Whatever Happened to...? GymnasticGreats.com

Latest news

Februar - March 2009:
- Dominique Moceanu and Mike Canales welcome second child, son Vincent (photos)
- Former Olympian and current USA Gymnastics trainer Lucy Wener-Fox visits Alabama gym
- 1996 Olympic AA Champion Lilia Podkopaeva and her husband Timofey Nagorniy are getting divorced. The pair had been together for 7 years, married for four. They have two children, Vadim and Karolina.
- Former Dutch national team member Kimberly Viola now works for Rucanor Europe BV. She studied Economics at university.
- 3-time U.S. Olympian Blaine Wilson and new bride, former rhythmic gymnast Aliane Baquerot, are expecting their first child this summer. Blaine has a daughter (6-year-old Wakaya) from a previous marriage to a U.S. Olympic volleyball player.
- Shannon Miller is spending 10 days this month visiting U.S. troops in Kuwait and Iraq
- Marian Dragulescu (ROM) set to become a coach at Dinamo Bucharest
January 2009:
- Veteran Romanian gymnast Nicuşor Pascu is taking over from Dan Grecu as men's head coach for Romania. Pascu is godfather to Dragulescu's daughter Beatrice.
- Sang Lan (CHN) is hoping to get her driver's license in 2009
- Dmitry Karbanenko (URS/RUS/FRA) inching towards retirement
- My friend Solnishko recently published a translation of an interview with the great Larissa Latynina, who was a guest at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. The 74-year-old updated readers about her life. Three years ago she had a hip replacement, but is now completely recovered. She swims daily for 40 mins - her home, some 100 km from Moscow, boasts its own pool. For awhile she kept many animals, including cows and pigs, but now she has "only" 8 cats. Her last visit to her hometown of Kherson, Ukraine was to attend the funeral of her first coach. He died at 92. One of her most special memories is that of the 1958 World Championships, where she thought less of winning medals and more about giving birth. At the time, she was four months pregnant! She won gold medals at those Championships. Her daughter went on to perform with the Beryozka song and dance ensemble and met her husband touring in Venezuala. Larissa was initially aghast at her daughter marrying a non-Russian, and went 2 months without speaking to her. In the end, the family all gets along.
- Romanian article about Nadia Comaneci and Bart Conner, including photos of her son Dylan
December 2008:
- 1996 and 2000 Olympian Liu Xuan (CHN) is set to release her second single
- Russian mainstay and 1999 World AA championship Nikolai Kryukov and 1998 Junior European Champion Anna Kovalyova are new parents to a baby boy! (Russian article)
- A recent photo of 1996 Olympian Mirela Tugurlan (ROM), her husband, and baby boy
- Dutch gymnastics world worries about its former star, Verona van de Leur
- Former Soviet gymnast Svetlana Lebedinskaya and husband Derek Trotter recently welcomed Tatiana Gorbunova, member of Russia's 2008 gold medal winning rhythmic gymnastics team, to speak at their gym in England (University of Bedfordshire).
- Irina Chashchina is the new VP of the Russian Rhythmic federation.
- Alexei Nemov and his family will spend the New Year holiday in Japan.
- China's Sun Xiaojiao, who won gold on beam at the 2001 Goodwill Games and bronze at the 2001 World Championships, recently graduated from college. She is now working as an apprentice coach in her home province (Zhejiang), in the same gym in which she began her gymnastics! She is hoping to pursue graduate studies at the Beijing University of Physical Education.
- Libertatea is reporting that 2-time World championships team member Corina Ungureanu is attempting to make a comeback
- Former U.S. National team member Ashley Kelley is now a Red Rocker for the Washing Capitals hockey team. Video
- Mother-daughter combo Nina and Elena Vitrichenko recently appeared on a Catalan National TV show, Karakia, that educates viewers about different cultures and their foods. The Vitrichenko's highlighted Ukrainian food/culture. Play Video (their segment towards end).
- New allegations against gymnastics coach Bela Karolyi have surfaced: Trudi Kollar spoke to local Sacramento news about her struggles under coach Karolyi. Coach/choreographer Geza Pozsar backs up the claims..
- Chloe Sims, who shocked the gymnastics world by retiring so close to the Beijing Olympics, has signed to compete NCAA with Utah. She may start as soon as January 2009. (Link: IG)
- Alicia Sacramone hoping to host TV makeover show
- Yang Yun and Yang Wei wed in lavish ceremonies, November 6
November 2008:
- Former U.S. National team member Ashley Kelley is now a Red Rocker for the Washing Capitals hockey team. Video
- Mother-daughter combo Nina and Elena Vitrichenko recently appeared on a Catalan National TV show, Karakia, that educates viewers about different cultures and their foods. The Vitrichenko's highlighted Ukrainian food/culture. Play Video (their segment towards end).
- New allegations against gymnastics coach Bela Karolyi have surfaced: Trudi Kollar spoke to local Sacramento news about her struggles under coach Karolyi. Coach/choreographer Geza Pozsar backs up the claims..
- Chloe Sims, who shocked the gymnastics world by retiring so close to the Beijing Olympics, has signed to compete NCAA with Utah. She may start as soon as January 2009. (Link: IG)
- Alicia Sacramone hoping to host TV makeover show
- Yang Yun and Yang Wei wed in lavish ceremonies, November 6
- Kerri Strug preparing for NYC marathon

Archived news: 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003

Banner designed by GymnDesign with photographs by Tom Theobald

| Tape List | Gymn.ca

Disclaimer. The information contained within these pages is compiled from personal interviews, Web sites, magazines, newsgroups, message boards, home video and/or television coverage. Where applicable, sources are cited and links provided. All information is accurate (though not necessarily the most up-to-date) to the best of my knowledge, however should you read something that you believe to be incorrect, please me and I will make the correction as soon as possible. If any information or photos appearing on these pages are copyright of another site, person, or company, i.e., the permission that I have to use this media is invalid and was wrongly given in the first place by those who gave me the media please email me so that I can give proper credit for the media or delete them if preferred. I do not accept liability to any persons for the information or advice provided in this Web site or incorporated into it by reference or for loss or damages incurred as a result of reliance upon the material contained in this Web site.

Former rhythmic gymnasts:
Carmen Acedo (ESP) Jana Batyrchina (RUS) Galina Beloglazova (URS) Magdalena Brzeska (GER) Joanna Bodak (POL) Jessica Davis (USA) Tatiana Druchinina (URS) Adriana Dunavska (BUL) Lori Fung (CAN) Olga Gontar (BLR) Diliana Gueorguieva (BUL) Maria Guigova (BUL) Lilia Ignatova (BUL)	Elizabeth Koleva (BUL) Dalia Kutkaite (URS) Tamara Levinson (USA) Natalia Lipkovskay (RUS) Maria Isabel Lloret (ESP) Marina Lobatch (URS) Mila Marinova (BUL/USA) Camille Martens (CAN) Lenka Oulehlova (CZE) Bianka Panova (BUL) Carolina Pascual (ESP) Yevgenia Pavlina (BLR) Maria Petrova (BUL)	Diana Popova (BUL) Iliana Raeva (BUL) Anelia Ralenkova (BUL) Milena Reljin (YUG) Stella Salapatyska (BUL) Yekaterina Serebrianskaya (UKR) Andrea Sinko (HUN) Oksana Skaldina (URS) Alexandra Timochenko (URS) Sally Ward (USA) Amina Zaripova (URS/ RUS)