Olympic champion Aliya Mustafina returns to national camp in new role

Russia’s Aliya Mustafina, winner of uneven bars Olympic gold at London 2012 and Rio 2016, has returned to Round Lake, the famous Russian gymnastics national training centre, according to an interview with the Russian Olympic Committee and translated into English by Gymnovosti.

“Helping, giving advice. You can say I do everything. At the moment, there aren’t that many gymnasts at Round Lake,” Mustafina said of her role. “Proper work will start during the next camp.”

What her coaching means for her athletic future remains uncertain. The 2010 World all-around champion last competed in 2019 when she won the Birmingham World Cup. But, then, a series of injuries led to withdrawals from the European Championships, European Games and ultimately the World Championships.

Asked about her training, Mustafina declined to give detail.

“I’m not talking about it or commenting on it,” she said, though she was recently included as a reserve national team member.

Muriel Grossfeld passes away

Three-time Olympian Muriel Grossfeld passed away at age 80 on Sunday, 17 January. The American was a history-maker for Team USA, competing at the 1956, 1960 and 1964 Olympic Games.

After her competitive career, she stayed close to the sport as a coach, judge and clinician, leaving her indelible mark on the sport in the United States.

“Her passion for our sport was undeniable, and her efforts were instrumental to the growth of women’s gymnastics in the United States,” said Li Li Leung, CEO of USA Gymnastics.

18-times Grossfeld was a U.S. champion. She was a member of the gold medal-winning 1963 Pan American Games team and she scored a perfect 10.0 at the 1964 Olympic Trials, the first American to achieve the mark domestically. As a coach, she served the U.S. team at the 1968 and 1972 Olympics.

MyKayla Skinner on mend after bout with COVID-19

2016 U.S. Olympic gymnastics team alternate MyKayla Skinner is slowly returning to training after a bad bout with the COVID-19 virus, according to an interview with her long-time coach Lisa Spini in the Salt Lake Tribute.

“She is still weak and is just now doing some cardio like long walks and Peloton,” she said. “We are going to start back in the gym working with basic and flexibility.”

Still, Spini says that Skinner will recover and look to make a run at a very competitive U.S. team in the summer. According to Spini, her pupil may attend next month’s Winter Cup in Indianapolis and perform on one or two events.

“She might be able to compete in an event or two,” she said. “Some people don’t get affected by COVID-19 and others it kicks their butt. She can come back from it. She is tough and if anyone can do it she can, but we have to be smart and give her time to get over it.”

Look no further than the Olympic Channel

In case you missed it, last week, we spoke to one of the NCAA’s best women’s collegiate gymnasts: Trinity Thomas. A junior at the University of Florida, Thomas is in the middle of a balancing act few have even attempted: elite and college gymnastics simultaneously. 

“I wasn't quite done, so I decided that I was going to do both,” Thomas told Olympic Channel. “My personal perspective on gymnastics has changed a lot since I've gotten older, and I just knew that I had an opportunity that most people don't get. I knew that if I didn't take advantage of that opportunity, I would regret it later.”

From the vault…

This week, we take a look back at the legendary 1992 Unified Team on balance beam. The Unified Team won the team gold medal, the 10th for the Soviet Union. In this rotation, Tatiana Lysenko, who also won balance beam gold at the Games, and Svetlana Boginskaya led the team effort, posting scores of a 9.950 and 9.925, respectively.