Russian Cup 2016: Enjoy the Disaster

The Olympics are coming and it's time to show your best, what you're capable of, what you've been working on since you were 5. Or not, if you're Team Russia. There were falls and 12s everywhere, and nearly everybody completely fucked up bars. Aliya got a 12 on bars! Moscow, the deepest team didn't even medal. If this was P&Gs, Marta would have committed a mass murder.

But it was not the P&Gs. It was the Russian Cup, historically a bad event, so let's just enjoy the disaster that only Russian gymnastics can bring. They're so bad it's good.

I'd also like to take this opportunity to give a shoutout to Romania. It's nationals and Lari has a concussion and Cata is getting rehydrated in the hospital because of a violent stomach flu. Wow. At least the Russians made it to the meet before combustion.

Starkin vs. Vaitsehovskaya

Sport-Express had another interesting article from Elena Vaitsehovskaya, this time an interview with Aliya Mustafina's (and Ablyazin's) coach, Sergei Starkin. She was not terribly impressed by Aliya's performance in Euros, especially on bars. They also talk about her injuries, upgrades and former motivational issues. Here are the bits concerning Aliya.

Last season you started working with Aliya Mustafina, who had always been considered a team player and a tough competitor. But my impression is, after becoming Olympic champion in London, she just never found a good enough reason to keep going. Has that changed. 

Yes, and very noticeably. I think it happened after Glasgow Championship. It is my subjective opinion, but during that competition Aliya realized that she still wants to be there for the team, to not only be willing to help but also to be able to do that. In other words, she thoroughly evaluated her abilities. 

Is it easier to work with her after that? 

Yes. I think we reached the mutual understanding. As I already said elsewhere, if the coach sets unreasonable goals for the athlete and pushes him too much, only considering his own perspective on training, this will lead to struggle. In a situation like this the athlete will first resist this regimen and then both sides will start to complain. It is completely different from working when you are at ease, when there is a psychological comfort there. Do you get what I’m trying to say?

Not really. 

I’ll explain. The gymnast always feels when he is not able to meet expectations of the coach. 

Is not able to or does not want to? 

No one knows this for sure, unless the they say it. Technically, if someone is always on time at the gym and does what he’s asked to, what can you blame him for? The lack of trust can be very hurtful. For a while the athlete might tolerate this, but then he’ll just leave. I’m not talking about Mustafina now, just the issue overall. But I’m glad that me and Aliya did not have to go through it.

Aliya in Marie Claire

Aliya Mustafina was in the Russian Marie Claire in an article featuring some Russian Olympians. She looked absolutely gorgeous (as if she could look anything less than that) and answered a few questions about Rio and fashion. Nothing terribly interesting, but still worth a read.

For a twenty-one-year-old, Aliya has achieved outstanding success. She became the Olympic Champion on the uneven bars in London in 2012 (and in addition to that, won a silver and two bronze medals) and was chosen as the Athlete of the Year in Russia. 

Who is your favorite Olympic champion?
In artistic gymnastics, my favorite is American Nastia Liukin. From Russia, I like Zhenya Kanaeva. a I appreciate her both as a person and as an athlete. 

What first comes to mind when you hear the word "Rio"?
Patience. You have to endure a lot to get to compete there. I've competed abroad, but I've almost never seen the actual cities, so the city itself doesn't bring anything to mind.  

How do Olympic Champions differ from other athletes?
They don't, just a little bit more luck, and little bit more training and concentration. 

What do you think looks "smart"?
Dress and heels. But I usually wear sneakers and jeans. 

Do you think that sportswear can be sexy?
Of course. Like the leotards we wear. It all depends on how you look at it. If it fits the body/if you have the right body (I'm not sure what is the correct translation), it looks sexy. I think that you don't have to be provocative to look sexy. A more modest outfit accentuates the figure and makes a woman look attractive. Unfortunately I can't wear everything. For example, I can't zip up some dresses.  But I dream of a wedding dress from Dior, I think it will suit me.

Please don't trust my translation, my Russian sucks. I'll put the actual Russian text at the end of this post so you can read the original.

Dear Valentina

Dear Valentina, 

Love,
Nabs (and her squad)

Weekend with Grebs, Doctor Kitty and the Goddess of Gymnastics

A lot going on these past few weeks. There was Bern, two Princess Tuts, and Classics with Bogi. Afan went to see the German Miracle Doctors and Nastia and Chuso were having fun of their own... Oh, and the Rio medals were announced. I didn't like them.
-----
Grebs and his gang of girls went out to have some fun in Bern after the competition.

Queen Aliya and Afan were missing. Maybe napping? That's what Aly and I would have done. Let the youngsters who still have energy enjoy it. Or maybe they took the first flight back to Russia to see their boyfriends and have some nice down time home before the next camp. Or in Afan's case, surgery.

Things I Love about Aliya's Beam Routine

This was just for some tumblr fun :) Because what a routine.

Vika is not retiring...yet

Russian press is starting to catch up on Viktoria Komova and her announcement to withdraw from training ahead of Rio. And there's some good news: she isn't retiring. At least according to her father.

TASS spoke with Vika's father Aleksandr Komov and he said that Vika is still planning on returning, if her health allows.

"Vika really wants to return to the gym, but her health doesn't permit it. She said that the pain is too much to endure and train with now, but it wasn't a statement about her future in the sport. She can't prepare for the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, therefore there's no point in training at the moment."

"Right now she needs to concentrate fully on her health and if the doctors can help her, it's likely that we'll be pleased to see her returning to gymnastics." 

They also spoke to Grebs who said he had no idea what was going on with Vika.

"Vika is not at the training camp, I don't have any information about this."

I find this slightly concerning.  This reminds me of her other heath struggles during the past few years, when she was just over it, left her coach and refused to return to the camp. No one really knew what was going on with her and Andrei ended up calling her demanding her to come back.

As usual, V-Rod also has no idea what's going on, but is still giving out comments pretending that she does, so she has a completely different point of view on this. This is from R-sport.

"Komova is finished with gymnastics because of her health. Yes, she is retiring. She has some problems with her back and can't work to full capacity, that's why she doesn't want to stay. She approached her coach about wanting to quit, they talked with her father and made the decision together."

The other publications are at the moment just recycling these two comments, nothing from Vika herself, even on social media.

I believe that she probably has the intention to return, but whether she can is another story. It seems like she just has one of those bodies that's not build to last in a sport like this. Perhaps the universe can only give us a little bit of her at a time, it makes us truly appreciate the beauty. So unfair.

And here's a little something found on tumblr (originally from here), I couldn't have described the 2012 Vika better.

On the other hand, Komova, who is unmistakably Russian, still looked like a character in a Chekhov play, acting out a grand drama on the balance beam. You could see the nerves in her small face, the anxiety pooling in those huge blue Slavic eyes. And like all the Russian gymnasts, she is a classically trained ballerina, and she moves with a kind of layered intricacy, beautiful and strangely melancholy at once… And one could imagine Komova as gymnastics’ tragic heroine, fragile and beautiful, nervily expressive of the sport’s flaws even as she accomplished something extraordinary. But to imagine these narratives is to realize how complicated the stories really are. To be a young woman dedicated to a sport that spits you out so quickly is to be at once incredibly lucky and incredibly challenged. Where, again, will each of these young women find so receptive and expansive an outlet for her ambition, her self-determination, her strength? Can they find a new, meaningful purpose, or does being thrust out of the sport in their early 20s leave them almost permanently at loose ends? 

Euros 2016: The Aftermath

I was really exhausted after the European Championships, but now that I've taken some time to relax and rewind, why not have a recap of sorts.

The European Championships was obviously a big success for Russia. They won the most important title, team gold, which is very encouraging considering it's the Olympic year. 4 individual medals is not bad either, especially with the beam gold for Aliya. Russia has been hit hard this year with the doping scandal that just won't go away, so good news like this got a decent amount of media attention. The Russian Minister of Sports Vitaly Mutko didn't actually have anything to say about gymnastics itself, but managed to mention the Euros and how the Russians topped the medal standings with everyone passing their drug tests. Congrats team, the most important thing in the competition was that your pee was clear. Well, he did also say that he wanted to congratulate them and would stop by for a visit. I don't know if he dares though, remember when he visited Round Lake and this happened?

I'd be scared. That's what you get for trying to limit the Queen's reign to two Olympics.

Nabs and Nabs 2.0 are making a bad day better

I'm still crying about Vika, but...

The Nabs is back! 

Лена Еремина

Video, jonka Vera Kiryashova (@kiryashova) julkaisi 15. 06ta 2016 klo 14.40 PDT

Elena Eremina, Tatiana Nabieva's mini-me, actually followed in her teammates footsteps and brought back the Nabieva, the most difficult release move on the uneven bars. I don't think anyone has performed it in competition after Nabs herself, so hopefully Lena can integrate it in her routine in the future. The Russians really need a good daredevil to mix things up next quad, Princess Tut has been filling that role all by herself and performing under pressure is not her thing.

The Beauty of Our Time

Viktoria Komova posted this on VK last night:

Dear friends, fans, and gymnastics lovers. Unfortunately back pain isn’t allowing me to train to my full potential and get ready for competitions. I’ve made the very difficult decision to stop training and take care of my health. I want to thank everyone for their support! Without your love and warmth it would’ve been more difficult to go all the way. Thanks everyone and see you soon! Love and kisses.

Which I guess means that she's out of the running for Rio. And perhaps done for good. A big question mark there.

I think she's the most beautiful gymnast of the last quad and certainly one of the most talented. I'm going to miss her so much and I'm not going to even say anything more, just post what I think are some of her best routines let this harmony of beauty and difficulty speak for itself.

Euros 2016: Congrats Nastia! but i'm tired

The competition is officially over and I'm actually happy, because I'm just so tired. Spending day after day being overly emotionally invested to a bunch of headcases and My Tsaritsa Aliya just takes its toll. So I apologize if I'm not doing too good of a job with the recap of the junior event finals.

Euros 2016: Senior Event Finals w/ the Queen and her gold!

Conqueror of the podium struck again! The Queen graced us with her presence and took the gold. Never underestimate her ever again.

Just wait until balance beam...

...hell yeah!

Euros 2016: TOO MANY FEELS

I'm writing this while watching the US Secret Classic live, so sorry in advance for any incoherence. I'm always incoherent (English is not my first (or even second) language and I resent proof reading), but today I might be even more so than usual. It has nothing to do with the bottle of wine I drank in order to get through balance beam and floor. NOTHING!

But let me tell you about that wine. I thought the competition was going to begin later like yesterday, but it didn't. So I noticed 13 minutes before the competition was about to begin that I had 13 minutes to go and find some alcohol. I was in my comfy unitard pajamas, because Saturday, ya know, so I threw on some clothes, put my hair in a tight bun, no time for brushing, searched for my keys and stormed out with ten minutes to the start of the competition. And I made it back in 8 minutes! That must be a record or something. There were 2 people in the line in front of me at the liquor store but I was patient and I waited and the cashier had trouble with my ID (a passport from when I was 16 lol) and I still made it! Amazing.

So I basically gave the European Championships team title to GB earlier, but that was incredibly stupid of me. Because as I've been telling you, for Mother Russia, bad qualification equals good results. I also posted this on my tumblr before the competition even began:

I have strong evidence that the Russians are going to be European Champions. Today I decided to treat myself to some terribly over-priced non-coffee and walked into a Starbucks. They took my order and asked me to repeat my name twice, like usual. What was unusual, was that when I picked up my coffee, I noticed that THEY GOT MY NAME RIGHT. Yes. Do you know the last time that happened? In 2010. Do you know something else that last time happened in 2010? The Russians winning European Championships. Strong. Evidence.

That is inductive logic at its finest and it held up. IT HELD UP! Russia won with a lot of points to spare. Sorry for yelling "I told you so" again, I'm obnoxious, I know. And there's even something that I didn't mention in that post: in 2010 when Starbucks got my name right, I was in Switzerland! It wasn't in Bern, though, it was in Zurich. They actually asked me how to spell my name and got it right. Amazing. When I was in New York in 2014, they also asked me how to spell my name and still got it wrong! So no gold for Russia in 2014.

But let's begin.

Euros 2016: a terrible, horrible, no good day ending with a gold medal

The junior all around was a wild ride from start to finish, and not in a good way. But do you see the logic? Good qualification, bad competition! It's the way of Russia and we saw that today. Hopefully we'll see the opposite from the seniors tomorrow.

They only one from the top group who had a good competition was Martina Basile from Italy. She qualified 6th, but gave good, consistent performances throughout the competition rising all the way to a bronze medal. The silver medalist Lynn Genhart from Switzerland also did amazing. She qualified way back in 14th, but improved her score by almost two points with brilliant nearly error-free routines in front of her home audience. She was less than 2 tenths from gold, very impressive.

But the winner and gold medalist was the Russian Elena Eremina. She qualified first and ended up with the gold medal, but it was a rocky road. Unlike the other medalists, she was over 2 points behind her qualification score, which tells you pretty much how the day went. Congratulations to her anyway, what was a bad day for her, was still worth gold and the title of an European All Around Champion, quite an achievement. She was the best because she sucked the least, sometimes that's enough. Her total was 54.550.

Meanwhile in Bern...

Let's just say there was a lot going on during the qualification. Aliya certainly didn't come back from the dead for the hundredth time just to end up in second place.

Euros 2016: Senior Qualification

I was going through the pictures from the qualifying and THIS. It's just unfair. She's just warming up in the hassle of the arena and manages to look like a perfect add for bottled water or something. "Take in the pure feeling! Find your inner peace in the small moments of life! Take a break out of the everyday life and enjoy the moment!" Whatever.

Not that I've established The Queen's superiority in looking good, whatever the situation, let's move onto the actual competition.

Euros 2016: I TOLD YOU SO

This was my tumblr ask today and yesterday (before the qualification):

16 years of Junior European Champions

I mentioned when writing about the junior podium training, that my baby swans were expected to take gold. Because they've taken gold for years and years now. A fellow tumblr blogger and Russian gymnastics enthusiast v-komova did what I was too lazy to do, and put together a collection of Russian Junior European Champion team pictures.

Enjoy!

2000

Euros 2016: Golden Baby Swans!

The Russian junior team won team gold ahead of GB and Romania with a huge 4 point lead. I'm so proud! Just look at the happiness and let it fill you, because tomorrow might not go as well.

My baby swans started on their best apparatus, uneven bars, with hit routines.