Ksenia Afanasyeva Has Retired

It's official. Or as official as Valentina Rodionenko's sudden announcements can be, but Ksenia Afanasyeva has retired, and is now a coach at Round Lake. The World Champion and 2-time European Champion on floor exercise is giving the National Team her expertise in choreography. So I guess we found out what the rumor about Afan being at Round Lake was all about.

This is obviously a huge loss for the Russian team and fans, Afan has been the longest serving member of the team for years now and pretty much single-handedly kept the team afloat on floor during the last quadrennium. She has struggled with injuries throughout her entire career and according to V-Rod, her body can't take full training anymore.

Afan had a baby last year and I've been expecting her retirement, but it's still sad. She has made a comeback after comeback and it seemed like she would always be there to surprise us. There would always be a new Afanar, a new floor exercise with her particular brand of choreography and music. I'm going to really miss her.

Source.