|
Written by Amanda Turner
Tuesday, 07 September 2010 12:20 |
 |
 |
 |
|
| Legendary Andrianov In Fight for His Life |
1893
(9 votes, average 5.00 out of 5)
| Stricken by a rare neurological disorder, gymnastics legend Nikolai Andrianov is fighting for his life while his family desperately seeks treatment.
 Nikolai Andrianov at the 1976 Olympics in Montreal, where he won the all-around gold medal.The 15-time Olympic medalist, 57, is suffering from multiple system atrophy (MSA), son Sergei Andrianov told IG.
"The diagnosis is olivopontocerebellar degeneration, terminal stage," Sergei said. "His illness is fatal and he will not have long to live, the doctors said."
MSA is a rare progressive neurodegenerative disorder similar to Parkinson's Disease. It is characterized by motor control symptoms such as tremor, rigidity and loss of muscle coordination, according to the U.S. National Institutes of Health.
Beginning with weakness on his right side, the disease has severely disabled the elder Andrianov, who is confined to his bed at his home in Vladimir, Russia.
"His condition is bad. Very bad," Sergei said. "He cannot move either his arms or legs, and he cannot speak."
While the disease is terminal, the symptoms can be eased and quality of life improved with medical care. His family is hoping someone may be able to offer him treatment.
"I would be very grateful if someone could consult American doctors about my father's condition," said Sergei, a former gymnast who now coaches in Japan.
Andrianov began gymnastics at age 12, after witnessing a boy walking on his hands at the beach. He went to the gym in Vladimir where he was the oldest boy among the beginners. He decided to quit, but coach Nikolai Tolkachyov tracked him down and persuaded him to stay, seeing his potential.
From 1971-1980, Andrianov won 15 Olympic medals (seven gold, five silver, three bronze), 12 world championship medals (four gold and eight silver) and 18 European championship medals (10 gold, six silver, two bronze). His all-around titles include the 1975 European Championships, the 1976 Olympic Games and the 1978 World Championships. He is ranked third behind only fellow Soviet gymnast Larisa Latynina (18 medals) and U.S. swimmer Michael Phelps (16 medals) on the all-time Olympic medal count.
After his retirement, he dedicated his life to gymnastics. He served as the head coach of the Soviet junior men's team from 1981-1992, judged internationally and was elected president of the Soviet Gymnastics Federation in 1990. He is married to two-time Soviet Olympic gold medalist Lyubov Burda.
In 1994, he accepted the invitation of former rival Mitsuo Tsukahara to coach in Japan. One of the gymnasts he coached was Tsukahara's own son, Naoya Tsukahara, who helped Japan win the team title at the 2004 Olympics.
In 2001, Andrianov was inducted into the International Gymnastics Hall of Fame.
Andrianov returned to Vladimir in 2002 to coach at the gym where he trained as a youth, now named after Tolkachyov. Among his pupils was future Olympian Yuri Ryazanov, who was killed in a car accident last October, days after winning the all-around bronze medal at the world championships in London. Despite his own illness, Andrianov was able to attend Ryazanov's funeral in Vladimir.
Those wishing to send messages of support to Andrianov, or those with medical resources who may be able to help, may contact Sergei Andrianov at
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
. |
|
|
Written by John Crumlish
Tuesday, 07 September 2010 07:25 |
|
|
|
|
| Injury Gives New Motivation to Cairns |
1892
(11 votes, average 5.00 out of 5)
|
Preparing for next month's Commonwealth Games in India, British Olympian Imogen Cairns told IG she is stronger and more motivated than ever following her recovery from surgery on both feet.
 Imogen Cairns at the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, where she placed first on vault, second with the English team and fourth all-around."I thought that getting to the Olympics in 2008 would satisfy me, but having battled through injury, I just have something inside me that tells me I have much more to give," said Cairns, 21.
Cairns injured both feet during a floor exercise at a competition after the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. Two operations on both feet kept her on crutches for eight months.
"My surgeon is amazed at my progress, but it has been a long haul," said Cairns, who is coached by Liz Kincaid at The Academy in Portishead, England.
Cairns' return to competition this summer has been successful. She placed first on vault and fifth all-around at the British Championships in July; and first on vault (tied with teammate Jennifer Pinches) and first on floor exercise at the Great Britain vs. Romania dual meet in August.
Next on Cairns' agenda will be the Commonwealth Games that will take place Oct. 3-14 in Delhi, where she will compete for England. (British nations compete individually at the Commonwealth Games.) Cairns placed first on vault, second with the English team and fourth all-around at the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne.
Although Cairns is not on the British roster for the world championships that will take place Oct. 12-16 in Rotterdam, she said she is hopeful to earn a spot through a good performance in Delhi.
"In Delhi, I'd love to medal on vault and achieve a place in the floor final, as well as help the team to gain a medal," she said. "I need to prove myself for the team in Rotterdam, so that's the first important step towards worlds for me. I aim to return from the Commonwealths and catch the team up in Rotterdam. I'm just waiting to see what plans our (British team) technical director has."
At the midway point of the 2012 Olympic cycle, Cairns said she is inspired by the progress she has made, physically and mentally, since Beijing.
"Having been through the 'highs' of the Olympics and 'lows' of injury, I can honestly say I now take things step by step," Cairns said. "I learn from successes and setbacks, and put these to good use. I think I've matured, and I set myself personal goals. The Commonwealth Games is my next major milestone and I'm looking forward to it."
As younger gymnasts challenge Cairns for spots on the British team from now until the London 2012 Games, she said she still has much to offer.
"Mainly maturity and experience, I guess!" she told IG. "I'm an old hand, really, and I like to think I can support the youngsters and provide a calming influence." |
|
|
|
Written by John Crumlish
Wednesday, 01 September 2010 22:36 |
|
|
|
|
| Austrians Aim High for 2010 and Beyond |
1887
(4 votes, average 5.00 out of 5)
| As Austrian gymnastics continues to work for better international results, Austrian champion Fabian Leimlehner told IG he is confident for next month's world championships in Rotterdam after a solid performance in last weekend's tri-meet with Hungary and the Czech Republic.
 Fabian Leimlehner (Austria)"I'm satisfied about my performance at this early point of World Championships preparation," said Leimlehner, who placed second all-around to Hungary's Vid Hidvegi at the tri-meet held Saturday in Linz. "My aim was not do all of my top difficulty elements, but to show six stable routines. This worked."
Leimlehner was the only Austrian among the top eight all-around finishers in Linz. Hidvegi placed first (85.45), followed by Leimlehner (84.30) and six Hungarian gymnasts.
Leimlehner said he was particularly pleased with her performance on vault, where he did a double-twisting Kasamatsu for the first time in competition and scored 15.65.
"In Rotterdam, I think this new vault together with my full routines on the other apparatuses will help me to reach my big goal, the all-around final," he said.
If Leimlehner achieves his goal in Rotterdam, he will be the first Austrian to make the world championships all-around final.
Austrian national team head coach Petr Koudela said he is also confident in his team's abilities as it prepares for Rotterdam.
"We have a realistic chance to reach the top 24 teams in Rotterdam which qualify for a team slot at the 2011 world championships in Tokyo," said Koudela, who formerly coached the Czech team.
For the Austrian women, Elsa Hämmerle's 12th-place all-around finish at last month's Youth Olympic Games in Singapore has helped offset the retirement of 19-year-old Kathrin Nussbacher and 19-year-old Andrea Rührlinger this summer.
Nussbacher made event finals at World Cup meets in 2008 and 2009, and Rührlinger won the bronze medal on floor exercise at the 2008 World Cup of Szombathely, Hungary.
Another leading Austrian woman, Canadian-based Barbara Gasser, will not compete in Rotterdam because of an injury, said Robert Labner, spokesperson for the Austrian Gymnastics Federation (ÖFT).
"Our female team at present is living through a generation change," Labner told IG. "We'll still send a complete team to Rotterdam but do not really know how good they will be. But from next year on, many hopeful junior gymnasts will enter our national team, led by Elisa. She will be able to compete at the Tokyo worlds, and her aim is to qualify for London 2012."
Labner said that, if either Hämmerle or Leimlehner earn berths to London, Austria will be represented in Olympic artistic gymnastics competition for the first time since 1968. (In rhythmic gymnastics, Austrians have competed in three Olympics since the discipline was introduced at the 1984 Games.)
Austria is in the process of evaluating the current state of gymnastics in the country, and achieving a higher international standard in the future.
"The Austrian Gymnastics Federation will face many big challenges in the coming months," Labner said. "We are having an intense discussion about structures and future goals, which we hope will result in a situation that will, with additional help from the government, improve the position and resources of top-level gymnastics in our country."
Labner said the ÖFT's "Turn10" program, which offers gymnastics competition for all ages and levels beyond artistic gymnastics, is helping stimulate growth of the sport in Austria and beyond.
Approximately 500 ÖFT member clubs participate in the program, and competitions have also taken place in Italy, Luxembourg and Germany. Labner said Margaret Sikkens Ahlquist, president of the International Gymnastics Federation's "Gymnastics for All" committee, is considering Turn10 as a development program in Africa.
"It seems possible that Turn10 will be the basic platform of a new trans-Europe apparatus gymnastics competition program," Labner said.
External Link: Turn10 |
|
|
Written by Amanda Turner
Wednesday, 25 August 2010 04:38 |
|
|
|
|
| FIG Warns Dragulescu over Doping Registration |
1853
(1 vote, average 5.00 out of 5)
 The FIG officially has warned world champion Marian Dragulescu for the gymnast's failure to register for out-of-competition doping controls.The International Gymnastics Federation officially warned world champion Marian Dragulescu and cited the Romanian Gymnastics Federation for "willful negligence" after the star gymnast failed to register for out-of-competition doping controls.
The FIG requires currently competing gymnasts be registered as active and available for random testing. Dragulescu retired after the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing and was removed from Romania's list of active athletes. However, he did not register again when he decided to make a comeback in 2009, the FIG stated.
"Three indictments were filed against the gymnast, namely concerning violation of a rule stipulating that a gymnast must announce his return to competition after a retirement, a communication made regarding Marian Dragulescu by his national federation on December 30, 2008," the FIG stated in an announcement. "Because of his failure to comply with this rule, Dragulescu was not taken into account for out of competition testing since he was not on the 2009 FIG RTP (Registered Testing Pool) official list."
The FIG noted that Dragulescu — "in defiance of the rules in force" — participated at the 2009 World Championships in London, where he won gold medals on floor exercise and vault.
In its decision, the FIG Disciplinary Commission stated the federation could have prevented Dragulescu from competing in London but did not. New rules adopted in February of this year stipulate that gymnasts not registered for six months prior to an event will be automatically disqualified from FIG competition.
Dragulescu was tested twice in London and both samples were negative.
"The Disciplinary Commission will not disqualify the results obtained as it considers that there was no indication that the Gymnast committed his offense for the purpose of avoiding drug testing and because the [national federation] failed in its responsibility to educate and advise the Gymnast in a responsible manner, considering that the Gymnast did put his trust in his federation to make sure the applicable rules were respected," the FIG Disciplinary Commission stated in its decision.
The veteran Dragulescu, who turns 30 in December, appeared before the FIG's Disciplinary Commission on July 30.
The FIG stated that the three-time Olympian "was informed of the decisions and considerations corroborated by the FIG Presidential Commission, who pointed out a willful negligence on the part of the Romanian Gymnastics Federation in the administrative handling of Dragulescu's career and a failure to uphold its educational role in the fight against doping."
Active gymnasts are required to update their whereabouts using an online system, to aid anti-doping organizations in locating them for testing. Dragulescu was cited for not updating his whereabouts for most of 2010, despite being notified twice by the FIG.
"The Commission has found little or no whereabouts information for the first three trimesters of 2010," the FIG stated.
Dragulescu is Romania's most decorated male gymnast, winning eight world titles on vault and floor exercise since 2001. He was a triple medalist at the 2004 Olympics in Athens, winning the silver medal on floor exercise and bronzes on vault and with the Romanian team.
"The FIG has shown leniency to Dragulescu," the federation stated. "However, in the event of a subsequent offence the gymnast will be subject to a suspension of one to two years. These sanctions serve as a warning to the entire gymnastics community; education is taken seriously by the FIG and compliance with the procedures in force and the upholding of one's responsibilities in the fight against doping is mandatory."
The FIG will hold the Romanian Gymnastics Federation accountable for court costs in the case, amounting to CHF 6,217 ($6,030).
Dragulescu did not compete at the 2010 European Championships in Birmingham, and last competed at the Japan Cup in July in Tokyo. He is scheduled to compete this weekend in Thessolaniki in a quad meet among Greece, Bulgaria, Cyprus and Romania. |
|
|
