Rewriting Russian Gymnastics

Nora Schuler has kindly translated part of Bruno Grandi's interview in the most recent issue of Gymnastika.  She reports as follows : 'The most interesting bit is the answer to the last question: "Q: You thanked our coaches for the return of Soviet gymnastics to the top after the European championships. Why is this so important to you? A:For a very simple reason: Russia is the founder of today's technical progress [of the sport]. And the FIG cannot afford to lose these traditions – the technical, didactic and pedagogical principles, which are characteristic of your gymnastics. The Russian gymnastics that we saw at World and European championships in 2010, in particular, from the women, is very beautiful. This is indeed a renaissance. A search for harmony in the unity of the composition (content) of the routine and music. In this sense, Aliya Mustafina (and not only she) showed a return to the values that always belonged to your school. It is mandatory that...

The Russian Gymnastics Federation has published a new issue of its magazine . Every time I look at these, I wish I had stuck at my Russian classes ... as things stand, they are a wonderful visual recorder of Russian successes and histories, but I would love to be able to engage more with the deeper things presented here.  This issue has a stunning picture of Mustafina on the cover, and inside it a gem ... a piece on Bruno Grandi entitled 'Bruno Grandi : Russian gymnastics is very beautiful!'.   It's an interview, so the man speaks for himself.  I'd love to know what it says and if I do manage to get into a Google translation or find a translation anywhere that the author doesn't mind me using, I promise to post the findings here.   You will also find an amazing, Facebook-page-worthy picture of the Russian team, all fitted out in best fashion wear, and serving as the topping for a 2011 calendar. The magazine also includes a feature on Mustafina along w...

FIG President Bruno Grandi has recently published one of his regular addresses to the gymnastics community, a new year’s letter which can be found here . I frequently struggle to follow the logic of much of Grandi’s writing; I think it must be written in the Italian originally, and then suffers from poor translation. I also find many of his ideas distorted and misplaced. Grandi has been President of the FIG since 1996 and I therefore guess that he must have the support of a fairly significant body of gymnastics federations in order to survive. I suppose this isn’t that surprising when you consider they experience a better chance of medalling under his regime. It is rather sad, however, when you consider how the women’s sport has degraded artistically under his presidency. Despite what he says, the artistry of gymnastics has not improved since 1989, and artistic gymnastics is not the sole domain of the more physically mature woman. His age limits and competition format changes ...

Who said, some time in the late 1980s, ‘those who do not risk, cannot win’? I think it was twice World Champion Yuri Korolev, but do correct me if I'm wrong and you have the reference to hand. The sport has virtually been turned on its head. Just look at team competitions – all scores counting – teams can’t possibly afford to take a risk if they want to win gold. The sport has been turned into something akin to diving or trampolining – technical and interesting to watch, but almost totally devoid of artistic depth. Which brings me back to ROV. A reader has queried the validity of my use of Groshkova as an example of ROV, given that (s/he states) ROV disappeared from the Code of Points in the late 1980s. I suppose this is fair comment given my assumption that the form of the sport reflects the state of the judging codes. But it does also introduce an interesting idea, that of the legacy of past sporting codes. Gymnastics is constantly in evolution, not total re-invention, a...