Celebrating Tatiana : The spirit of Nabiyeva 2013

Tatiana Nabiyeva celebrates her golden week in Penza

Given the recent brouhaha about Tatiana's continuation or otherwise in gymnastics, I wanted to remind readers of one of the up points in this feisty and popular gymnast's career.  What follows below is a 'reprint' of a post published on 22 August 2013.

Tatiana Nabiyeva shone this week in the Russia Cup, taking five of the six available gold medals (all around, team, vault, uneven bars and beam; she withdrew from the floor competition for which she had qualified), thereby establishing herself as the current spiritual leader of Russia's gymnastics team.  This is a dramatic turn around for the 18 year old from St Petersburg.  Before this summer's Universiade, Nabiyeva's last all around competition of any note had been the 2010 World Championships, where she finished in seventh place.  Since then, she has battled chronic back pain, a significant growth spurt and a drubbing from Russia's head coach Valentina Rodionenko for what she called her 'obesity', sitting out last year's Olympics as reserve before digging herself out of a rather doubtful place in Russian gymnastics' history to a hopeful position as we approach the 2013 World Championships.

As a junior, Nabiyeva was a beautiful, joyful all arounder with a real strength on the balance beam and clear economy of line on all her apparatus.  She won the unofficial all around at the 2008 Junior Europeans ahead of her now more decorated colleague, Aliya Mustafina, but fell back somewhat as she transitioned to senior level in 2010.  By the end of 2012 her gymnastics had receded to a point that had seemed almost terminal, the problems of that painful back almost insurmountable.  Yet now, after what must have been an immense and sustained effort, Nabiyeva has re-established her competitive morale and technical panache to a point that she can consistently compete on all four apparatus.  Her gymnastics bears many of the characteristics of her junior identity, most noteably outstanding twisting form and line in her leaps, and a strong if emotional temperament.  In reality she has restored three and a half of the four apparatus necessary for a good all around score; the second half of that floor routine is still designed to preserve energy for the final double pike.  Her difficulty is still a little behind Russia's 'A' leaders, but consistency and leadership skills - already identifiable back in the World Championships of 2011 - make her a valuable team member and may even see her compete beyond 2013.  It is a delight to see such a talented and appealing gymnast restored to a national team after what has been a significant interruption, and Tanya deserves accolades for what she has achieved to date.

Russia's WAG team for Antwerp

All around silver medallist at the London Olympics, Viktoria Komova, warms up beam under the watchful eye of team mate and rival Aliya Mustafina

So, having established that Russia has enriched its ranks of mature gymnasts by the rehabilitation of the talented Nabiyeva, I had been hoping to be able to tell you that the Russians had selected an unprecedently strong team for the forthcoming World Championships in Antwerp, composed of Mustafina, Afanasyeva, Komova and Grishina, with perhaps Nabiyeva as travelling reserve.  Who could dispute that, on form and healthy both physically and mentally, these four gymnasts represent the most consummate array of artistry and acrobatics imaginable in the sport today?  Given the format of this year's World Championships - individual medals only are contested, with four members of a WAG team and only three gymnasts from each team competing per apparatus - it was conceivable that the Russians would choose to present only three all arounders, ignoring the distractions of individual apparatus specialists and allowing every member of the team to fight for qualification to the main prize.

But life is never quite as you imagine it, and Russian gymnastics would not be Russian if doubts could not be cast on the composition of the team until the very last moment possible.  There is always doubt about at least one member of the team and this year is certainly no different.  Poor Viktoria Komova.  The outstanding technical gymnast of the last two years, having so bravely overcome injury since joining the senior ranks, having so closely missed all around gold at the 2011 Worlds and 2012 Olympics, has once again been handicapped in her preparations by a severe case of viral meningitis that has sent her to hospital for a week, and bars her from training for at least another seven days on top of that.  The door is open to qualification for the national team via the multiple internal competitions that will take place in the run up to Worlds, but a decision will not be taken until absolutely necessary according to FIG rules in order to allow time to assess her recovery. 

Aliya Mustafina is currently contemplating her second World Championships and her third major all around competition of 2013 - thank you Zarariel for the picture

So the main World Championships team that has been announced by Valentina Rodionenko at this stage includes just Aliya Mustafina, Ksenia Afanasyeva and Tatiana Nabiyeva, with no indication of which of these nominated gymnasts will compete all around (but presumably Mustafina and Afanasyeva rank first after their performances at the Universiade in Kazan this summer).  The remaining place on the team will be decided between now and September.  Presumably Viktoria Komova will be in contention if she is well enough, alongside perhaps her fellow Olympian and vault medallist Maria Paseka; although Paseka's specialisms would seem to overlap too much with Nabiyeva's and not provide a good fit for the team.  So maybe the Russians will consider trying out someone new; their nominations to the Osijek Cup, an FIG World Cup competition that takes place shortly before Worlds (13th to 15th September) include youngsters who performed well at the Russia Cup, including most noteably floor champion Alla Sosnitskaya but also beam bronze medallist Polina Fyodorova and beam finalist Anna Rodionova.  Ekaterina Kramarenko is there too although I am not sure she would be considered a good 'investment' for the team.

[In answer to many questions: Anna Dementyeva is out of contention for the upcoming Worlds, and is perhaps considering retirement.  A pity : her beam routine at its best could contend for a world EF medal.  Despite winning many medals at the Russia Cup, once again, Anna Pavlova is unlikely to make it to Worlds; basically she is past her prime now, and the head coaches don't like her.  I am coming round to the idea that Pavlova should have been included in training squads in previous years, she puts certain national team members to shame.]

And what of Anastasia Grishina

Anastasia Grishina in training for the Russia Cup last week.  It is clear that her back is taped.

Whenever I think of Anastasia Grishina a wave of hope overcomes me.  This fine but powerful gymnast, like Komova, has yet to have a clear run at a senior competition free of psychological doubt or physical injury, yet her superior amplitude on every piece and the potential she has for high difficulty quotients on each apparatus leads me to consider her a leading gymnast on the Russian team.  Forget the renowned problems of consistency; Grishina is still only in her second year as a senior and it would take only one very good competition to restore her reputation.  In the all around and event finals of Europeans this spring, Grishina showed her mettle with a really controlled performance that promised great things for later in the year, if only she could reclaim the promised difficulty that once saw her considered an outside contender for Olympic medals.  However, even I am now beginning to wonder if my optimism has been misplaced.  With the experienced Razumovsky couple installed as her new coaches since the beginning of the year, Anastasia promised so much for 2013, but on Friday the gymnast walked out of the Russia Cup with back pain, failing to make a show in the major qualifying meet for Worlds.

Presumably she and her coaches expected she would be treated with the same clemency as the unfortunate Komova, and allowed the opportunity to qualify via internal meets.  However, Grishina has not found favour with the senior team leadership since the Olympics; her new coaching arrangements have been publicly denounced and she has frequently found herself criticised for her failure to increase difficulty.  Now, Valentina Rodionenko says that the team coaches have ruled her out of contention for the Worlds team.    'Only those who have a conscientious attitude to training and competition' may be considered for the Russian team, she says, in a brutally abrupt declaration that may yet see a further turf war erupt in Russian gymnastics.  Has this gymnast been treated fairly and according to the rules?  Isn't the loss of Grishina from the Worlds team a major blow to its medal chances?  We do not know the full background to Nastia's withdrawal.  Pictures of her in podium training for the Russia Cup do reveal some back strapping but gymnasts regularly perform in pain.

UPDATE 22/8 18.09 In a TASS interview Grishina's coach Irina Razumovskaya confirms that Anastasia did withdraw from the competition with severe pain, which the doctor diagnosed as a pinched nerve. She says that she recognises that Grishina has avoided the Russia Cup in the past, but hopes that by resuming training at Round Lake she can convince the national coaches of her conscientiousness, and make her case for a place on the World Championships team.

The eternal Russian enigma : questions

Olympic, World, Universiade and European medallist Ksenia Afanasyeva wistfully watches over proceedings during the all around competition in London 2012

As ever, a Russian competition and Valentina's ensuing declarations ask more questions than they answer.  Nabiyeva's rapid naming to the team was probably the only fair outcome given her clear dominance of qualifications, although it might be described, in the absence of Komova and Grishina, as a 'B' team competition.  While her performance was a strong endorsement of her rehabilitation and recovery from injury, her resurgence to the very top of the national team tells uncomfortable stories about Russia's strength in depth.  The strategy of refreshing veteran talent has certainly worked well to strengthen the team and lessen the impact of injury, but it is doubtful that Nabiyeva could compete for gold at World Championships level.  I will say right away that I would love her to prove me wrong!  But why have none of the promising juniors on the national team been brought to a similar level?

Grishina's equally rapid barring from the team comes with more question marks.  The context requires some explanation: it is clear that the Rodionenkos do not like Grishina for some reason or other and, once again, we have seen a gymnast be subjected to regular public criticism by the head coach, this time dating back to the Olympics.  Rodionenko did not like it when Grishina sacked her personal coach, Sergei Zelikson, nor when she appointed the experienced Razumovsky couple (recommended by former WAG team coach Alexander Alexandrov) as her personal coaches.  She criticised Grishina for training in her home gym rather than at the national training centre in Lake Krugloye, and couldn't understand why the girl was not competing more difficulty at the Europeans this spring.  Now what looks like a hasty and perhaps rather ill-judged decision to exclude a gymnast from qualification to Worlds, seems unfair compared to the extra time Komova is being given.  What are the competitive rules under which qualifying for the Russian team operates? 

Then again, the wonders of the Russian press may reveal more: did Grishina withdraw herself from contention for Worlds, owing to overwhelming back pain?  Will she take off the rest of the year to recover, prior to rehabilitation early next year?  This is possible, but Valentina's tendency to try to control the narrative blocks out all possibility of a diplomatic ending.

Which leads me to the dreadful thought: after all the drama and infighting that culminated in coach Alexander Alexandrov's departure from the Russian team earlier this summer, is the Russian team still in a state of perpetual battle?  Grishina's former coach, Sergei Zelikson, sacked by Grishina late last year and replaced by the Razumovskys at Alexander Alexandrov's suggestion, is certainly eager to place the blame for Nabiyeva's earlier decline on the former national WAG coach, suggesting that a lack of encouragement and support left Tanya rudderless, and that inappropriate training left her struggling with painful injuries, like so many of her team mates (he says).

You would think that enough had already been said, but as can be seen by the announcement about Grishina and the team, the Russian press is still dominated by Valentina's narrative.  I would hope to read an interview with Grishina's coach, Razumovksy at some point in the not too distant future, and I would love to read Alexandrov's account of the events leading up to his resignation.  Even so, I still do not think we will fully understand the enigma of Russia's battling political gymnastics scene until the sport there becomes publicly accountable, publishing details of qualifying procedures etc.  I suspect that this is anathema to many of those in charge of Russian sport.  Well, the important thing is that the coaches work together to maximise the potential of all the gymnasts on the team, but in Grishina's case at least this doesn't seem to be working.

Which Russian has the best chance of winning all around at Worlds?

It is impossible, and perhaps foolish to make predictions; who knows?  But of the current crop of Russians, assuming Mustafina, Afanasyeva and Nabiyeva travel to Antwerp, leaving Komova and Grishina at home, I hope that a well trained, in-form Mustafina wins; she is the one who will fight the hardest, and she is the one who has the potential to express the current Code to its fullest extent without alienating the culture of artistic gymnastics that is so much at the heart of the Russian sport.  Winning this World Championships would also mean that she has topped the World Championships each time she has entered the all around competition, and make her European, Universiade and World Champion in one year, a fitting accolade for such an astounding, competitive gymnast.

I would hope, perhaps realistically, for Mustafina to compete for gold in Antwerp, but I would LOVE Afanasyeva to win.  Her weakness on bars is what makes me doubt her eligibility for the top three, but the developing power of her vault and the sophistication of her beam and floor make her the most Russian of all the Russian gymnasts today, and a fine example of a mature artistic gymnast whose power never detracts from her line, amplitude or expression.

I would explode if Nabiyeva won, and will say nothing more. It's her personality that makes her so special, isn't it.

Results, videos etc

I have been lax and have yet to provide transliterations of all of the results: apologies, but it is difficult to find the time to keep up with the positive flood of information that emerges with every new competition, alongside my full time job and other responsibilities.  I will provide links here to the key sources.  Dear readers, please comment, question and rant as you feel appropriate!

Live streaming of Event Finals, Day 3 (1 hr 45 mins)




Live streaming of Event Finals, Day 4 (2 hrs 34 mins)




Photo galleries of the Russia Cup by Elena Mikhailova

Full results of the Russia Cup (in Russian)

The Couch Gymnast has transliterated WAG Event Final results for you.

The Men

In many ways, MAG is becoming more interesting than WAG and I will try to come back with some results later.  As with the women, the key players did not participate: Ablyazin, Belyavski, Garibov and Kuksenkov have already pre-qualified to Worlds.  But there are still two places on the team to decide (the men have six team members) and at the Russia Cup, Mattei Petrov proved to be the emerging star on pommels and someone who is being considered for the team.  I would also mention Alexander Balandin who shone on rings, but for some reason looked rather unhappy during the medal ceremony and has not been mentioned in the press reports.  That can be rather ominous, if you are a Russian gymnast.

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Vladimir Markelov, 1980 Olympian - a short biography

Vladimir competes at the 1980 Olympics

1976 Olympics (silver medal in the team) and 1980 Olympics champion (gold in the team) Vladimir Markelov, comes from Ozersk in the South Urals. For a long time, Director of the children's club at CSKA Moscow (Elena Shevchenko, Dina Kochetkova, Dmitri Bilozerchev). His coach was Ivan Morozov, who Vladimir remembers fondly : 'he told us there were no frightening skills, just difficult ones.' They went on to learn the new elements step by step. Vladimir created his own originality on high bar which is still performed today by men and women - you can see it in the video.

And read an interview (in Russian) including a memory of the security arrangements at the Montreal Games - armed guards accompanied all the athletes' coaches. (Don't forget that in Munich, Israeli athletes were murdered in a terrorist attack on the Games. :-((. )

http://ozvest.ru/srochno-v-nomer/17705-vladimir-markelov-zhizn-sostoit-iz-sluchajnostej-olimpijskij-chempion-rodom-iz-ozerska.html

http://youtu.be/TuM_AdkXIls

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It's official - Anastasia Grishina has retired

2012 Olympic silver medallist, and multiple European medal winner in her native city of Moscow in 2013, Nastia Grishina, has retired, confirms head coach Valentina Rodionenko in an interview with Albert Starodubtsev of Tass.

20 year old Grishina, a beautiful beam and floor worker who was once considered to have significant all around potential at world level, married recently.  She has been studying journalism at a Moscow University.

Rodionenko wasted no time in ascribing Grishina's waning as an international star to her changing coaching arrangements since the Olympics.  Regular readers of this blog will know that Sergei Zelikson, whose tenure as Grishina's personal coach was terminated suddenly in 2012, was recently re-appointed to the national WAG team as tumbling coach.  'The leaders of the Moscow Gymnastics Federation made a fatal mistake a few years ago, when they decided to transfer Grishina to a different coach', said Rodionenko.  'You couldn't take Grishina away from Zelikson because he knew her well, and both coach and gymnast were on the right track.  Then Grishina's troubles began - first one injury, then another.  The transition to the Razumovsky coaches was a wrong step.  We (the management) tried to stop this.  However, not only Moscow but also Grishina decided they wanted a new coach.  It seems that the gymnast wanted a coach who was less demanding.  In the end though, their collaboration ended in vain'.

'Grishina has lost her desire to train, and her place [on the national team] was taken up by a younger gymnast a long time ago.  Frankly, we had big hopes for Grishina - most experts believed her to be one of Russia's big hopes.  She was really a very capable girl.'

Grishina's coaches since 2012, Irina and Viktor Razumovsky, returned to Moscow from Japan in 2012, where they had been coaching.  Rejoining the Moscow CSKA club where they had always worked during the Soviet era, their legacy includes Olympic champion Elena Shevchenko and Olga Chudina, and they also coached 1981 World Champion Olga Bicherova during the later years of her career.  Former junior national team member Daria Mikhailova trained with them.  CSKA is the native club of coach Alexander Alexandrov and of World and Olympic medallist Aliya Mustafina.

Kramarenko and Nabiyeva with St Petersburg promise, Elena Eremina

Universiade champion Ekaterinburg Kramarenko and world champion Tatiana Nabiyeva have also both finished their careers, Rodionenko said.    'Kramarenko did everything she could', 'Nabiyeva, on the other hand, did not fulfill her potential in the gym.  At youth level, she was stronger than Aliya Mustafina, and became European Junior Champion.  Her personality prevented her from fulfilling her promise.' (I hope Tatiana never reads this!!)   

Both Ekaterina and Tatiana come from St Petersburg, the home of Olympic champions Alexander Detiatin and Elena Shushunova.  Tatiana now coaches young gymnasts in her home gym, with her coaches Alexander and Vera Kiryashova.

Good luck to all the gymnasts and coaches mentioned in this announcement!  Be happy and successful in what life brings, keep in touch - and thank you for all the fantastic gymnastics!

Source - http://tass.ru/sport/2598291

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Afanasyeva has treatment in Munich

Valentina Rodionenko has confirmed that 2008 and 2012 Olympian Ksenia Afanasyeva is currently in Munich undergoing a variety of treatments on her ankle.  As Ksenia has previously explained, the ankle became injured in 2012 during preparations for the London Olympics, and has given her much pain intermittently ever since.  The head coach explained that it isn't possible at the moment to speak of competitions, but that she hopes for the gymnast to return to training as soon as she has recovered.

As reported earlier this week, Aliya Mustafuna is back in training.  The process is gradual as she rehabilitates her knee to a full training load, and Valentina explains here that she is working on a new floor routine.

The gymnasts will be participating in World Cup competitions this year, including Stuttgart and Glasgow.

Other good news is that MAG team captain Emin Garibov is back in full training.  This should reinforce the strength in depth of the men's team, and hopefully improve their medal prospects in Rio.

Good luck to all the gymnasts, and our best wishes in particular to Ksenia for a full recovery.  

Sources - http://allsportinfo.ru/index.php?id=100784

http://www.team-russia2016.ru/article/11487.html

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Ministry of Sport publishes Russia squad lists for 2016

Valentina Rodionenko has confirmed that Mustafina is back in training.  Tass

This year the Ministry of Sport has published the full lists of gymnasts training with the national team - youth, junior, senior reserve and senior.  You can find the full lists, including the coaches, in Russian language here, and there is a transcription of the gymnasts' names in English at JAS's blog, Videos of Russian Gymnasts.

As usual, you will find that there is a little delay before the lists catch up with the reality.  For example, Maria Bondareva's name still appears on the listing for the senior reserve team, but sadly, she announced her retirement for medical reasons some months ago.  The senior lists otherwise include all those in training for the Olympics.  You can read what I think of the early announcements of the Olympic teams here.  The full Olympic teams will include only five gymnasts, so competition for places will be fierce and, no doubt, health will play a part in the selections.  New names this year include, as expected, Natalia Kapitanova, Angelina Melnikova, Daria Skrypnik and Ekaterina Sokova.  Quite a bumper year for new talent on the women's team.  To my eye, the men have stayed the same as last year, but I am sure someone will correct me if I am wrong.

One point is that the women's coaching team has been beefed up a little bit on the acrobatics side.  Vasily Ivanov, who used to be the coach in charge of both vaulting and acrobatics for the senior women, has now moved to look after acrobatics on the junior team.  Replacing him on the senior team we now have Artem Voinov (vault) and Sergei Zelikson (acrobatics).  Voinov has been on the coaching team since at least last year, but this is the first time that his specialism has been published.  He is a young coach (1987 born) so presumably has been developing the role.  Zelikson, though, is a relatively new addition, even if he is a familiar face.  You may remember him as personal coach of 2012 Olympian, Anastasia Grishina.  His departure from the senior scene took place around the end of 2012, in what appeared to be rather hurried circumstances.  He and former national women's coach Alexander Alexandrov didn't really seem to hit it off, so his rehabilitation as a national team member is intriguing.  I'm sure that Ivanov was a popular coach amongst the girls, so I hope that this change will be an improvement both for juniors and seniors.

As usual, the personal coaches of the top gymnasts are also acknowledged as national coaching team members.  Viktoria Komova has Gennady Elfimov, and Ksenia Afanasyeva has Marina Nazarova.  Nazarova is now acknowledged as a beam specialist, reinforcing Marina Bulashenko's efforts as beam choreographer.  Sergei Starkin, who looks after Denis Ablyazin and Aliya Mustafina, is listed as a men's all around coach.

There is a bit of a flurry of publicity around about gymnastics at present.  Valentina Rodionenko has announced that Aliya Mustafina is properly back in training from the 6th January and will compete at the Russian Championships.  Sergei Starkin has also been conducting his own personal press campaign on behalf of his gymnast, Denis Ablyazin, and has explained that selections for the Olympics will be in three stages - National Championships, European Championships and the Russia Cup.  Denis can't be complacent about his routines, and they are preparing a new programme for the Olympics to keep up with the rapidly developing competition.  (Thanks to Gemma Fry for translating the Starkin interview).

Two Presidents together.  RGF

The VTB RGF corporate calendar is now out and conveniently the year has twelve months, so we are treated to pictures of all the members of last year's World Championships team.  I only wish that the RGF would send me one.  The latest edition of Gymnastika is also now available, including features on Rusudan Sikharulidze and GB coach Andrei Popov and all sorts of other articles.  You can even learn to braid your hair like Ksenia Afansyeva.  And there is a wonderful picture of RGF President Vasily Titov with President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin.

I wonder if anyone feels strong enough to do some translations?  Do drop me a line if so.  I am fairly easily contactable via messenger on the RRG Facebook page.

Senior MAG : Ablyazin, Balandin, Belyavski, Garibov, Ignatyev, Kazachkov, Kudashov, Kuksenkov, Lankin, Nagorny, Petrov, Polyashov, Starikov, Stretovich

Senior WAG : Afanasyeva, Dmitrieva, Kapitanova, Komova, Melnikova, Mustafina, Paseka, Skrypnik, Sokova, Sosnitskaya, Spiridonova, Tutkhalyan, Kharenkova, Shelgunova.

Good luck to all the gymnasts and coaches!  We all hope you have a fantastic and very memorable Olympic year.

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Natalia Yurchenko - an appreciation

Natalia Yurchenko in 1984, on the cover of magazine Smena ('camera')

When I was a girl, I used to watch gymnastics.  Avidly, concentratedly, passionately.  There was no Youtube or internet so every second of the three or four hours I had pored over on our little black and white TV set had to fuel my interest for a full twelve months, maybe even more.  I had to imagine the rest.

The language of gymnastics was exotic and alien to me : Voronin, Tkachev, Tourischeva, Korbut, Tsukuhara.  As the years passed, I became familiar with the meanings and took great pride in being able to pronounce the names.   I grew up in Lincoln, a small town in the East Midlands of England.  Nobody I knew spoke Russian or knew any Russians, and there was, besides, no way of accessing Russian language publications or broadcasts.  Tabloid stories of Cold War, culture and sport, tinged with a strong flavour of suspicion, fear and mystery, developed my taste and fascination for Russian gymnastics.  However, for some reason gymnastics always shone like a beacon of friendship and humanity to me, and I wanted to find out more.  I am fiercely independent, and don't like to be told what to think, and doesn't it make sense that where human beings are, there is warmth? 

I went with my school on a day trip to see the annual USSR Display in 1976, but otherwise Russia and the Soviet Union were a whole, very cold, world away.  When I moved to London to live and work, I found Collet's bookshop, discovered the magazine Sport in the USSR.  The internal language of Soviet and Russian gymnastics, the beginning of a new world of imagination, opened up to me.  Russia, it seems to me, speaks differently about gymnastics.  It's not surprising that the concept of ROV - risk, originality, virtuosity - came to life during an era in which she dominated the sport.  Words such as artistry, originality, choreography, harmony, lyricism were all used frequently to describe an array of complex ideas that remain cloaked in mystery for the many.  Sport was more than competition, became physical culture.  Some would describe it as hokum.  To me, it was like a wonderful puzzle, one that became concrete in the movement of Mostepanova, Mogilny, Filatova and Artemov.

Then there was Natalia Yurchenko.  I first caught sight of her during a BBC TV broadcast in 1978.  She was everything a Soviet gymnast should be - intense, expressive in ways that surpassed language, and, somehow, ethereally gifted in the physical domain.  Yurchenko said everything about Soviet gymnastics without even uttering a single word.

She comes from Norilsk, Siberia, the world's Northernmost city where the darkness of the Polar night begins in October, and does not lift till April.  In this dark, cold, distant place one of the world's greatest gymnasts was born, and trained to produce remarkable, beautiful, astonishing gymnastics.  In her exclusive interview with me, Natalia will explain how at the age of eleven she went to a summer training camp, where she was selected to train with a group of elites in the city of Rostov on Don, in the South of Russia.  Can you imagine the relief of seeing sunshine and daylight, even during the winter?  Besides the opportunity to train seriously in the sport she loved, and the mixed feelings about leaving her family, the improvement in Natalia's life must have been immense.

Natalia's coach in Norilsk, Galina Khusainova, therefore found a new life for her protegee in a somewhat warmer climate, perhaps with more freedom to enjoy nature and the outdoors than Natalia had previously experienced.  And the name of her coach, Vladislav Rastorotski, is still well known, iconic even, in the sport today.  Rastorotski trained not only Yurchenko, but also Liudmilla Tourischeva, Natalia Shaposhnikova and Alla Shishova.  His 'brand' was innovative gymnastics, performed with a trademark classical style.  His gymnasts' innovation was true daring and originality.  Not for Rastorotski the odd added twist or half twist.  His gymnasts brought new dimensions and directions to the sport that remain influential today, none more so than Yurchenko whose name pervades every gymnastics competition, male and female.  I don't really need to say anything more.  The Yurchenko loop on beam, the Shaposhnikova transition on bars, Shishova's full twisting back on beam, all came from the Rastorotsky stable.

Rastorotsky was a sobre, barrel-like man with pin pricks for his sharp eyes.  In the gym, he looked a little like a surprised hedgehog, and rarely seemed to stop talking.  In conversation with his gymnasts, he sounds taciturn and peremptory, but when approached for press interviews he waxes lyrical.  His training is often described as 'brutal' and devoid of any human kindness, yet he is said to have collected a library of 3,000 books in his home for the benefit of his gymnasts, such was his concern for their education and welfare.  He was one of a generation of Soviet gymnastics coaches whose ego might have overpowered the individuality and determination of the gymnasts had it not been for their overwhelming brilliance.  It's important not to forget that during the late 70s and early 80s Soviet gymnastics was under great pressure to reclaim and maintain the initiative stolen by the Romanians, and Nadia Comaneci in particular.  Comaneci's victory in Montreal had left the Soviets standing.  The gymnasts became younger and younger, and more and more daring, as the coaches became more and more outspoken and poetic in their fight for attention and power.

So much of the narrative of Yurchenko's work as a gymnast is subjugated in the Soviet literature and media to a discussion of the work of the coach, in particular Rastorotski.  You can watch a 1984 video documentary of Rastorotski's work here.  An undated documentary about Natalia's training also makes much of the importance of this inimitable coach.

Yurchenko's career was remarkable because her influence spanned two distinct generations.  Her emergence in 1978 came at a time when memories of the classical era of such gymnasts as Tourischeva and Saadi were still very much alive, and when the direct lineage of this tradition, Nelli Kim, was at the helm of the team.  Elena Mukhina, a hybrid of the classical and daring gymnast, was world champion.  From this point, Yurchenko's career went into hibernation until 1982 when she began to win world competitions.  Her gymnastics then epitomised the spirit of adventure and beauty that was characterised in the contemporary Code of Points as ROV (risk, originality, virtuosity).  She retired in 1986 when acrobatic gymnasts such as Shushunova and Omelianchik were dominating.

Yurchenko trained alongside 1976 and 1980 Olympians Filatova, Shaposhnikova, Kim and Naimushina as well as 1988 Olympian Shushunova, and would have seen emerging champions such as Laschenova, Strazheva and Boguinskaia making their way up the national rankings.  Her elite competitive career in one sense therefore spanned almost eight years, a long time for a young female gymnast at the top of her sport, even today.  She is a classical gymnast who hurdled the era of the tumble tot and came out the other side, demonstrating a synthesis of both classical and acrobatic.  Few gymnasts show such versatility and endurance.

Natalia with gymnasts, Chicago IL, Double Ten Parade, October 2015

Today, Natalia continues to show her unique characteristics of resilience and courage (as Rastorotski once said) in her work as a coach.  She owns her own gym in Chicago and leads a team of junior elites on the US junior Olympic programme.  I don't have to limit myself to four hours of viewing per year because of the advent of the internet, and if I want to find something out I can always go to Natalia's own excellent website, which is full of thoughts and pictures and links.  

And now, I'm delighted to say, Natalia has given me an interview in which she discusses her past, present and future.   I know that you will enjoy it, and I would also like to say a big 'thank you' to Natalia and to her assistant, Kerry, for doing so much to answer my questions so well, in so much depth.


'All Over Again' (1984) Documentary on the role of the coach, featuring Rastorotski, Yurchenko, Shaposhnikova and Shishova

'Olympic Hopes' (1978) Documentary on the training of the Soviet national teams, men and women, in preparation for the 1980 Olympics.

Natalia, again (undated, but probably early 1980s) Short documentary on Natalia's training

The World Cup, 1982 (Natalia's first international victory)

Natalia Yurchenko (undated documentary)

'Captain' 1984 PDF of Smena, November issue, including article about Natalia.

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Natalia Yurchenko - an exclusive interview

Natalia wins gold at the World Championships in Budapest, 1983

1983 World Champion Natalia Yurchenko speaks directly to readers of RRG in this exclusive interview.  

Early years:

In the summer of 1976, at the age of 11, I was accepted to a sports boarding school in Rostov-on-Don. I remember it was a 4-level building with the cafeteria on the first floor, academic classrooms on the second floor, rooms for girls on the third floor and rooms for boys on the fourth floor. There was one TV on the ground floor and the kids who stayed at school over the summer (about 20-30 kids), were able to watch the Olympics. Nadia Comaneci�s outstanding performance made us feel jealous because usually the Soviets were the unbeatable favorites. We did feel some relief with amazing performances from Nellie Kim and Ludmilla Tourischeva. Besides Ludmilla, there was a gymnast from Rostov-on-Don, Svetlana Grozdova! And, we were really thrilled to see the very little and cute Maria Filatova. But, the most surprising thing was to see the Romania team with their clean, expressive and very aggressive gymnastics! Even more surprising was to see Vladislav Rastorotsky visit one of our practices just a few weeks later. I knew that I was more advanced than the other girls in my group. So, I had a feeling that he may pick me. 

The first time being in a famous gym was something unforgettable!! It was really the next level of what we'd seen on TV. Many of the girls could do tricks that none of the Olympians could do. Practice started on the trampoline into the pit every day. Double somersaults with twists forward and back, double and triple twisting front and back, triple front and back tucks were the top and something only the bravest could achieve. It was the same for the other events. When I saw the back handspring layout step-out on beam, I was shocked. I could not even imagine such a thing was possible. Everything was very intensive - conditioning, warm-up, tumbling, working on bars and beam - just go, go, go! There were pits, mats and safety pads everywhere. When trying new things, they made sure it was safe and not painful to fall. 

Natalia at the age of 7, when she began gymnastics

Rastorotsky's idea of winning was to develop his athletes with signature moves to be different from other gymnasts. It was a great time in gymnastics with a lot of innovations and creative coaches. I think there was more competition between coaches for being the most innovative. I was probably the most brave, hardworking and coachable kid. That was my talent. Information about how my signature moves were created can be found on my Web site (Yurchenko vault and Yurchenko loop). Rastorotsky was only my coach at Rostov-on-Don with support from assistants. The most helpful was my former teammate Irina Bendasova. Irina now lives in the Unites States and is married to Vladimir Artemev (father of Alexander "Sasha" Artemev).

Artistry

We were raised in our country in a time when almost every girl dreamed about being a ballerina. We were all under classical culture - music, dance, art and literature. There were only "appropriate" TV shows and movies, no advertisements. I remember that I was collecting reproductions of famous paintings. Those were my treasures. We read a lot of books about the most influential people in the world. We were striving to become the best in everything we did (although, maybe I'm just speaking for myself). So, artistry in gymnastics was as equally necessary as being a trickster. Unfortunately, I felt that I struggled with expression with music. I always loved, loved, loved my ballet class which was 1 hour every day - only classical bar, middle, adagio and jump combinations. It was a joy! But, I was never as natural looking as some gymnasts of my time like Natalia Shaposhnikova. I knew I was never going to be like her. Her floor routine "Nutcracker" was the reason I stuck with gymnastics! I was trying my hardest to develop dance basics while staying true to myself - shy but confident, quiet and inconversable but full of deep feelings inside. I had several choreographers during my career and I loved them all! They were all very interesting and emotional people who taught me how to put soul into the dance. My main choreographer, Alexandr Karasev from "Dinamo" Rostov gave me the most knowledge of classical ballet. The funny thing was that he had me work on the leap combinations from many of the male parts.

Natalia during the beam compulsory, 1983 Worlds

Favorite performances

My favorite performance was the 1982 World Cup. 1982 was an amazing year for me. I was finally able to hit all four events at several meets which is something I'd struggled with previously. I was in very good competitive shape for the World Cup, both physically and mentally. I felt confident and really enjoyed that meet which was my first appearance on a big, international stage. I was over excited and felt very confident. However, there were some problems with my participation at the World Cup due to the rules - only World Championship participants were allowed to compete. There were some protests about my participation from other country officials. I actually don't know how things were resolved. Our coaches and staff were so good and never told me about the problem. So, at the time, I never knew there was one.  Everything went so well on the podium it was beyond anything we could have imagined. Ending in first place and sharing the giant World Cup with my favorite person on the team and my very best friend Olga Bicherova. What could be better! 

My second favorite tournament was the 1985 World Universiade in Kobe Japan. I kind of knew that I would never get to compete at the Olympics so I felt the Universaide was my "mini Olympics". The atmosphere at the student's village was amazing. The gym podium, the audience and the ability to compete against Ecaterina Szabo, Lavinia Agache and other world class gymnasts made this tournament unforgettable. We made friends with so many different athletes from all over the world. Every evening there were the celebrations for the new medalists with the entire delegation. I enjoyed every moment!

Soviet system

The most special and unique aspect of the Soviet system was selection. To make any of the competitive sports teams you had to match a lot of criteria, both physically and mentally, work ethic and championship character. For gymnastics, body type, flexibility, toe point, feet, knee structure, level of natural strength as well as the height and body type of the gymnast's parents were all factors. Coordination was simply checked by making kids run fast - you see right away if it looks proper and natural. So, coaches selected nearly perfect kids and strove to make them be the best. 

Gymnastics has changed a lot since my time. For better or for worse? It has been a difficult adjustment to the new rules. But, I really like that tricks are now rewarded. I think that makes for more fair scoring - combining difficulty and execution is very logical and clear. I like that Russian gymnastics has stuck with what gymnastics has to be - Artistic! Although they were struggling for a while with the lack of high difficulty scores. But, I see these beautiful gymnasts and feel very proud of how they are carrying our Soviet/Russian traditions through the history of this amazing sport. Artistry, execution and passion are what make Russian gymnastics so unique. I do not know what they need to improve right now. They always capture your attention even if they fail or suffer. I love them for who they are. Maybe we should just enjoy watching them.

After retirement

After retirement in 1986, I started coaching in my home gym, assisting Vladislav Rastorotsky. We had several girls on the Junior National Team so I spent some more time on Round Lake. When I came to the United States, I started working for Lehigh Valley Sports Academy in Allentown PA. It was a very new club so I had to start from ground zero. I remember my first pre-team with 4, 5 and 6 year old gymnasts. They were so cute and worked so hard. I enjoyed every minute in the gym. I learned a lot with them and I'm glad I was able to do everything from developing children to coaching at a high competitive level. We competed through all levels of the USA Gymnastics program - State, Regional and National Junior Olympics. I am very proud of my first Elite gymnast Annette Miele who made the Junior National team in 2008 and is now competing for the University of Michigan on a full ride scholarship. I am very proud of all of my gymnasts who are now competing for various universities or working as coaches and who remember being on our team as the best time of their lives. 

After Lehigh, I worked for Parkettes for a while. It was much different from what I did myself. But, I learned a lot from Donna and Bill Strauss and I am grateful for that experience. Due to family matters, I took a break from coaching in the U.S. and had to go back to Russia for several years.  While in Russia, I considered working at Round Lake with the Junior National Team. But, I never did start working there. Why? Times changed, I changed. My mentality changed and my life priorities are different now. 

If I were coaching in Russia

What would I change if I were a National Team coach in Russia? It is hard to say. There is a lot of drama in a gymnast coach relationship and a lot of suffering. But, maybe that is the way to produce beautiful gymnasts. In Russia, we have an expression: "The artist has to be hungry and suffer to be able to create a piece of art that will touch your soul". So, this is the way to live our lives, very emotionally, sometimes over the top. We are who we are.

Natalia and her family, daughter Olya and husband Igor, in 2007

Current�

I feel that I have unfinished business in coaching and I�m exciting to be building a new team at my Chicago-based gym C.I.T.Y Club Gymnastics Academy ().
Along with my partners, I just opened
my first gym called C.I.T.Y. Club Gymnastics Academy - International Team
Yurchenko, located in the heart of Chicago, Illinois which
I am extremely excited about! At this gym, I am planning to build a
very serious and strong gymnastics program focussing on Optional, TOPs and Elite programs. This is not going to happen overnight. So, my team is
ready for a long, hard journey. Wish us success!

In addition, with another partner, I am building a company called Yurchenko Gymnastics which will soon be releasing a new collection of gymnastics gear. Our first appearance will be at Chicago Style 2016 which will be held from February 12-14, 2016 at Navy Pier in downtown Chicago."

Thank you!

Natalia Yurchenko

Natalia with the Team Yurchenko gymnasts and coaches, Chicago IL, C,I.T.Y Club Gymnastics Academy, September 2015

Natalia, I (and all RRG readers) would like to thank you and Kerry for all your work in replying to my (very long) questions - and for the use of the pictures from your website!  We wish you much success in the future and will continue to think of you and your wonderful gymnastics as you progress in your life. Hope to see you at a competition soon!

You can read an appreciation of Natalia's gymnastics here.

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Welcome to Olympic Year!

Aerial view of Christ the Redeemer, Rio de Janeiro.

It's 2016, a year of many hopes and promises for us all, Olympians or not.  We are all looking forward at this time of the year and I hope everyone achieves at least a little of what they plan.  Begin your work now, and enjoy the journey.  Most of all I wish everyone much happiness and peace.

In Russia, the gymnasts are back at Lake Krugloye and beginning their preparations for the summer, 'step by step' as Aliya Mustafina put it this morning on her Instagram.  Sergei Starkin has been keen to stress the importance of the men's team and in particular Denis Ablyazin to Russia's Olympic effort.  

Valentina Rodionenko has made some announcements of team membership for the summer Olympics, but these are too early to make any difference - everyone is training for the Games and the key decisions will be taken much later in the year.  The announcements were initially made via the Russian Olympic Committee's website at the same time as a lot of other Russian sports announced their Olympic intentions, so they seem to be part of a strategy to promote sport in the Olympic year. 

The context is that Russian sport has been hit hard by the discovery of systematic cheating amongst some of her track and field athletes, aided and abetted by what could be state intervention at the local WADA doping centre.  Her athletics team has been banned from the Rio Olympics.  In the absence of some of her highest profile competitors, Russia has to find other sports who can carry the national flag in Rio, and gymnastics has a responsibility to step up and support the country's reputation.  This is a pressured time for all sports in Russia and the wider world.  You can understand why the powers might want to make it clear that Russia will still have a strong presence in Rio.

On the 14th January the results of a second stage investigation into doping in sport will be published.  WADA chairman Dick Pound has said that there is worse to come, first for Russia as other sports will be implicated in the scandal.  Secondly, other countries have also been found out.  We will have to wait and see what 'comes out in the wash'. 

It's a responsibility when reporting on these matters because they touch so closely the human beings who are involved.  Some of them may be villains, but there are others who could be victims in a larger game.  Cheating in sport is a violation of the basic principles of a human phenomenon that is as old as the ages.  This phenomenon, sport, has an important role in fostering common endeavour, friendship and peace, locally and globally, at whatever level of participation.  We cannot ignore the 'dark side' of sport if we want to support the overwhelming good it does.   Often when I watch a gymnastics competition I am touched by the respect and support the competitors have for each other, and I think that gymnastics is one of the best sports to watch because of this.  But, obviously, life would not be life if everything were perfect.  Gymnastics has its dark side too and I have had to report on some pretty shocking allegations in the last few weeks. 

I have struggled with this.  While gymnastics has a fairly clean slate when it comes to doping, the nature of any infringements tend to be rather more serious than just cheating, as they often involve the exploitation of young people.  The 'pregnancy doping' allegations that have recently been churned up by an article in British broadsheet The Observer are particularly sensitive as they could involve a form of state-endorsed sexual abuse. 

These allegations seem to be false.  Russian journalist Vladimir Golubev, who has published widely on gymnastics, did an interview with 1968 Olympian Olga Karasyova which basically revealed as a 'hoax' the 1994 German TV documentary that made the allegations.  Paris Match journalist Michel Peyrard travelled to Moscow to meet with Karasyova and was horrified to find that after he had travelled so far, there was no story at all to cover. 

Still, the Observer declines to publish a clarification to its recent story.  I am interested to know the reasons why, but reluctant to press too hard.  Not least, this is not my injury or a matter that I can speak about first hand (any more than the Observer journalist can).  What if there were some element of truth in the allegations?  The last thing I would want is to make things worse for the gymnasts.  This is a matter that is private to them.  Writing anything about this subject is treading a fine line and I have therefore decided to follow the principle of 'do no harm'.  I have put English language translations of the key articles into the public domain but otherwise will leave well alone unless asked to do more by those who have been directly affected.

I began this blog over five years ago and my curiosity about Russia remains undimmed, although my focus on gymnastics has become a little blurred.  I still enjoy watching men's gymnastics, but I find women's disappointing; almost unwatchable.  This blog records my constant reflections and developing understanding of the phenomenon we have so far known as artistic gymnastics, but increasingly I am beginning to understand my interest as revolving around the state of Russia, the people of Russia and the feeling of Russian-ness that imbued the sport of gymnastics for so long.  In a sense, I am looking at Russia through the lens of gymnastics. 

Both gymnastics and Russia are a paradox.  The best gymnastics, seen at the top competitions, is visually appealing, emotionally affecting, and awe inspiring.  The training - at the elite level - necessarily involves a strong discipline that can appear brutal.  It is the same with every sport, but in gymnastics there can be a particularly stark contrast between the harshness of the training, and the artistry of the performances.  The very young age of some of the competitors also presents unique ethical challenges.  Russian culture bears the marks of a similar paradox - the beauty and light of great music, literature and dance created from a wider background of real brutality, terror and threats to survival. 

Soviet gymnastics bears a double paradox as it is set within this, latter, context.  I am beginning to view the phenomenon from within this wider frame of reference.   I have recently been touched by an amazing BBC TV documentary, Leningrad and the Orchestra that Defied Hitler, all about the siege of Leningrad and Shostakovich's seventh symphony.  It says more than I could ever imagine.  In September I also saw the film Red Army, and was fascinated to hear the story of another Soviet sport, ice hockey.  I didn't expect to like Slava Fetisov, the ace player of the Soviet five who made ice hockey look like ballet, who has become an important Russian politician - and also happens to be the son-in-law of Russian gymnastics head coaches Andrei and Valentina Rodionenko.  But he is engaging and entertaining, honest and funny.  His story tells us much about Russia and the Soviet Union, too. I have a lot more work to do on these two particular sources, and on a few other stories that keep cropping up.

A highlight of the coming year, besides the Olympics, will be the publication of Dvora Meyers' book The End of the Perfect Ten: the making and breaking of gymnastics top score from Nadia to now.  Dvora has been working on this book for more than a year, and has conducted many, many interviews in an attempt to understand the changing shape of the sport globally over past years.  It promises to contribute much to the picture of world gymnastics.  The book will be published on July the 5th and you can pre-order copies on Amazon now.  Make sure to do so, to ensure that the book receives the publicity and profile it deserves. The publisher will be looking to measure interest, print runs and publicity budgets by the number of orders the book receives.  I am really looking forward to reading it. 

My publication plans are to keep on going as usual with this blog, which I love.  Please forgive me if posts are a little more sporadic than usual - my full time work is busy and I am having to fit my love for Russian and Soviet gymnastics into my increasingly rare 'free' time.  I want to publish my own book or books on the subject and will have to make some life changes to find the time to do the work justice.  My writing partner Vladimir Zaglada knows how unreliable I have been over the past year to 18 months; I hope to put things right in the not too distant future, although it will involve upheaval.

One of my favourite gymnasts - ever - is Natalia Yurchenko.  It seems to me that she is very much a Russian gymnast, one whose performances are full of light and emotion, whose innovations were truly revolutionary, who married art and acrobatics in a way that has never been matched.  Today, she lives happily with her family in Chicago, where she owns her own gym and is training a group of elite gymnasts.  Beneath the serene charm and mystery of the dark-eyed Yurchenko there is a steely determination to succeed.  Keep watching this blog for an exclusive interview with Natalia in the next few days. 

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