She once carried the Soviet women’s team to Olympic gold in Mexico City, winning three individual medals, including silver in the all-around. Two years later, as a young mother, she returned to capture four more at the 1970 World Championships in Ljubljana. But after missing the 1972 Olympics, she slipped from public view—spoken of through whispers and cruel clichés about wasted talent. By 1990, Zinaida Voronina was no longer a star on the podium but a worker at a foundry, battling the weight of her past and the fog of alcoholism. And yet, the letter of a fan from Estonia—and her own unyielding resilience—brought her back into the light. In this rare and deeply personal conversation, Voronina speaks with candor about triumph, shame, survival, and the fragile hope of finding her way again.
