"I went out there and performed from the heart." Ksenia Savinova talks about the Crystal Rose tournament

The all-around champion of the Crystal Rose international tournament, Ksenia Savinova from Gatchina, performed for the first time at the start in Minsk in 2023.

The gymnast shared her memories of the previous tournament:

"This is already my third time performing at the Crystal Rose. Last year, I didn't even make the finals and didn't perform very well, but this year I took first place in the all-around, and also in two individual events. Before the tournament, we worked on execution cleanly. And we practiced more risks. I think I just went out there and performed from the heart."

Ksyusha also spoke about the support of coach Evgenia Eliseeva and Olympic champion Alina Kabaeva:

"Evgenia Mikhailovna called into our sessions. Unfortunately, she wasn't able to come here in person. But she was always there for us, giving advice and helping us prepare to step onto the carpet. I'm very grateful to her for that. Alina Maratovna also called in. She pointed out our mistakes and told us what to place the accent on."

The athlete also noted the Belarusian gymnasts with whom she communicates outside the competition carpet:

"We often met at competitions with Ksyusha Evdokimova, Ksyusha Bondarenko, Margarita Zhurovich, and Kira Babkevich. I hang out with them the most. And just recently, we went to Montenegro for a training camp, where we also spent all our time together."

Ksyusha is a European Championship silver medalist and a Russian Junior Championship winner. She is a member of the main national team lineup, lives and trains at the Alina Kabaeva Sky Grace Rhythmic Gymnastics Academy.