Tula on Top at Russian Cup

Tula teammates Ksenia Afanasyeva and Ksenia Semyonova finished 1-2 at the Russian Cup all-around final, held Saturday in Lobnya.

Afanasyeva and Semyonova repeated their rankings from Thursday's qualification competition, but Afanasyeva increased her all-around total by half a tenth to 60.850.

Semyonova struggled with general execution errors plus a fall on vault, scoring nearly a point less than Thursday and finishing just .050 ahead of bronze medalist Yekaterina Kramarenko.

Ksenia Afanasyeva

Both Ksenia Afanasyeva and Ksenia Semyonova are coached by Marina Nazarova in their native Tula. While Semyonova has risen to the forefront of gymnastics — winning the 2007 world title on uneven bars and the 2008 European titles on uneven bars and balance beam — Afanasyeva had lagged behind. She missed the 2007 Worlds with an injury, and the national coaches were critical of her performance at the 2008 Europeans in April.

"Probably [I've been] a bit jealous," Afanasyeva said Saturday of having a star teammate. "But so much more I've celebrated victory with Ksushya. If she won, it means that we won. We've been together all the time since childhood. And I can't imagine how one of us could live without the other."

Afanasyeva's victory brought praise from national coach Valentina Rodionenko.

"She won here in a very strong competition, and not just won, but won by being on top on both days of competition," she said. "Look how she worked today — beautifully and with amplitude. This is the embodiment of the beauty of the Soviet school of gymnastics, with modern difficulty. I would say that this is how our national gymnastics should be."

Kramarenko competed all-around for the first time since suffering a broken leg in December. The top three earned automatic invitations to the Olympic training squad, and six more will be decided following Sunday's event finals.

Svetlana Klyukina, third in qualification, tweaked her knee in warmups and withdrew. Senior women's head coach Alexander Kiryashov said they decided to play it safe with Klyukina, who suffered a torn meniscus in 2005.

2004 Olympian Anna Pavlova finished fourth as she had on Thursday. Yulia Lozhechko, 12th in qualification, improved her showing by moving up to fifth. She hit her routines on uneven bars and balance beam, but did not perform to full capacity on vault and floor exercise.

Kiryashov blamed Lozhechko's underperformance not on physical injury, but mental problems.

"Yulia simply has psychological problems," he said. "I know exactly what they are, but I don't want to talk about it. When she listened to us, the coaches, everything was fine, but as soon as she tries to do everything on her own and to her own taste she has immediate problems. We know that Lozhechko is going through hard times. But we are trying to help, and I hope soon everything will be fine again."

Two-time Olympian Yelena Zamolodchikova moved up one spot to 12th. If she is not among the nine gymnasts chosen in Lobnya for the Olympic training squad, the 25-year-old veteran has plans to continue, said her coach, Nadezhda Maslennikova.

"Certainly, we are preparing for and very much hope to be selected for the Olympic team," Maslennikova told Russian news agency All Sport. "Lena is 25, and Beijing would be her third Olympics. It seems to me, that even just on the basis of her character Lena is an irreplaceable individual on the team. She is faultless when it comes to training, in selflessness, in following the rules. She is a remarkable example for young girls. Besides, Lena is a fighter — up to the end she will fight injuries, competitors, circumstances.

"Personally I am sure that we will manage in the next month and a half to be in peak form for Beijing. But even if Lena doesn't get onto the Olympic team, we have already made a decision to continue training. At least up to the 2009 World Championships. Lena's potential in gymnastics allows her to perform and challenge for high results."

External Link: Russian Gymnastics Federation

2008 Russian Cup
July 5, Lobnya

Women's All-Around Final (Top Six)
1. Ksenia Afanasyeva (Tula) 60.850
2. Ksenia Semyonova (Tula) 59.925
3. Yekaterina Kramarenko (Saint Petersburg) 59.875
4. Anna Pavlova (Orekhovo-Zuevo) 59.600
5. Yulia Lozhechko (Bryansk) 58.275
6. Kristina Goryunova (Novgorod) 57.550

Other
10. Lyudmila Yezhova Grebenkova (Moscow) 56.025
12. Yelena Zamolodchikova (Moscow) 55.700