"If you want to be up on the podium, you have to work for it." Alexandra Borisova talks about her performance and the advice from Olympic champion Alina Kabaeva at the third stage of the Cup of the Strongest

Alexandra Borisova from Moscow assessed her performances at the third stage of the Cup of the Strongest:

"I’m happy with the hoop routine because I stayed focused and avoided any slip-ups. As for the clubs, I think I just ran out of steam. There were some mistakes."

At this tournament, the gymnast premiered her program with the ball. She told us more about it:

"The song itself is about the Queen of Roses. So, I’m embodying that image, and I really like this new routine. I think it was put together about two or three weeks ago. Irina Borisovna choreographed it. We put it together quite quickly and then just started working on it right away."

The gymnast shared what Olympic champion Alina Kabaeva said to her before she went out onto the carpet:

"She told me that, of course, there are no small details, that I needed to stay fully focused and that on the competition floor, I shouldn't perform any better or worse than I do in training. Well, there was a bit of a hitch there. She came over, cheered me up, and told me it was just like training. And she said: 'If you want to make the podium, you’ve got to put in the work'."

Alexandra thanked everyone who helped her during the preparation and competitions:

"I want to express my deepest gratitude to Alina Maratovna, Irina Nikolaevna, Alina Ivanovna, Ekaterina Medorovna, Ekaterina Konstantinovna, and everyone, absolutely everyone, who cheered for me and worried about me, as well as the entire Academy staff and the medical team. I love you all. I also want to express my gratitude to all the fans who were here, as well as those watching on TV screens and other devices. You are simply incredible. Thank you so much."

At the tournament, the gymnast won the gold medal in the hoop event.

Alexandra is a member of the Russian National team; she lives and trains at Alina Kabaeva Sky Grace Rhythmic Gymnastics Academy.