.   Further live coverage of event finals has now been confirmed :  BBC1 on Saturday 11th October, 2.20 to 3.50pm BBC2 on Sunday 12th October, 4.00 to 5.30pm Red button coverage begins at 12pm on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, and 12.35 on Friday.  Saturday and Sunday times yet to be published. In the United States,  USAGymWorlds.com  also has live streaming of podium training and qualifications. This coverage is exclus...

The four men and four women who Andrei Rodionenko says are 'guaranteed' selection to Russia's Worlds team.  The final full selection will be made before the team travels to Nanning on 27th September.  Pictures courtesy of the RGF. Key points summary of an interview between Maria Vorobyeva of R Sport, and Russia's Head Coach Andrei Rodionenko, dated 11 September 2014.  Link to Russian language - http://m.rsport.ru/interview/20140911/771553414.html Upon completion of the Russia Cup in late August, the Russian national team coaching staff announced a list of eight athletes - four men and four women - guaranteed participation in the World Championships. Aliya Mustafina, Maria Kharenkova, Daria Spiridinova and Ekaterina Kramarenko; Nikita Ignatyev, David Belyavski, Nikolai Kuksenkov and Denis Ablyazin.   At the World Championships 2013 Alexander Balandin won a silver on rings, and Mustafina won the balance beam and took two bronzes - in the all-around...