Stuttgart World Cup: Spiri as a vault specialist?

Russia won the Team Challenge! But let's not get too excited...

1. Russia 2. Germany 3. Spain
This was the only picture of the podium, sorry Spain :(

The DTB Pokal Team Challenge final was yesterday and Russia showed up in one of my favorite leotards. They were promising me good things with that leo, but didn't deliver. They did win by several points, but it was not because they were really good.

Stuttgart World Cup: See, she didn't die

Everyone seemed to be a bit very scared about Angelina Melnikova competing at the Stuttgart World Cup, but she did fine. She survived. More than that, she wasn't even bad, she was perfectly in shape for a World Cup competition and her preparation for Euros seems to be going well. And this is why you don't go into panic mode after Russian domestic competitions. A statement I have to keep repeating after every Russian Nationals and Russian Cup, because they're just that bad and will probably always be. But the team will still usually get it somewhat together before an international meet.

1. Tabea Alt 2. Angelina Melnikova 3. Morgan Hurd

Stuttgart World Cup: Not getting surgery this time

I always find it a tiny bit confusing when the Russians go to Germany and it's not for some medical treatment. But this time they're in Stuttgart, Germany, trying desperately to prepare for Europeans. Natalia Kapitonova, Elena Eremina, Daria Spiridonova and Lilia Akhaimova are competing at the Team Challenge, and Angelina Melnikova is taking part in the World Cup competition. The original team included Seda Tutkhalyan, and switching her with Kapi probably means that Seda is a lock for Euros already. They're testing Lilia, Lena and Kapi (and Spiri) trying to figure out the rest of the team.

The team with American Infiltrator Morgan Hurd