Athletes from Belarus are among the first ones coming to the Academy for the Alina 2024 Festival.Chief Coach of the national team Irina Leparskaya shared her expectations from the forthcoming sports festival.<blockquote>"We’re ready to participate, we have new costumes, new ideas. We are very glad that we have good weather here, in a beautiful place. But then we still have to take a closer look, because two days after the festival in Sochi the same festival will take place in Minsk. So we still came to gain experience. I hope both festivals will take place at the highest level."</blockquote>It is particularly important for children to take part in such event, the professional noted.<blockquote>"We are very grateful to Alina Kabaeva for this opportunity for the children to express themselves, because we brought with us very young children. Some of them are here for the first time. For them, this is a holiday, excitement, and something new. This will be a big push for their future activities in gymnastics. The children are happily looking forward to this."</blockquote>Elizaveta Zorkina also told us about the expectations.<blockquote>"We prepared quite a lot. We rehearsed with our teacher, and we also sent videos to Irina Zenovka. I expect a holiday, as usual! Because the festival is always just wonderful!</blockquote>The Alina Festival will be for the first time held in two countries: The Academy in Sochi will host it on March 2, and the Minsk Arena in Belarus will be the host on March 5.

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The Alina Festival

Athletes from Belarus are among the first ones coming to the Academy for the Alina 2024 Festival.

Gymnasts of the Belarusian national team coming to the Academy for the Alina 2024 Festival

The international tournament Battle of the Cities has kicked off at the Martial Arts Academy there!Over 400 judokas under 18 from Russia, the USA, France, Greece, Slovenia, Mongolia, South Korea, Brazil, and Cuba are participating in the event.The competition is taking place from December 6 to 19. The tournament is organized by the Russian Judo Federation and the DobroFON charity program.

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MA Academy

Over 400 judokas under 18 from Russia, the USA, France, Greece, Slovenia, Mongolia, South Korea, Brazil, and Cuba are participating in the event.

The international tournament Battle of the Cities has kicked off at the Martial Arts Academy

Four athletes have earned the opportunity to compete at the Russian Cup under the International Association quota!Maria Dmitrieva, Nika Reznik, Eva Kononova, and Sofia Vorobyova participated in the competition under the Sky Grace quota.The Sky Grace International Association supports talented athletes and gives them the opportunity to compete at a high level. In 2025, the Association's quota allowed more gymnasts to compete in the international Cup of the Strongest competitions, the CIS Games, the Sky Grace Cup, the Alina Kabaeva Champions Cup Grand Prix, and the All-Russian Young Gymnasts tournament.Maria trains at the Taganka Moscow State Physical Culture and Sport School of Olympic Reserve in Moscow, where her coaches are Anna Kurbanova and Evgenia Finkelshtein. Nika is from Irkutsk and is coached by the USSR and Russia Honored Coach Olga Buyanova. Eva and Sofia live and train at the Alina Kabaeva Sky Grace Rhythmic Gymnastics Academy, where their coaches are Evgeniya Eliseeva and Olga Minigalina. Elena Egorova is Eva's choreographer, and Ekaterina Belova is Sofia's.

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Аssociation

Maria Dmitrieva, Nika Reznik, Eva Kononova, and Sofia Vorobyova participated in the competition under the Sky Grace quota.

Four athletes have earned the opportunity to compete at the Russian Cup under the International Association quota

Academy gymnasts will compete at the Step to the Dream international tournament in Armenia.Participating will be Veronika Malinina, Karolina Pakhtusova, and Diana Sobyanina from St. Petersburg, Miroslava Monina from Penza, Alesya Naifonova from Vladikavkaz, Yana Sakovich and Elizaveta Geraskina from Moscow, Malika Timurshina and Elina Khabirova from Kazan, and Yana Zaikina from Volgograd.The competition will be held in Yerevan from December 6-8.

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Competitions

The competition will be held in Yerevan from December 6-8.

Academy gymnasts will take part in the Step to the Dream international tournament in Armenia

Milena Shchenyatskaya is&nbsp;the winner of the finals of the Cup of the Strongest in 2023, the prizewinner of the Crystal Rose and the Grand Prix Star Ripple Cup international competitions, and the 6th Summer Spartakiad of Russian Youth. The bronze medalist of the all-Russian Sky Grace Cup competition and the participant in the Sky Grace Cup international tournament in 2023 and 2025.How to properly prepare yourself before going on the floor and react to setbacks during your performance? The gymnast tells about this in the cards:<figure class="image"><img src="https://skygrace.ru/static/files/images/editor/2af/84f/2af84f6912518c7101235e3985274c92.jpg"></figure><figure class="image"><img src="https://skygrace.ru/static/files/images/editor/1d0/680/1d068059d9644048a6c311780b1268af.jpg"></figure><figure class="image"><img src="https://skygrace.ru/static/files/images/editor/f13/aa4/f13aa4b6a3181f768595783a843359bb.jpg"></figure><figure class="image"><img src="https://skygrace.ru/static/files/images/editor/6be/10b/6be10b208589213f251275f9c1ebb558.jpg"></figure><figure class="image"><img src="https://skygrace.ru/static/files/images/editor/b72/18b/b7218b696c5c29e991dcfddadc1afe6f.jpg"></figure><figure class="image"><img src="https://skygrace.ru/static/files/images/editor/9ea/a19/9eaa1971674c14c63ee569ce14628830.jpg"></figure>

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Small steps to big victories

We collected tips from the gymnast in the cards.

Small steps to big victories. Milena Shchenyatskaya

At the All-Russian Hopes of Russia competition, Rozaliya Nazmutdinova-Ratmanskaya and Ilmira Nazmutdinova were honorary guests at the awards ceremony.The USSR Masters of Sports continue the sporting traditions established in Yekaterinburg by the first USSR Honored Coach in rhythmic gymnastics, Elizaveta Oblygina. Rozaliya talked about it:<blockquote>"The first USSR’s Honored Coach was Elizaveta Oblygina, under whom we all honed our skills. Lilya started, then me, then Alya, then Mira."</blockquote>Her sister added that their sister, Liliya, was also involved in rhythmic gymnastics at that time:<blockquote>"Lilya started training in 1946, when she was already ten years old. Even today, yes, ten-year-old gymnasts perform such miracles with apparatus. Before, they were just starting out."</blockquote>Ilmira also praised the work of the Sky Grace International Association:<blockquote>"Alina Maratovna is great in that she has connections with other countries and holds Sky Grace competitions in other countries. We recently watched on television that there were competitions in China. The level of gymnastics has certainly improved. What they did before, like Alina Kabaeva, Natalia Lipkovskaya, Irina Chashchina. Back then, they did very complicated elements. And maybe even now, some people can't even perform the elements they do. But gymnastics has advanced so much now, even far beyond that level. And the most interesting thing is, despite the fact that they perform such complex elements, many of them are artistic, and it's interesting to watch them. Their compositions are so original, their choreography is wonderful, the musical accompaniment is superb. And the competitions themselves? The opening ceremonies, the gala concerts, they're absolutely wonderful! And I see that Alina Kabaeva now invites not only gymnasts to competitions, but also dancers, ballet dancers, and a Russian folk choir. It's interesting, it's captivating, and I think for those spectators from other countries, they will gradually, not right now, of course, learn from this experience. And this experience is wonderful, of course. Friendship between countries is essential. Communication with gymnasts from abroad."</blockquote>Their sister, Liliya Nazmutdinova, <a href="https://skygrace.ru/en/news/veterany-gimnastiki/veterany-hudozhestvennoy-gimnastiki-pervyy-master-sporta-sssr-liliya-nazmutdinova" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">was</a> featured in the Veterans of Rhythmic Gymnastics column.

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Opinion

The sisters have continued athletic traditions established in Yekaterinburg by the first USSR’s Honored Coach in rhythmic gymnastics, Elizaveta Oblygina.

Rozaliya Nazmutdinova-Ratmanskaya and Ilmira Nazmutdinova talk about the unique features of modern rhythmic gymnastics

During one of the training sessions, coach Evgeny Ivanov described how sambo classes are conducted at the Martial Arts Academy:<blockquote>"We started training with the kids in October. For the first two weeks, maybe a month, we worked on general physical training and strengthening our muscles. Then we started moving on to throws. We developed two throws: a front trip throw and a back trip throw. We also worked on theory. I explained the difference between sambo and judo, and we also worked on holds on the ground. I showed the guys what holds are available at the initial stage and how to transition to this hold. That is, to do a rollover and then hold someone on their back."</blockquote>He outlined sambo’s key features and explained how classes for beginners are structured, from general physical training to mastering initial throws and holds:<blockquote>"Sambo differs from judo in that, firstly, sambo is our national sport, a Russian sport. Some techniques can be performed in sambo, but not in judo. And the philosophy is completely different. Sambo is a martial art that emerged during the Soviet era when national wrestling styles were adopted from various countries. There's kuresh, Tatar, and Kyrgyz national martial arts, which were combined to create the martial art known as sambo."</blockquote>Sambo classes at the Martial Arts Academy began in October.

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He outlined sambo’s key features and explained how classes for beginners are structured, from general physical training to mastering initial throws and holds.

How are sambo classes at the Martial Arts Academy? Coach Evgeny Ivanov explains

We continue to explore the Sky Grace International Association.Let's discuss one of the features of the balance named after Yana Batyrshina, the 1996 Olympic silver medalist.<blockquote>4.3.2.4&nbsp;Bonus +0.20 is given when performing each additional 180° rotation in front split shape with bend in element BT2 or BT3.</blockquote>If a gymnast performs an additional 180° rotation in the form of a front split with a lean while performing a balance with two or three forms, a 0.20 bonus is added to the base value.<div data-component="video" data-props="{&quot;materialId&quot;:7542,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;Выдержки из правил. Найфонова&quot;,&quot;externalCdnLink&quot;:null,&quot;video&quot;:{&quot;subDir&quot;:&quot;6dd/015&quot;,&quot;name&quot;:&quot;6dd015cc97eb41503a79d0.mp4&quot;}}"></div>The video shows three balance forms (0.60) and an additional 360° rotation (0.40), so the athlete will receive 1.00 for the element.The video features Alesya Naifonova from Vladikavkaz.

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Rulebook Excerpts

Let's discuss one of the features of the balance named after Yana Batyrshina, the 1996 Olympic silver medalist.

"Rulebook excerpts". Additional rotation in the Batyrshina balance

At the All-Russian Hopes of Russia competition, Maria Tarasikova from Moscow shared the results from the Yekaterinburg competition:<blockquote>"I spent a long time preparing, a long time getting myself in the right frame of mind, and everything went quite well. It could have been better, of course, but nevertheless, I'm happy. There are a lot of girls here who participated in the training camps with me. I get along well with them, and I've watched and followed them. They're very good girls. Varya Solovieva, Liza Egorova, Vika Zinkovskaya, Arisha Paimetova."</blockquote>The gymnast shared why she loves rhythmic gymnastics, as well as her goals:<blockquote>"I really love the training process itself; I enjoy training and, in general, I enjoy sports. I think rhythmic gymnastics is my thing. I really like all my routines. The clubs routine probably stands out the most because it's a Russian folk routine, so fun, playful, and energetic. I think it suits me. Our choreographer, Elena, helps me a lot. I dream of learning to perform in a way that people will remember me. Not because I'm somewhere high up, but because I do it beautifully. And everyone applauds me, and everyone likes it."</blockquote>At the All-Russian Hopes of Russia competition, held in Yekaterinburg on November 29 and 30, the athlete took fourth place in the all-around.

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At the All-Russian Hopes of Russia competition, the gymnast from Moscow took fourth place in the all-around.

"I dream of learning to perform in a way that will make people remember me!" Maria Tarasikova on her goals and love of rhythmic gymnastics

Arina Paimetova from Moscow competed at the Cup of the Strongest under a quota from the Sky Grace International Association.The gymnast shared how her experience at major tournaments helped her at the All-Russian Hopes of Russia competition in Yekaterinburg:<blockquote>"This year was very difficult. I didn't do well at the championship, but thanks to a quota from the Sky Grace International Association, I competed at the Cup of the Strongest. I gained experience, and it was easier to compete here."</blockquote>The athlete shared how she practices her routines:<blockquote>"My coach and I work on the image, determining who I should portray. And I can watch a film or video to understand and convey the image. When we were composing the clubs, I was supposed to represent a flamingo. But then we changed our minds, and it has gentle, colorful music. My ribbon is very cheerful, danceable, and colorful."</blockquote>

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The Moscow gymnast previously competed at the Cup of the Strongest under a quota from the Sky Grace International Association.

Arina Paimetova shares how her experience helped her at the All-Russian Hopes of Russia competition

Karolina Pakhtusova, an Academy student from St. Petersburg, became the sixth in the all-around at the All-Russian competition Hopes of Russia. Her coaches are Alina and Irina Gusarova, and the choreographer is Ekaterina Belova.The athlete told how Olympic champion Alina Kabaeva set her up before going to the carpet:<blockquote>"She supported me, told me that I needed to do element after element, not rush, finish everything and maintain balance."</blockquote>The gymnast also shared the secrets of working on her artistic skills:<blockquote>"My artistry has gotten better, I think, because the most important thing is listening to the music. Now the programs are more refined and I sense the images better."</blockquote>The athlete thanked everyone who helped her in preparing for this start:<blockquote>"I want to say a big thank you to Alina Maratovna for her advice and for the opportunity to perform. Also, many thanks to my coaches Alina Gusarova, Irina Gusarova and choreographer Ekaterina Belova. And also to all the Academy staff for your support and love."</blockquote>The competition in Yekaterinburg was held on November 29 and 30.

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The Academy student shared the secrets of working on her her artistic skills, and also thanked everyone who helped her in preparing for the start in Yekaterinburg.