My Favorite Chinese Gymnast

Deng made a mistake with ribbon at the worlds but to me she still deserves to be in the top 6 in Kiev!

I've Got Maksymenko Under My Skin

...but will she medal in Kiev this year?

Admit it, even if you are not a fan of the Ukrainian rhythmic school, Alina Maksymenko is sweet, charming, and so expressive. I mean, she just shot a video, where she said, more or less: "I would like to leave no one indifferent."

Yet, she didn't get medals in hoop and ball. Frankly, I did not expect much from her ball routine but I thought she had some chances with hoop. The one routine I do enjoy the most is her clubs. I think this is her best medal bet. Her ribbon has too many dance moves and not enough "substance," compared to other world class gymnasts.

Either way, my fingers are crossed!

Kiev Welcomes the World's Best, Today

The World Championship in Kiev started today with a beautiful gala in red, white and black, typical dramatic Ukrainian style. It seemed that during this performance, nobody was breathing.

Here is the schedule of the championship and link for live viewing,as provided on rsg.net:


Here can watch live stream
http://tvlux.net/ch89.html

Schedule of broadcasts on Xsport (Kyiv time):
27.08
19:00 - Opening Ceremony. Live Broadcast
28.08
7:20 - Opening ceremony of an open
09:00 - Individual championship. Qualification (hoop, ball). Live Broadcast
17:10 - Individual championship. Qualification (hoop, ball). Live Broadcast
21:50 - Individual championship. Finals (hoop, ball). Premiere
29.08
09:00 - Individual championship. Qualification (clubs, ribbon). Live Broadcast
13:20 - Individual championship. Qualification (clubs, ribbon). Live Broadcast
17:10 - Individual championship. Qualification (clubs, ribbon). Live Broadcast
23:00 - Individual championship. Finals (clubs, ribbon). Premiere
30.08
11:20 - Individual championship. Finals (hoop, ball)
13:00 - Individual championship. Finals (clubs, ribbon)
14:00 - Individual championship. All-around. Live Broadcast
31.08
15:00 - Group championship. All-around. Live Broadcast
19:30 - Group championship. All-around. Premiere
1.09
11:30 - Group championship. All-around. Premiere
15:00 - Group championship. Separate species. Live Broadcast

The channel is available to Launch TV called "Hockey-Ukraine".
To view the channels you want to install ACE Stream Media. In the "Help" section

Good luck to all the gymnasts!

A Fair Podium, Maybe

Once in a while, we, fans, see the gymnasts we actually enjoy watching. I think the top 3 spots at the World Games in Cali ended up in harmony with fan preferences. Now that judges are taking and re-taking their qualification exams,  I can't help but wonder if the next competition will bring more results looking like this, Staniouta from Belarus, next to Rizatdinova from the Ukraine:

I happen to prefer Staniouta, as a gymnast, but both Maksymenko and Rizatdinova are showing significant improvement, and they always had a lot of charm and expression. The World Championship in Kiev will likely bring many medals to the Ukrainian team and I hope these medals come without depriving other deserving competitors.