"My lessons will benefit." Oksana Skaldina — coach at the training camp at the Academy

Oksana Skaldina is one of the coaches at Alina Kabaeva Sky Grace Academy of Rhythmic Gymnastics training camp, which takes place from March 21-31, 2023.

Skaldina has had an incredible athletic past. She is the bronze medalist of the 1992 Olympic Games in the individual all-around, multiple world and European champion, Honored Master of Sports of the USSR.

She has been working as a coach since 1994. Among her former students are the European and world champion in group exercises Ksenia Dzhalaganiya, two-time European champion among juniors Daria Andronova, and European champion Daria Svatkovskaya, the coach’s daughter.

Now Skaldina is on staff at the Olympic reserve sports school No. 74 and the Lokomotiv Russian Sports Club. She is the personal trainer of the 2023 Russian team all-around champion Alexandra Skubova.

In her work, coach Skaldina appreciates the perseverance of the gymnasts and their technical skills. In her opinion, this is more important than natural abilities. 

“Alexandra Skubova has a good personality, but her physique is not ideal. She does not have the most beautiful and, as they say in sports, clean feet. There are still difficulties with the choreography. Sasha gets by with coordination. She knows how to take risks and try something new, ” Skaldina said back in 2016.

According to Skaldina, she became part of the coaching staff at the training sessions through its head coach Elena Karpushenko. 

“When Karpushenko said that she was taking part in this camp, I asked to see her, and told her that I too wanted to try. I was curious to come here,” she said.

Skaldina focuses on working with objects in her sessions at the training camp. 

“My lessons will be useful. Gymnasts will take something from me for themselves and that is the most important thing,” she explained.

Gymnasts from Moscow, St. Petersburg, Krasnoyarsk, Ulyanovsk and other Russian cities came to the Academy training camp. Gymnasts from other countries, Cuba, India and Kazakhstan, are also preparing for the upcoming tournaments at the Academy training camp.