Elena Mukhina

Elena Vyacheslavovna Mukhina (Russian:Елена Вячеславовна Мухина) (June 1, 1960-December 22, 2006) was born in Moscow, Russian SFSR) is a former Soviet gymnast who won the All-Around title at the 1978 World Championships at Strasbourg, France. Image File history File links Elenamukhina1. ... Image File history File links Elenamukhina1. ... June 1 is the 152nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (153rd in leap years), with 213 days remaining. ... Year 1960 (MCMLX) was a leap year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1960 calendar). ... December 22 is the 356th day of the year (357th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 2006 (MMVI) is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Location Position of Moscow in Europe Government Country District Subdivision Russia Central Federal District Federal City Mayor Yuriy Luzhkov Geographical characteristics Area  - City 1,081 km² Population  - City (2005)    - Density 10,415,400   8537. ... State motto: Russian: Пролетарии всех стран, соединяйтесь! Translation: Workers of the world, unite! Capital Moscow Official language Russian Established In the USSR:  - Since  - Until November 7, 1917 November 7, 1917 December 12, 1991 (dissolution) Area  - Total  - Water (%) Ranked 1st in the USSR 17,075,200 km² 13% Population  - Total   - Density Ranked 1st in the... Soviet redirects here. ... Gymnasts are people who participate in the sports of either artistic gymnastics or rhythmic gymnastics. ... Strasbourg townscape Strasbourg (German Straßburg, road to castle, Alsatian Strossburi) is the capital and principal city of the Alsace région of northeastern France. ...

Elena (also spelled "Yelena") lost both of her parents by the time she was five years old. She was raised by her grandmother, Anna Ivanovna. As a youngster she took an interest in gymnastics and figure skating. When an athletic scout visited her school, she eagerly volunteered to try out for gymnastics. She later joined the CSKA Moscow ("Central Red Army") sports club. In recognition of her accomplishments, Mukhina was inducted into the CSKA Hall of Fame [1]. CSKA Moscow (Central Sports Army Club Moscow, Russian: ЦСКА Москва) is a Russian sports club, often referred to as Red Army for its past affiliation with the Soviet Army. ...

Up until 1975, Elena Mukhina was an unremarkable gymnast. She was not a serious competitor and Soviet coaches largely ignored her. Then, she teamed up with men's coach Mikhail Klimenko and she transformed into one of the most show stopping gymnasts of her time. She burst onto the scene at the 1978 World Championships in Strasbourg, France. In one of the most stunning all-around performances in history, she won the gold medal, beating out Olympic Champions Nadia Comaneci and Nellie Kim among others. She also tied for the gold medal in the floor exercise event final, as well as winning the silver in balance beam and uneven bars. She made history in this competition by unveiling her signature moves: a full-twisting layout Korbut salto on bars; a tucked double back salto dismount on beam (a move that is still being used more than 25 years later); and a full-twisting double back somersault on floor (still an E-rated move in the Code of Points). She quickly established herself as an athlete to watch for at the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow. The 19th Artistic Gymnastics World Championships were held in Strasbourg, France, in 1978. ... City flag City coat of arms Location Coordinates Time Zone CET (GMT +1) Administration Country France Région Alsace Département Bas-Rhin (67) Intercommunality Urban Community of Strasbourg Mayor Fabienne Keller  (UMP) (since 2001) City Statistics Land area¹ 78. ... Nadia Elena Comaneci (originally Comăneci ) (born November 12, 1961) is a Romanian gymnast, winner of five Olympic gold medals, and the first to be awarded a perfect score of 10 in an Olympic gymnastic event. ... Nellie Vladimirovna Kim (Russian: ; b. ... A Canadian gymnast trains on a floor. ... The Balance Beam is an artistic gymnastics apparatus only used by female gymnasts. ... The uneven bars or asymmetric bars is a artistic gymnastics apparatus. ... The Code of Points is a document, published by the International Federation of Gymnastics, which regulates gymnastics scoring. ... Badge, released in the USSR The 1980 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXII Olympiad, were held in Moscow in the Soviet Union. ... Location Position of Moscow in Europe Government Country District Subdivision Russia Central Federal District Federal City Mayor Yuriy Luzhkov Geographical characteristics Area  - City 1,081 km² Population  - City (2005)    - Density 10,415,400   8537. ...

However, disaster struck in the months and weeks leading up to the Olympic Games. In late 1979 Mukhina suffered a broken leg, which kept her out of the World Championships in Fort Worth, Texas, a competition in which the Soviet team suffered its first defeat at the hands of their archrivals from Romania. After surgery Mukhina's training continued despite her leg having not completely healed. When it was discovered that the fracture had not healed properly, Mukhina was rushed into surgery again. Because of her injury, she had great difficulty re-mastering a signature tumbling run, a Thomas salto (a 1 and 3/4 flip with 1 1/2 twists). Two weeks before the Moscow Olympics, while practicing this exact move, she underrotated the salto, crash-landed on her chin, and her spine snapped. She was rendered a quadriplegic. The Soviet Union awarded her Order of Lenin in response to her injury and in 1983, Juan Samaranch, the IOC President, awarded her the Silver Medal of the Olympic Order. The five Olympic rings were designed in 1913, adopted in 1914 and debuted at the Games at Antwerp, 1920. ... Nickname: Cowtown Motto: Where the West Begins Location in the state of Texas Coordinates: Country United States State Texas Counties Tarrant and Denton Mayor Michael J. Moncrief Area    - City 774. ... Quadriplegia, also known as tetraplegia, is a symptom in which a human experiences paralysis of all four limbs, although not necessarily total paralysis. ... The Order of Lenin (ru: Орден Ленина), named after the leader of the Russian Revolution, was the second highest national order of the Soviet Union (Highest was the Order of Victory). ... 1983 (MCMLXXXIII) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Juan Antonio Samaranch, Marquess of Samaranch (born July 17, 1920 in Barcelona) is a Spanish sports official, president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) from 1980 to 2001. ... Alternative meanings at IOC (disambiguation) The International Olympic Committee is an organization based in Lausanne, Switzerland, created by Pierre de Coubertin in 1894 to reinstate the Ancient Olympic Games held in Greece, and organize this sports event every four years. ...

Following the tragedy, the Soviet Gymnastics Federation remained secretive about the events surrounding Mukhina's cataclysmic injury. Elena herself was reclusive following the incident, seldom publicly discussing the accident. In a rare interview with Olgonyok magazine, Elena spoke candidly about the Soviet gymnastics program, criticizing it for deceiving the public about her injury, and for the system's insatiable desire for gold medals and championships:

Mukhina in action

"...for our country, athletic successes and victories have always meant somewhat more than even simply the prestige of the nation. They embodied (and embody) the correctness of the political path we have chosen, the advantages of the system, and they are becoming a symbol of superiority. Hence the demand for victory - at any price. As for risk, well... We've always placed a high value on risk, and a human life was worth little in comparison with the prestige of the nation; we've been taught to believe this since childhood." "There are such concepts as the honor of the club, the honor of the team, the honor of the national squad, the honor of the flag. They are words behind which the person isn't perceived. I'm not condemning anyone or blaming anyone for what happened to me. Not Klimenko or especially the national team coach at that time, Shaniyazov. I feel sorry for Klimenko - he's a victim of the system, a member of the clan of grownups who are 'doing their job.' Shaniyazov I simply don't respect. And the others? I was injured because everyone around me was observing neutrality and keeping silent. After all, they saw that I wasn't ready to perform that element. But they kept quiet. Nobody stopped a person who, forgetting everything, was tearing forward - go, go, go!"[2] Image File history File links Elenamukhina2. ... Image File history File links Elenamukhina2. ...

Despite this, Mukhina took some of the responsibility for not saying no, to protect herself from further harm.

According to Larissa Latynina's 2004 interview, Mukhina's trainer Mikhail Klimenko has been affected by her injury. Elena was not expected to be added to the Soviet Olympic team roster. There was little doubt that the Soviet Olympic women's gymnastics team would get the gold medal in the team competition at the 1980 Summer Olympics, as it did at all previous Olympics. Nevertheless, Klimenko wanted Mukhina to train because he wanted to become the "Olympic champion's trainer." Soon afterwards Klimenko emigrated to Italy, where he now lives with his children. ^[3] Larisa Semyonovna Latynina (Russian: Лариса Семёновна Латынина; born December 27, 1934 in Kherson, Ukraine, U.S.S.R.) was a Soviet gymnast. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Badge, released in the USSR The 1980 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXII Olympiad, were held in Moscow in the Soviet Union. ...

In the late 1980's Elena Mukhina was a guest columnist for the Moscow News[4]. Her injury was a featured topic in an A&E documentary More Than a Game; and her World Championship performance is captured in the ABC Sports video Gymnastic's Greatest Stars. Moscow News is Russia’s longest-running independent English language daily newspaper. ... A&E is a three-letter abbreviation with multiple meanings, as described below: A&E Network (Arts and Entertainment), an American television network the Accident and Emergency department of a hospital This page concerning a three-letter acronym or abbreviation is a disambiguation page—a list of articles associated with... [1] ABC Sports is a division of ABC, responsible for the televising of many sports events on the network. ...

Mukhina passed away on December 22, 2006.

Achievements

The vault, formerly known as vaulting horse, is an artistic gymnastics apparatus. ... The uneven bars or asymmetric bars is a artistic gymnastics apparatus. ... The Balance Beam is a artistic gymnastics apparatus. ... A Canadian gymnast trains on a floor. ... The 19th Artistic Gymnastics World Championships were held in Strasbourg, France, in 1978. ...

Reference

• ↑  An interview with Latynina. Dmitry Gordon's website. Retrieved on March 26, 2006.

March 26 is the 85th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (86th in leap years). ... 2006 (MMVI) is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

External links

• Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique profile for Elena Mukhina
• List of competitive results at Gymn Forum
• Whatever Happened to Elena Mukhina?
• Yelena Mukhina: Grown-Up Games

World champions in artistic gymnastics – women's team competition

1934: Czechoslovakia • 1938: Czechoslovakia • 1950: Sweden • 1954: USSR • 1958: USSR • 1962: USSR • 1966: Czechoslovakia • 1970: USSR • 1974: USSR • 1978: USSR • 1979: Romania • 1981: USSR • 1983: USSR • 1985: USSR • 1987: Romania • 1989: USSR • 1991: USSR • 1992: Not held • 1994: Romania • 1995: Romania • 1996: Not held • 1997: Romania • 1999: Romania • 2001: Romania • 2002: Not held • 2003: USA • 2005: Not held