Sovetsky Sport. July 8, 1972. There were six in Mexico City. Strictly speaking, it was only by protocol that the team was called "female." it would be more accurate to call them women, young ladies, and schoolgirls. The oldest, Zinaida Voronina, was twenty-one years old, and the youngest, Lyuba Burda, was fifteen. What intensity of competition they withstood, what unrest they endured!
We asked Merited Master of Sports Larisa Petrik to recall the Olympic days of Mexico City.
I'm glad I can mentally relive it again...
In the summer of 1968, after the USSR Cup competition in Gorky, we already knew who would go to Mexico City. Everyone used to say that the team should be a united whole. But, you must agree, it's not always possible to put together a friendly team. Different characters, hopes for personal success...
The head coach of our national team, Larisa Semyonovna Latynina, liked to repeat: "Only in acute situations, in real competition, a sports character is forged, is hardened." This is very true. We felt for ourselves how difficult it is to get an Olympic ticket. The fight for a place in the team was extremely tense. And the rivalry forced each of us to look for new touches to our routines. We became very good friends when we were preparing for the Olympics. We wanted to continue the tradition of our women's gymnastics - to win five sets of gold team medals at the Olympic Games. In training, we helped each other and consulted with each other. We lived one life and had one desire - to win.
Didn't we have weaknesses and failures? We did. But the force of collectivism drew forward. Everyone was responsible for himself and for everyone at once. When Lyuda Turischeva fell off the beam in Mexico City, her grief knew no bounds. "I let the team down, I let everyone down," she repeated, sobbing. You should have seen how we assured her, consoled her, saying that nothing was lost yet, just to get together and finish the competition.
How did Natasha Kuchinskaya feel when she received a low score on the uneven bars? She was one of the contenders for a medal in the all-around, and suddenly a breakdown. But Natasha told us anxiously: "I will work for the team." And she did, and how! She helped our national team, and she herself moved from tenth place to third. Here is the will!
The last day. Medals are awarded in the individual events.
On the eve of his great success, a person feels what will happen and how. And I felt it. Before the balance beam final, I tried to be rational: I had to not fall, not to lose my balance, but what if I wobbled? I huddled over, imagining what should be done so that the judges would not notice. I approached Sofia Ivanovna Muratova (she was our leading coach), and asked: "Can I do everything?" "Yes, you can do everything." "Have I done the routine a thousand times in the gym?" "Probably more." "So I know it by heart. Don't rush and calm down?" "Yes, take your time. You remember everything, you know everything..."
Then I said to myself: "What do you have to lose? Show people who you are!"
Every movement has to be anticipated, programmed in advance. Hand here, hand there, down, then a turn, a jump... But then, in Mexico, I felt that I was doing everything as if I were practicing, and with inspiration, and everything was flowing like a story, wonderful - I liked myself. Never, ever in my life have I experienced anything like this.
Suddenly my friends hugged me - I have third place! I wanted to stick out my tongue, make a face at someone, I don't know whether from happiness or from fatigue. And then everyone kissed Natasha Kuchinskaya - she got a gold medal!
Floor exercises. My favorite event. I warmed up before them - my body was on fire, my blood was pulsing: "What will happen? What will happen?" On wooden legs, I walked up to the accompanist, Vevrik, and asked him to tighten the tempo before the end.
My name was called. The first sounds of the melody. I felt something in my soul, and I went. That's when I wanted to give a gift to the audience. It's a great pleasure to make people feel good. I heard applause in time with my music, my Tsiganochka, and it gave me strength. I gave my all. An irresistible spring had straightened in me - I knew for sure that the routine was a success, that there were almost no mistakes.
I march off the platform. What's going on here! "You're a champion!" they shouted. "I don't believe it!" I shouted back. Only on the podium did I believe it. Then they played the anthem in your honor. Your country's anthem! It's a great happiness!
Unforgettable moments of victory. They are beautiful!
I would be happy again if I saw the victory of our girls in Munich.
LARISA PETRIK, champion of the XIX Olympic Games