Category: USSR

Categories
1972 USSR WAG

1972: Was Olga Korbut Supposed to Be on the Soviet Team in Munich?

If you grew up watching U.S. gymnastics coverage, you might think that Olga Korbut was not supposed to be on the Soviet team in 1972. During an ABC replay of the 1972 Olympics, the commentators remarked:

“She was a last-minute substitute on the Soviet team, replacing Nina Dronova who had broken her wrist. Olga wasn’t even listed in the Russian team biographies.”

A similar remark was printed in Gymnast (now International Gymnast) magazine in an article about the 1972 Chunichi Cup, in which Dronova competed:

The Russians were represented by three girls, Ludmilla Tourischeva, 1st All-Around in Munich, Lyubov Burda, 5th All-Around in Munich, and 14-year-old Nina Dronova who was a member of the USSR Olympic team until she broke her wrist several weeks before the games. She was replaced by Olga Korbut.

Gymnast, February 1973

But is that what happened? The Soviet press told a different story.

November 1-4, 1972. Grodno, Byelorussian SSR, USSR. Three times Olympic Champion in artistic gymnastics Olga Korbut. The exact date of the photograph is unknown. Vitaly Sozinov/TASS PUBLICATION
Continue reading “1972: Was Olga Korbut Supposed to Be on the Soviet Team in Munich?”
Categories
1972 MAG USSR WAG

1972: Korbut and Andrianov Win the USSR Cup

Months earlier, in April, Ludmilla Tourischeva and Nikolai Andrianov won the 1972 Soviet Championships — both with errors. At the 1972 Soviet Cup, Tourischeva had another mistake, and this time, Olga Korbut was able to capitalize on it and win the competition. As for Andrianov, he further cemented his position as the top Soviet gymnast heading into the Olympics.

Below, you’ll find the results, a Soviet video montage, as well as newspaper articles about the competition. I’ve translated full articles so that you can have the experience of a gymnastics fan who was trying to piece together what happened in the pages of the newspaper Izvestiia.

November 1-4, 1972. Grodno, Byelorussian SSR, USSR. Three times Olympic Champion in artistic gymnastics Olga Korbut. The exact date of the photograph is unknown. Vitaly Sozinov/TASS
Continue reading “1972: Korbut and Andrianov Win the USSR Cup”
Categories
1972 Interviews & Profiles MAG USSR

1972: An Interview with Edvard Mikaelian, Armenian Gymnast and Fan of Jimi Hendrix

Edvard Mikaelian was part of the Soviet teams that finished second at the 1972 Olympics and 1974 World Championships. In the lead-up to the Munich Olympics, he finished sixth at the USSR Championships and fourth at the USSR Cup. At the Olympics, he tied for 20th in the all-around.

The following interview, printed in the Czechoslovak weekly Stadión, fleshes out the character of one of the lesser-known members of the Soviet men’s team. It portrays him as a trendy, fashionable citizen of the world, who loved both ballet and American rock and roll, including the Rolling Stones, Jimi Hendrix, and, of all things, the musical Jesus Christ Superstar.

Stadión, May 9, 1972

Note: This profile includes an anecdote that would no longer be socially acceptable to print today.

Continue reading “1972: An Interview with Edvard Mikaelian, Armenian Gymnast and Fan of Jimi Hendrix”
Categories
1972 Interviews & Profiles MAG USSR WAG

1972: Profiles of Tourischeva and Andrianov after the USSR Championships

The USSR Championships were the first major domestic challenge for the Soviet gymnasts on the road to Munich, and they were full of surprises. 

Nikolai Andrianov, who was third at the 1971 European Championships, won the all-around, defeating both Voronin and Klimenko. But on the second day of competition, which didn’t count toward his all-around total, he found himself sitting on the parallel bars.

And Ludmilla Tourischeva finally won the all-around title at the USSR Championships. Yes, she had won both the European and World all-around titles before she won the USSR Championships. (She had won the USSR Cup in 1969 and 1971.) She, too, had a major error during the competition.

Afterward, the Soviet media produced video profiles of both champions. You can find the videos, transcripts, and translations below.

Continue reading “1972: Profiles of Tourischeva and Andrianov after the USSR Championships”
Categories
1972 MAG USSR

1972: Andrianov Wins the Men’s Competition at the USSR Championships

At the 1971 European Championships, Nikolai Andrianov finished third behind Viktor Klimenko (first) and Mikhail Voronin (second). One year later, the momentum had changed. Not only did Andrianov beat Klimenko and Voronin; he dominated the competition, winning by 1.70 points. (To be fair, Klimenko was still recovering from an Achilles tear that happened on floor during warm-ups at the European Championships.)

That said, there were still plenty of mistakes that needed to be fixed before the Munich Olympics, and Andrianov was not immune to the falling contagion that spread throughout the gym in Kyiv. As one newspaper put it, “Kolya Andrianov was sitting on parallel bars, as if on a fence, and smiling in a childish way, as if he was not a master of international class.”

So, here’s the coverage of the men’s competition at the 1972 USSR Championships.

Note: You can read a preview of the competition here.

Nikolai Andrianov, 1972, Hamburg, West Germany
Continue reading “1972: Andrianov Wins the Men’s Competition at the USSR Championships”
Categories
1972 USSR WAG

1972: Tourischeva Wins the Women’s Competition at the USSR Championships

The USSR Championships were early in the 1972 competitive season, and as one would expect, Soviet gymnasts were not in top form. Tourischeva and Lazakovich had problems with their compulsory beam routines. Olga Korbut’s problems on bars continued; she hit her feet on a glide swing during the compulsory bar routine.

Nevertheless, despite the problems, Polina Astakhova, who would be on the floor with the Soviet gymnasts in Munich, had “a quite positive general impression.”

Below, you can find the results, as well as Sovetsky Sport’s coverage of the women’s competition at the 1972 USSR Championships.

An interesting tidbit: Tourischeva performed two different floor routines during the USSR Championships. One routine was to “Glory” by Glinka. The other was to a song from the 1944 German movie The Woman of My Dreams. She would use the latter in Munich.

Another tidbit: Elvira Saadi was called “The Panther” by the French, and her arm choreography was her signature as was her ability to feel the “subtleties of the tragic jester’s soul” while performing to Rachmaninoff’s “Polichinelle.”

Tourischeva and Olga Korbut, 1972, Competition between the USSR, Canada, and West Germany

Note: You can read a preview of the competition here.

Continue reading “1972: Tourischeva Wins the Women’s Competition at the USSR Championships”
Categories
1972 MAG USSR WAG

1972: A Preview of the USSR Championships

In the lead-up to the 1972 Olympics, the first big test for Soviet gymnasts was the USSR Championships, held in Kyiv at the end of March and the beginning of April.

Tourischeva and Lazakovich were the clear favorites on the women’s side, but people were eager to see if gymnasts from the 1968 Olympics like Karaseva and Voronina could hang on. Dronova, another aspirant for the Olympic Team, was still recovering from an injury.

There were three clear frontrunners on the men’s side: Klimenko, Voronin, and Andrianov.

Here’s a short preview of the competition.

Nikolai Andrianov, 1972, Hamburg, Germany

Reminder: The USSR Championships and the USSR Cup were two separate competitions. Both competitions were held in the lead-up to the 1972 Olympics.

Note: Korbut is not mentioned in the article. In her autobiography My Story, Korbut posits that Stanislav Tokarev, the author of this article, did not appreciate her gymnastics prior to the Munich Olympics.

Continue reading “1972: A Preview of the USSR Championships”
Categories
1972 East Germany USSR WAG

1972: The East German Women’s Team Defeats the Soviet Team before Munich

In October of 1971, just days after the European Championships, the Soviet Union and the East German gymnasts faced off. The Soviet Union won, and Olga Korbut won the all-around. 

A few months later, in March of 1972, the two teams held another dual meet. This time, the East German team won, and Karin Janz won the all-around.

Ludmilla Tourischeva was absent, and reportedly, Olga Korbut had to withdraw due to injury. Nevertheless, the East German press was excited about this victory during an Olympic year, especially the team’s progress on floor exercise.

Let’s take a look at what happened…

Janz, 1972 Summer Olympics, Date: 31.08.1972 Copyright: imago/Sven Simon
Continue reading “1972: The East German Women’s Team Defeats the Soviet Team before Munich”
Categories
1970 Interviews & Profiles MAG USSR

1970: Albert Azaryan Training His Son Eduard

Many expectations are foisted on the children of Olympic gold medalists. Albert Azaryan’s son, Eduard, was no exception. Already in 1970, there were media stories about Azaryan’s 11-year-old son.

Albert Azaryan was best known for his performances on rings, an event he won at the 1954 World Championships, the 1955 European Championships, the 1956 Olympic Games, the 1958 World Championships, and the 1960 Olympic Games.

Though Eduard did not end up winning as many major titles as his father, he was part of the Soviet team that won silver at the 1978 World Championships and gold at the 1980 Olympic Games.

Here’s an article from 1970 on the father-son duo.

Continue reading “1970: Albert Azaryan Training His Son Eduard”
Categories
1970 USSR

1970: The Buzz around the Voronin Family

Zinaida Voronina (née Druzhinina) and Mikhail Voronin were a gymnastics power couple. When they had a child in 1969, it was an exciting event in the sports world. The press was buzzing with questions, such as: What would the child of two Olympic gymnastics champions be like? Certainly, he would be a gymnast, right? And would Zinaida be able to get back into shape in time for the 1970 World Championships?

Let’s take a look at some of the excitement and speculation surrounding the Voronin family in 1970, both in the Soviet and Czechoslovak media.

Seen after their wedding in the Palace of weddings in Moscow are Soviet gymnasts Mikhail Voronin , all-round world champion, and Zinaida Druzhinina , silver medallist of the European Champsionships. They are seen viewing the capital from the Lenin Hills. 11 August 1967, Russia Federation Copyright: Topfoto
Continue reading “1970: The Buzz around the Voronin Family”