Speech by Yana Kudryavtseva. Yana Kudryavtseva is a silver medalist at the Rio Olympics. A dog raised in Novogorsk

On Saturday, in exact accordance with the forecast, two awards at once - gold and silver - were won by the Russians following the results of the Olympic tournament in rhythmic gymnastics in the individual all-around. The victory went to Margarita Mamun, and 13-time world champion Yana Kudryavtseva, who was considered the favorite, was left with silver due to an error in the exercise with clubs. And on Sunday, the Russian team won gold in group exercises. Thus, our team takes both gold medals at stake in rhythmic gymnastics at the Olympics for the fifth time in a row. VALERIYA MIRONOVA - with details from Rio de Janeiro.

In a similar situation to the one in which the super champion of those years Alina Kabaeva found herself at the Sydney Games in 2000, Yana Kudryavtseva found herself in Rio, who by the age of 18 had won the all-around three times at the world championships, and in total had already earned 13 top world titles. The hoop “ran away” from Alina Kabaeva in Australia, and with it the Olympic title. It then went to her team colleague Yulia Barsukova. Kabaeva achieved her goal only four years later in Athens. In Rio, Yana Kudryavtseva, despite undergoing a complex operation on her foot at the end of last year (her scaphoid bone was completely crushed in the instep area) and a three-month absence from competitive practice, arrived as the favorite. With all due respect to Margarita Mamun, who also won several events at the World Championships during her career, this brilliant 19-year-old gymnast was still considered number two on the team. But it was she, and not Yana Kudryavtseva, who was destined to win here, first the qualifying competitions, in which both of our athletes made mistakes, and then the finals.

The main all-around competition, in which ten finalists sequentially performed exercises with a hoop, ball, clubs and ribbon, was opened by Margarita Mamun. However, after her two absolutely error-free performances, there was a feeling that the judges, despite all their impartiality (this fact was noted by all the participants here), still slightly held back their assessments. Probably because then it was Yana Kudryavtseva’s turn. And the referees, naturally, knew firsthand how charmingly she could do her exercises. And when for her performances, first with the hoop, and then with the ball, Kudryavtseva received one and a half to two tenths of a point more than Margarita Mamun, the feeling that she was being brought to the highest pedestal became stronger.

But everything changed in one second. With the final chord of the “cosmic” composition, to which Kudryavtseva launched, there were clubs to the sky, but she could not catch it back. Although she tried to hide her embarrassment, already lying in the final position and covering the clubs with her hand. This mistake decided the fate of the Olympic gold, which smoothly rolled from her hands into the hands of her reliable backup. Ironically, Yana Kudryavtseva was let down by subjects for which she was less worried than others. “The most difficult exercises for me are with a hoop and ribbon,” she told Kommersant. “You have to run, jump, jump and fly, which, given my injury, is unsafe for me. Maces are calmer. There you work more with your hands.”

It is noteworthy that the victory in the final event - in the exercise with a ribbon - again went to Yana Kudryavtseva. But she approached him, knowing for sure that under no circumstances would she become a champion.

Recalling the fatal moment for her, Yana Kudryavtseva said: “At the end of the performance, my strength was already running out, I threw the clubs poorly and did not have time to realize that they were not flying well. That is, she could have done something, but did not have time. There is, of course, a disorder, but there might not have been any silver.”

Margarita Mamun (right) in the individual all-around was ahead of her titled partner on the Russian national team, tournament favorite Yana Kudryavtseva

And Margarita Mamun, who purely performed all her compositions, choreographed by the team’s senior coach Irina Zenovka and perfected in collaboration with personal trainer Amina Zaripova under the supervision of the President of the Russian Rhythmic Gymnastics Federation and the head coach of the national team Irina Viner-Usmanova, was in seventh heaven. “In general, I felt calm,” the Olympic champion recalls her feelings during the tournament. “I didn’t see Yana’s mistake and didn’t know who was in which place. I found out about the mistake when Yana made the tape and came to me. I also made a mistake in qualifying - I was distracted for a split second. But after yesterday’s maces, I was no longer afraid of making mistakes again. Our sport is like this: go out and do it. I made a mistake - it's only your fault. Yana and I always support each other and have become family to each other.”

Irina Viner-Usmanova believes that Margarita Mamun did all the exercises very cleanly. But the outstanding specialist especially noted her exercise with the tape. “The tape is the last view on which everything could be decided. This is a very difficult subject, especially in Brazil where there is a lot of humidity. We were scared that the ribbons would be tied, but I told the girls right away - some will be first, some won’t, and we worked calmly and correctly,” Mrs. Viner-Usmanova emphasized.

And she called Yana Kudryavtseva’s performance a feat and a huge victory, bearing in mind everything she experienced after the 2015 World Championships, in which the gymnast won with a broken leg. “Yana underwent a major operation, was in a cast for a month, and then had a long recovery. And today we saw the highest rating in three out of four types. In just one way, Yana did not complete the job,” Ms. Viner-Usmanova expressed regret and wished Yana Kudryavtseva, drawing an analogy with Alina Kabaeva, to correct the situation at the 2020 Games in Tokyo.

The Olympic triumph of Russian rhythmic gymnastics became complete - for the fifth time in a row - the next day, when group exercises took place. And this ending had a completely different plot than the personal ending. He even made me remember that there were times when someone else could challenge Russian “artists” and could get ahead of them.

In Rio, the challenge was posed by the Spanish women, who had prepared well for this Olympics. Just as cool as the 1996 Olympics, when the group won gold. They excelled in the qualifications, and in the first final exercise - with five ribbons - they were a little ahead of the Russian group, by two tenths of a point. Moreover, the Bulgarians wedged themselves between the two favorites. There were whispers in the stands about a sensation until the Russian five - Vera Biryukova, Anastasia Bliznyuk, Anastasia Maksimova, Anastasia Tatareva and Maria Tolkacheva - performed in exercises with three clubs and two hoops.

It was an amazing program in terms of dynamics and richness of complex elements. And for it the Russian group received an amazing score - 18.633. Against the background of her performances, even the really, really decent performances of the Spanish and Bulgarian women did not look good. These universes were too different. And the points received for clubs and hoops were, of course, enough for the Russian girls to take gold in total.

The world champion talks about her failure in Rio, her life after the 2016 Games and why she decided to retire in the winter

H World champion Yana Kudryavtseva was the favorite of the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro in the individual all-around. Despite the foot injury and the surgery she underwent a year before the Games, no one doubted her victory - neither her relatives, nor her fans, nor her coaches. The athlete herself was also expecting gold. But history was written differently: in the mace exercise, Kudryavtseva made a loss, and her friend and rival performed her programs without errors and beat Yana. Kudryavtseva won silver, and a few months later she decided to leave the big sport.

- At what point did you realize that you were finishing?

Everything had some swings: I finish, I don’t finish. Before the Olympics, when we worked at the training camp in Sao Paulo, I thought that I would finish one hundred percent, because it was very difficult. My legs hurt, and it was very difficult mentally. After my performance at the Games, I decided that I would stay - since I’m second, I need gold... They gave me the opportunity to rest as much as I wanted, they said - even if you rest for a year, we are waiting for you, come back. But even in ordinary life, my legs continued to hurt and react to the weather. After the New Year, I already realized for sure that that’s it. The team's bench is big, you can't jump over anyone there.

- So you weren’t lying when you said in Rio that there were thoughts of performing at Tokyo 2020?

After the Olympics, Rita and I were chatting, I said: “Well, another one?” Rita said emotionally: “No!” And I - that I will stay. And then I made another decision.

- Was it difficult to decide?

It’s probably difficult to realize that that’s it. I still miss it when I watch the video... But I wanted to try a new life. Now everything has more or less settled down, there is something to do with myself.

-Have you adapted to your new life?

I need to graduate from college next year. I'm studying to be a trainer. And then I’ll think about it. I would like to maybe become a TV presenter. I am more drawn in this direction than towards a coaching career. But these are thoughts, I haven’t seriously thought about it yet.

WITHOUT TRAINING, BUT AGAIN IN GYMNASTICS

- Did you train this year?

I went to the gym a couple of times. But, apparently, I’m so tired of this that I just can’t. When I give master classes, of course, I work at full capacity for eight hours, but in such a way as to fully train, this never happened. Such light things as twine do not go away quickly - I think I will be able to sit down for a long time without any problems. But now I can’t handle the jump - my legs are already relaxed. I'll jump and break something. But it can be returned if you want.

- After the master classes, you realized that you won’t become a trainer?

I immediately understood that I was not ready to devote my whole life to this. Because every coach here forgets about his own children and sits in the gym all day long. I think it's very difficult. Maybe when the time comes and I get older, it will be interesting to me.

- And something close to gymnastics? For example, become a choreographer?

I don't have any experience yet. We need to learn from very young children and create programs for them to begin with. They told me that I have the makings, so we’ll wait and see.

FEAR OF AIRPLANES AND FIGURE AFTER SPORTS

- What was the most memorable thing this year?

I managed to go on vacation twice. There was no need to get up and train. The first two months after the Olympics I just lay there, slept like a lazy seal, rested from everything and ate. I was this size (throws up his hands)! And then, as soon as I started to travel to Moscow - at that time I lived in St. Petersburg - all sorts of events began. For the first two months I almost didn’t answer the phone. And then it became boring, I had to do something. My year hasn't been too eventful.

- Did you manage to do anything special?

But there were no thrills, I didn’t jump with a parachute - I’m afraid of it all. I'm afraid to fly on an airplane! And if I take a chance with a parachute, it seems that my heart will stop.

- How did you fly all this time to numerous competitions and training camps?

Terrible! It’s not always scary, but when we take off, if it shakes a little, I panic, I’m very afraid. When I finished sports, I felt better. But all the same, if I need to go somewhere nearby, I’d rather go by train.

- Do you have to go to Rostov, where your young man is playing now, by plane?

Far. I specifically looked, the fastest train is 15 hours. I think no, it’s better to wait for the plane for an hour.

- Do you follow football?

Yes, I'm watching. In general, I love team sports; if possible, I always watch them. I often have football on, even if there is an interesting program on another channel. I started to understand a little, but I’m not an ardent fan or an armchair critic.

- Do you go to matches?

Yes, I often attended games when I lived in St. Petersburg. I even flew to Kazan for the Super Cup.

-Where did you go on vacation?

We flew to Monaco. I had never had a good rest anywhere before. If only with parents. But in the morning - go for a run, at nine in the evening - go to bed. The regime was even on vacation. And you can’t eat too much; on the plane you sit all bundled up so that it doesn’t get too cold. And here you could relax - eat, swim, and walk all night.

- What was the most difficult limitation of sports?

Overall it wasn't easy. And that we rarely see our parents, although I was lucky - I have them in Moscow, but I didn’t have time even on weekends. And we wanted to eat more than we ate. Although I didn’t restrict myself too much in food, it also happened that I could fast one day in order to eat a burger the next. They never forbade me from eating sweets, they said: the main thing is to get on the scales and eat that much. How to achieve this is your problem. If they saw me with a chocolate bar, they wouldn’t scold me. The coach sometimes brought me chocolates herself. They were worried not because of my figure, but because I have problems with my leg - every three hundred grams had a noticeable effect.

- Have you really started eating more? Outwardly, it seems that right now you can put on a swimsuit and hit the carpet.

When I just finished, I gained eight kilograms in three months. But I was really very plump, really! I couldn’t look at myself in the mirror - it was uncomfortable. But now it has started to go away on its own, I don’t know what it depends on. Now I eat like normal people, although I don’t really like sweets.

MAMUN'S WEDDING

- Last week Margarita Mamun and Alexander Sukhorukov got married...

Yes, the celebration was very beautiful. Before that, I was at my parents’ wedding (they got married when I was five years old), and also at. I really love Rita and Sasha and their sincere spiritual union.

- Was the program big?

I left quite early, at ten o’clock, because there was a flight to Krasnodar early in the morning - I was flying to a master class. The first dance was very touching. Compared to Zhenya Kanaeva’s wedding, there were not so many guests - about a hundred people. The closest people gathered were, of course, mostly swimmers and gymnasts. Rita had two dresses: one with long sleeves and the other with short sleeves. Everything was super beautiful!

- What did you give?

Oil painting - the artist painted Rita and Sasha. Black and white, in her style.

- Do you often manage to communicate with Rita?

Less often, of course, than before, but we still try to keep in touch. We are on very good terms and communicate whenever possible.

- Do you communicate with your personal trainer Elena Karpushenko?

Of course, but much less. We spent so many years together - in the end, it seems to me, we were tired of each other. But I came to Krylya Sovetov a couple of times, where she trains and raises new stars.

STRONG CHARACTER AND THE FATHER

- Was there any residue left after the Olympics that there was silver instead of gold?

I'm very glad that I got there at all. No one can imagine how hard it was to prepare and not know until the last minute whether you would go there or not. Your leg hurts, everyone is training, but you can’t even stand on a half-toe - what Olympics? When I dropped my mace in Rio... I thought that I wouldn’t compete at all in the last event. Elena Lvovna says: “Are you crazy?” But I don’t, that’s all. But then I finally got ready... For the first two days after the competition, I was constantly thinking about it. And now I understand that it’s cool that I even got there with such an injury and with such a character. I have a very difficult character. And I have a silver medal! When I went to the ribbon, I thought to myself: “Now I’ll drop the ribbon, and in general I won’t be among the top three winners.” It was hard... And now I even watch the video where I drop this mace. And nothing.

- Really difficult character?

Well, the training is very hard! I can not only argue with the coach, but also give myself a task. But it was already from the age of 17 - 18, my “I” appeared. I can’t imagine how Elena Lvovna worked with me, how she didn’t kill me.

- Isn’t it like that in life?

With girlfriends and parents everything is fine, but with a young man, of course, it’s difficult. I can’t change my mind right after sports. Sometimes it’s like there are two men in the family. There are some points where you can’t argue with me! Everyone is already giving up: okay, let it be your way. Such is the character.

- Your father, an Olympic champion in swimming, is strict?

Strict. He and I are both stubborn. But my mother is different, we are like friends.

- How did your parents greet you after the Olympics? Dad didn’t say: daughter, I was waiting for gold?

Everyone was waiting, there was no need to even talk about it - and it’s understandable. But after the Olympics, when I called my father, he said: “You did everything you could, well done.” Normally supported. Although I thought it would be worse, I thought that I wouldn’t be allowed to go home after the Olympics with a silver medal. But they were received well.

- Talk to anyone from the world of rhythmic gymnastics - everyone talks about the role Irina Viner-Usmanova played in their lives.

We thank Irina Alexandrovna for every word, we take everyone seriously. Her words were encouraging - everything was said on time and to the point. She can do this very well.

- Was there any key moment?

I remember at the first World Championships in Kyiv, when I did the last look, I didn’t know which one I was going for. There was such a girl out of this world, lost, it was her first big competition. And I didn't know what Rita dropped. I couldn't even believe that I could win. And the last thing I had were clubs. Irina Aleksandrovna came up and said: “Well, come on, Kudryavtseva, all of Russia is behind you. If you drop it, they will forget you forever.” I thought then: I’m little, I’m 15 years old - what kind of Russia is behind me? But it spurred me on. Everything was always on point and on time.

- Laysan Utyasheva once said in an interview that the world of rhythmic gymnastics is like a jungle. Do you agree?

The jungle is suitable in principle, but I never thought about it. I had no one, somehow I was away from all this all the time - I lived alone or with Rita Mamun, I didn’t bother anyone. A women's team is always difficult. But there has never been such a thing as someone cutting each other’s swimsuits or fighting. The worst thing is that they might whisper behind your back.

Looking at rhythmic gymnastics from the outside, it seems that you, athletes, live under constant pressure - there are no places other than the first. How do you deal with this?

I never had the thought: “I’m second - that’s it, the end of life.” It will drive you crazy, because competitions take place every week. Many people don’t believe it, but for me, the main thing was that the Russian flag should come first. If it doesn't exist, everyone will get it.

- It will be bad for everyone - how is that?

In Kyiv, when the all-around competition was going on, we did the first event poorly - I couldn’t cope with something, and Rita dropped it. And after each event, the anthem of the country that is in the lead was played. And then the Ukrainian anthem began to play, Irina Aleksandrovna hears and understands that Anna Rizatdinova is going first... All the volunteers there just ran away... But in this sense I don’t give a damn: they’ll yell and stop. I take this calmly. True, when I first got to Novogorsk, I was very afraid of Irina Alexandrovna.

DATA NOTICED BY FATHER'S FRIEND'S WIFE

- How did you get to the base?

It was so long ago... I won a medal, it seems, at the national championship, and I was invited to train. Then I was selected for Children's Europe. After that, I started performing in the masters, and they told me: so what if you’re a European champion, it’s just in juniors. Now you have to earn your place again. I returned to train at Wings. And only after I won a silver medal at the Russian Championship and became second, I was allowed to train in Novogorsk again.

- Did your parents know right away that you would follow the path of sports?

My first coach, Ekaterina Pankova, told me how she found me. We were family friends - her husband Dima and my dad swam together, then fate separated them for some time. One day they met and dad invited them to dinner at our house. And so Dima says that his wife is a rhythmic gymnastics coach. And dad says that we have a little daughter, but she swims - I had already been studying for a year at that time. Ekaterina Valentinovna came into the room and looked - I have such insteps, I’m all so thin and with long legs. I have always been a kind of SpongeBob: without a waist, without everything, just these boxes and two long sticks. The coach later told me how she walked around the house all that evening and thought: we need to do something, something will definitely come of this girl. And for about a month they tried to persuade my parents to send me to gymnastics. This is how fate brought us together...

- Do you still know how to swim well?

Well, yes. I like to swim in the sea or pool.

A BROKEN NOSE AND A PSYCHOLOGIST FATHER

- Of all your programs that have ever been, which is your favorite?

In 2013, I really liked the ball that I used at the European Championships in Vienna - to the music of Chopin. From the Olympic programs - clubs for the Flight of the Bumblebee. And from the latter there is also a hoop, under “Horse”. It’s not that I didn’t like the tape, but according to statistics, at all major competitions, my grades in this exercise were lower by about half a point. Something didn't work out all the time. I had “bows” tied at competitions, and the ribbon would fly off the platform and slip at the end... I generally loved falling at competitions, I felt slippery all the time. I remember when I fell on my nose...

- And that was it?

Yes. I used to have such a beautiful nose, without a hump. This was right at the beginning of the exercise, I got up (I don’t know how!) and continued further. There was no blood, I don’t know if there was a fracture, but the bruises were so concrete. And then I laughed, saying, Irina Alexandrovna, will you pay for my rhinoplasty? She answered that everything was fine with me. Later they asked me why I didn’t put my hand up in that episode. But I had a ball in my hands, I couldn’t drop it! I don’t know how I got up and continued, but with the ball I came second, and then I competed in two more events and won.

- How did you spend your free time at the training camp?

Our favorite place was MEGA. Eat, go to the cinema or go shopping - so as not to travel far and not get tired. We walked around the base, we had Segways. They played cards and came up with something all the time. Elena Lvovna and I most often had training camps in Finland, there is such a base there that you can walk for hours. I love this country in general, it’s probably my favorite.

- Did they take away the phones?

For me - never. Well, I didn't give it away. They always took it away from the group members, but somehow Rita and I didn’t. I talk to my dad, he is my personal psychologist - how will I cope without him?

- Did you help me get ready?

Yes. I needed to hear that if I lost, it was okay. I felt calmer that way.

- Is your younger sister not an athlete?

No, she is far from sports. I tried to play tennis, but it didn’t work out. Looking for some kind of “easy” sport where you have to do the least amount of things. Dreams of starting to play golf. I tease her, saying, do you know how long it takes to get to the hole?

- Did she root for you?

No, I wasn’t particularly interested. When we performed, grandma sat in front of the icons, and Anya said: “Grandma is crying, but I don’t understand why.” I answer: “Anh, well, I lost, didn’t you watch?” She says she looked, but she doesn't care. She is eight years old already, an adult, but still doesn’t really delve into it. We are generally very different - she is so active, very sociable and open.

- Does your shared dog with Rita Mamun, Lebrosha, live with your sister?

Yes, they came to see me the other day and asked me to leave the dog for a couple of days, but my mother didn’t want to. The dog is just perfect - if you want to play, she will play with you, but if she gets tired, she will lie down somewhere.

- A dog raised in Novogorsk...

Exactly. It seems to me that it was hard for her there - she lived in our room, sat alone while we went to training. We had a lot of people there, even once a small pig - a mini-pig, with one of the group members. Hamsters, rats, fish... There weren't really any dogs or cats.

DATA OR HARD WORK?

- Do you keep in touch with any of the current athletes?

I communicate very well with Sasha Soldatova and Nastya Bliznyuk. Someone can write - we’ll be happy to chat, but very close - with no one.

- Don’t you look at the base?

I came to a control training session before the World Championships in Pesaro - Irina Aleksandrovna invited me. This is the only time. As it is, there are too many memories, and very different ones, that’s why I don’t look too much.

Why do you think Soldatova failed to pick up your baton this season and become the team leader?

Of course, everyone expected this, and, probably, this very “you must, you will” turned out to be very difficult. Moreover, Sasha did not have parents who would find the right words, maybe she did not have such a character - I was born in such a family. Not everyone can do this, but I think she did everything she could. God grant that everything works out next year.

- They say that her natural abilities and flexibility are simply incredible.

Yes, she is very flexible. I'm not flexible, for example, but I'm a world champion. This is not the main criterion for which one can become a star; a lot must come together.

-Are you not flexible?

Not like Sasha. My back is still “oaky”. As a child, stretching was, of course, difficult. And then they stretched just to warm up.

- Mamun said that everything in gymnastics was given to her not by talent, but by hard work. And you?

I feel better, I think. Her data is worse, of course, but her main quality is that she is very hardworking. I’m still not like that, I can be free somewhere... But I was lucky. In addition, I am two years younger, this also affected.

- Do you consider yourself lucky?

Yes. So, we competed at the World Championships in Stuttgart, and after several subjects I came second. And then Rita drops it. And so on in different competitions. At the World Championships in Izmir, we performed well in all events together, but I won. Rita made a mistake somewhere and gave me a chance. Lucky.

- Everyone talked about your rivalry and friendship. Was there never any resentment towards each other?

We never even quarreled! But it’s simply impossible to quarrel with Rita. I’m such a super emotional person, I can yell or do something else. And she even speaks in a whisper, that’s how she was raised. It was even impossible to shout at her. We always communicated very closely. It happened that we were sitting after the competition, and Rita was upset - like, why am I dropping? I came up and said, let’s watch the video, here’s where you dropped your hand early, here’s something else. They even suggested something to each other.

DREAM IS TO BE BACK AT THE DRIVE

- Do you drive an Olympic BMW?

Immediately after the Games I gave the car to my mother. In St. Petersburg I had another car, but now I have returned to Moscow and still without a car. When my mother goes away, she sometimes leaves me the car.

- What car do you want now?

In general, I love big cars, for example, Range Rover, Gelendvagen, Land Cruiser 200. I drove a racing Mercedes - it’s my car, I really liked it, but the Porsche is not mine.

- Do you generally like to drive?

Very! I love driving and speed. I really want a car now - at least some kind. By the way, it’s my birthday soon (laughs).

- We'll give you a hint. By the way, how are you going to celebrate?

Probably first with loved ones, and then with friends. I think it will be some kind of party - karaoke, cafe, club, but definitely not at home. I have a large circle, about 15-20 people. There is still time to prepare and figure out how to celebrate my 20th birthday.

The athlete, who had never made a mistake before, it seems, had never made a loss in the exercise with clubs that cost her the fight for gold: after the final exercise with the ribbon, Mamun became unattainable.

Kudryavtseva told in an interview with R-Sport correspondent Elena Sobol why she is not really upset about the silver and why she would like to stay until the 2020 Games in Tokyo, as well as what words the team’s head coach said to her after the Olympics Irina Viner-Usmanova and how her young man, Zenit football player Arthur Yusupov, supported her.

Was there anything different in your feelings about winning the Olympic silver medal compared to Rio de Janeiro?

I think it's only gotten better. Because there were a huge number of words of support and congratulations. At home, both the state of mind and the state of health are always better.

- What remains more from the Olympics - resentment for having the “wrong” medal, or, conversely, joy?

I probably would not like most of all to have people write to me “hold on” or “don’t be upset.” Because this medal is really a very, very good result for me. I didn’t even expect to get to the Games, and it was really very difficult to recover from the injury. Therefore, probably, congratulations are the best thing that can happen for me now.

Probably just joy now. The flight took a long time, but in a good mood. It was fun, we talked to everyone. I met Yulia Efimova and had a good conversation. We were greeted very well at the airport - it was incredibly pleasant, I didn’t even expect that the meeting would be of such a scale! Finally I saw my loved ones, my family, my dad, my little sister, my grandmother - everyone came to meet me at the airport, and my mother was with me in Rio. This was probably the most memorable thing.

Number one in his heart

- And yet on that day of the final in Rio de Janeiro you looked upset.

No... That day I even wanted to post a photo of me crying, but I thought that everyone would write again that I was upset or something else. Inside myself, I understand that these were not tears of resentment, sadness or sadness. These were tears of joy that it was all over - and it ended well enough for me! Of course, I was a little upset about the loss of clubs... But the fact that there is silver is very good.

- Looking back, tell me, why did you allow that loss?

Probably, everything happened more due to the fact that I lost concentration. Because I’ve been doing this throw since I was 13 years old, since I was a junior. I don’t even know what could have led to this! She probably relaxed in the end, and because of this the loss happened.

“The Artists” are at their best: Mamun’s gold and Kudryavtseva’s silver in the individual all-around at the Olympic Games. PHOTO >>>

- And after that you went to the last view...

This was probably the most difficult moment - now, with time, I already realize it. Everyone writes to me: “How did you get together like this?”, and at that moment I didn’t understand why I was like this... And now I don’t understand how I even got through it, because it was really very hurtful at that moment. I already wanted to stay there on the floor after the clubs... It was hard. Very...

- Is there anyone to dedicate this award to?

I always dedicate medals to my parents and my coach.

- What did your coach Elena Karpushenko say after everything?

The same thing I’m saying - we might not even have had this medal, because everyone thought that after the injury I would never recover. The injury was serious, and in fact there was very little chance that I would return. But I managed to come back and perform with dignity. Anyone can experience losses; no one is immune from them.

- Do you remember your first conversation with Irina Alexandrovna after the Games?

I called her after the doping control, when I got on the bus. It was already late Moscow time, I almost woke her up. She was incredibly happy! And she also said - we all have the same opinion on this matter - that this medal might not have existed. That I fought with dignity, fought to the end, tried not to let you down, but it turned out the way it turned out. We always thank Irina Alexandrovna, we love her very much. Every day we confess our love to her. Boundless love for her, respect... I wanted to say “thank you” to her - there’s probably nothing more to say. Thank you for this chance, for allowing me to compete at the Olympic Games.

- What did the young man tell you?

For my loved ones, I am the best, as they always say. For me, this is probably the most important thing - this support. He wrote to me that in his heart I am the best, number one. It was a pleasure.

Performed through the pain again

- Do you want to repeat everything at Tokyo 2020 and improve the result?

Improve - yes, repeat - of course! Now it all depends on my health, how my legs behave - we’ll see.

- Do you want to resume training as quickly as possible?

While there is no such desire, while I want to rest, it has been a very difficult year for me. I think that until the New Year - about two months for sure - I will rest. I'll probably fly somewhere on New Year's Eve. For now I will be with my parents in Moscow and will spend some time in St. Petersburg. You need to get treatment, recover psychologically and morally. My legs hurt, of course. There was no way I could perform without pain. Therefore, I will pay attention to both my legs and my health.

- So in Rio, like in Stuttgart, you again had to perform, overcoming pain?

I took painkillers, of course, but sometimes I still felt it.

- What was the most difficult thing and who supported you besides coaches and parents?

There were a lot of words of support! Both girlfriends and young man. Of course, coaches and parents. Probably the hardest thing was recovering from the injury. It was really, really, really hard! But we managed it: not just me, but a huge number of people put effort into this.

- Did you believe a year ago that not everything was lost in terms of the Olympics?

I believed it, of course. You should never lose faith in yourself and your strength. Of course, I had thoughts that it might not even be possible to get to Rio - we have a difficult sport in terms of the bench: it is very large, you can be replaced at any moment. There were chances, there were thoughts that this would not happen, we tried to somehow remove them.

- Elena Lvovna once said that you never wanted to “give up everything and leave,” even when it was very difficult.

Quit - never. There were thoughts that it might not work out, but to quit - no.

- Is this character?

Probably, this is a huge, boundless desire to speak for our homeland, to raise the flag of our country - only this moves us forward.

- You have had more than one major start under your belt. What made the Olympic Games special?

It was the first time for me, so everything was special.

- What did you want most after the Games?

I wanted to rest. And now I also want to do what I will do now, I will recover. I have no plans where I would like to go yet, but I would probably like to go to Dubai very much. I was there, but very small. I have never had such a rest in my life. Only when I flew with my parents as a child, when there was no training yet, but it wasn’t like that. I want to have a normal, good rest now. I don’t know with what feelings I will enter the hall again. When I get there, I’ll be sure to tell you about it!

Russian rhythmic gymnast Yana Alekseevna Kudryavtseva was born on September 30, 1997 in Moscow. She became the world champion at the age of 15, and this is a kind of record. In total, Yana climbed to the first step of the podium at the world championships thirteen times. She also won the European Championship many times. Awarded the medal “For Services to the Fatherland”, Honored Master of Sports of Russia. She received her higher education at the Department of Theory and Methods of Gymnastics at St. Petersburg Lesgaft University. At the age of 19, at the peak of her career, the gymnast was 170 centimeters tall and weighed 48 kilograms. Yana Kudryavtseva - biography.

Childhood

Yana’s father is an athlete, Olympic champion in swimming, Alexei Kudryavtsev, and her mother is Victoria. The father knew firsthand what professional sports was, so he was against his daughter practicing too intensely. But when the coach said that Yana had the prospect of achieving serious results, she began to help the little athlete, especially since she really liked rhythmic gymnastics.

Little Yana Kudryavtseva trained at the Wings of the Soviets Sports School for Children and Youth of the Olympic Reserve under Elena Lvovna Karpushenko. It was difficult for Yana to develop as an athlete; many things did not work out, but she gradually, competition after competition, rose higher and higher in the Russian sports rankings. Since 2009, she began to win all-Russian junior tournaments - she won this title in 2009, 2011, 2012.

The first international competition was in 2011 - the Moscow International Junior Tournament, where Yana won gold medals in the team event for her performance with clubs and hoop. In the same year she became the junior world champion in Pesaro, Italy.

In 2012, at the European junior championship, she became the champion in the team all-around (the team included Julia Sinitsyna, Sasha Soldatova, Diana Borisova), and also received gold for her performance with the ball.

In 2013

In 2013, Yana Kudryavtseva joined the adult team. The athlete’s first senior competition was the Moscow Grand Prix stage. At the next stage of this international tournament, which took place in the Israeli city of Holon, Kudryavtseva became the champion in the all-around, in exercises with a ball and clubs. The hoop brought a bronze medal.

At the World Cup stage in the Bulgarian capital Sofia, she won gold for the all-around, defeating and. Clubs and hoop also won a gold medal, and ribbon won a bronze medal. Interestingly, Yana won her debut World Cup for the first time in the history of rhythmic gymnastics. The next stage of the world cup, which took place in the capital of Belarus, Minsk, Yana became the champion in the all-around, and her performance with the ball also brought her a gold medal. The second girl was in exercises with clubs and ribbon.

Yana was sent to the World Championships, which took place in the Austrian capital of Vienna, instead. Rita Mamun was also on the team, three gymnasts received team gold. In the individual championship she received gold for the ball and clubs. At this championship the girl was only 15 years old, she was the youngest among the participants.

The final competition of the world cup was held in the city of St. Petersburg, Yana became the champion in ball exercises, received second place for clubs and ribbon, and third place for all-around.

At the Kiev World Championships, despite the high level of competition, there were technical glitches during the performances - the music was interrupted. Despite such difficulties, Yana Kudryavtseva received a gold medal in the all-around, individual competition and for clubs, and received silver for the hoop and ball. She was not only the youngest among the competitors - and these are very experienced athletes Margarita Mamun, Anna Rizatdinova, but also the youngest 15-year-old world champion in the history of rhythmic gymnastics.

At the Japanese club championship Aeon Cup as part of the Gazprom club, she took first place, together with Yulia Bravikova and Margarita Mamun, ahead of the Belarusian and Ukrainian gymnasts. Yana also received a gold medal for the individual all-around.

In 2014

Rhythmic gymnastics - Kudryavtseva in 2014:

1. First stage of the Grand Prix, Moscow - silver for clubs and hoop, bronze for all-around.
2. Grand Prix stage in Thiais - gold for all-around, ball, hoop, silver for clubs.
3. World Cup stage, Stuttgart - gold for all-around, exercises with clubs, ball and hoop.
4. Grand Prix, Holon - two gold medals for exercises with clubs and ribbon, a silver medal for all-around, a bronze medal for performance with a ball. At this competition, Yana hit her head hard when she fell, but was able to finish the performance, and after the injury she also competed in two all-around events, eventually receiving a serious set of awards.
5. World Cup stage in the Italian city of Pesaro - the absolute champion.
6. At the Penza All-Russian Championship - a gold medal in all events in the individual championship.
7. World Cup stage in Corbeil-Esonne - silver medal in the individual all-around.
8. World Cup stage in Tashkent - silver for individual all-around.
9. World Cup stage in Minsk - gold medal in individual all-around.
10. World Cup stage in Sofia - gold for individual all-around.
11. Thirtieth European Championship - gold medal.
12. World Cup final, Kazan - gold medals in all-around, for exercises with a ball, ribbon, clubs, a silver medal for performance with a hoop.
13. World Championships in Izmer - gold medal for team performance, individual all-around, as well as for hoop and ball. clubs, silver medal for bronze.

The competition schedule was very busy, Yana had little rest, did not meet with guys, and spent almost all her time training.

In 2015

Rhythmic gymnastics - Yana Kudryavtseva in 2015:

1. World Cup stage in Lisbon - second place for exercises with clubs, third - for all-around.
2. World Cup stage in Pesaro - champion in all-around, also gold medals for ball and hoop.
3. World Cup stage in Bucharest - absolute champion.
4. World Cup stage in Sofia - absolute champion.
5. World Championships in Stuttgart - gold for individual all-around.
6. World Cup final in Kazan - silver for all-around. A leg injury did not allow me to compete in all events. The leg was broken - the navicular bone in the foot crumbled, the tissue began to die. At first, German doctors planned to take the bone from the thigh and replace the crumbled one with it. But then they performed a simpler operation - they removed bone fragments and sutured ligaments; the gymnast recovered for about six months.

It would seem that after the fracture, Yana would leave the sport. But despite the health difficulties, which she encountered not for the first time (injuries in this sport are practically constant), Yana did not even think about leaving professional sports; she had to prepare for the Olympics. Moreover, she continued to train to the best of her abilities so as not to lose shape.

In 2016

Competitions 2016:

• non-competitive performance at the international “Baltic Hoop” competition in Riga, performed in three types of programs after a six-month break (due to injury);
• World Cup stage in Pesaro, gold medal in all-around;
• World Cup stage in Tashkent - absolute champion;
• World Cup stage in Sofia - gold medal for all-around, ribbon and ball;
• World Cup epic in Kazan - gold medal for ball and hoop, silver medal for all-around;
• European Championship, Holon - gold medal for individual all-around, as well as gold medals in all events;
• Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro - silver medal for individual all-around, lost points due to the loss of the club in the final.

For her performance at the Olympics, on August 26, 2016, Yana received the medal of the Order of Merit for the Fatherland, first degree.

In fact, in 2016, Yana ended her sports career, but actually left professional sports at the beginning of 2017. Yana said with a heavy heart that she was leaving because she could have continued performing, preparing for the Olympics in Tokyo, but the consequences of a broken leg did not make it possible to continue training. It was necessary to have a second operation on the leg; further stress would pose a great danger to health.

Personal life

For her special sporty style, which was sophisticated and graceful, Yana was called the “Crystal Figurine”. At competitions she always looked sophisticated, Yana Kudryavtseva’s swimsuit was always beautiful, but at the same time simple and strict, the girl tried to stand out with her skills and complex exercises, and not with external decorations. Over the course of a short period, just three years, she became world champion 13 times.

Constant training led to the fact that, starting from the seventh grade, Yana appeared at school less and less often. The gymnast did not have as much time as she wanted, but she learned to allocate time resources effectively. The parents helped - they made efforts to ensure that the daughter received good knowledge outside the classroom school system, studying independently, as well as with the help of tutors. And the girl successfully passed school exams, then passed the Unified State Exam quite well.

After school I entered the State University of Physical Education in St. Petersburg. For the sake of exams, she missed several stages of the world cup.

Personal life of Yana Kudryavtseva. For a long time, Yana did not think about guys - her sports life took all her time and energy. In 2015, basketball player Mikhail Kulagin courted Yana. They broke up with Misha for unknown reasons.

Later it became known that the gymnast was dating Zenit club football player Artur Yusupov. This guy was very attentive, the couple spent a lot of time together.

Lives in Moscow, travels a lot. He likes to relax actively, for example, riding an ATV with friends. Finds time to meet and chat with fellow athletes.