【The 36th European Championship seen by Mariana Vasileva | Interview】 3 Dicembre 2020
In an unusual 36th European Rhythmic Gymnastics Championships, which ended in Kiev on Sunday 29 November 2020, many were the surprises we witnessed.
As for the show on the platform, we were pleasantly impressed by the Azerbaijan Federation which presented its exercises with Leotards who have a lot of interest in the people of world rhythmic gymnastics. Accustomed to Russian excesses, we wonder if this way, this “return to the past” could mark a trend in the near future. The lack of excesses in the style of the Leotards allowed everyone to be focused on the form of the exercise, not having to pay attention to anything other than the form and movements of the gymnast.
We at RGNews contacted the Head Coach of the Azerbaijani team, Mariana Vasileva, who very kindly agreed to answer our questions about the championship just ended, the difficulties overcome, the future and of course the choice of the Leotards.
Mariana Vasileva, are you satisfied with the results obtained by your team?
Of course, I am content with the results of our team. First of all, I am content that we managed to maintain the health of our gymnasts and the whole staff of our federation. We were able to take part in the 36th Rhythmic Gymnastics European Championships with a full composition.
We all go through hard times due to global pandemic and not all the federations could join the event. Of course, this European Championships was historical one for several reasons. Despite of cancellation of events in a number of sport disciplines, this Championships was retained and held during the global pandemic. I am very grateful to the European Gymnastics, which did everything in its power to organize this competition, as well as the organizers, who placed high emphasis on each participant.
Another historical moment of this competition was connected with the title of the European Champions. Russian gymnasts, who did not take part in the Championships this year, mainly won the title of the European Champions for many years. I congratulate the Israeli National Team as they went down in history by winning the gold medal in group exercises.
Our team in group exercises was in the lead after first day of competitions, but a slight mistake impeded us. Our National Team repeatedly won medals at the European Championships. But this “silver” won by our team in group exercises in the All-Around, is the first in history of the Azerbaijani Rhythmic Gymnastics.
We had a meeting with gymnasts, coaches and choreographers yesterday after our return to Baku. We discussed our advantages and disadvantages which we will take into account in our trainings.
http://www.ginnastica-ritmica.eu/index.php/2020/12/03/the-36th-european-championship-seen-by-mariana-vasileva/
