Molodezh Gruzii. June 20, 1972. At the Olympic Games in Helsinki, Mzia Dzhugeli, a graduate of the Georgian gymnastics school, a member of the national team, and a Master of Sports, made a significant contribution to the overall victory of our gymnasts and brought home a gold medal from Finland, becoming an Olympic champion.
Twenty years have passed since then. And each time, in the toughest competitions against experienced foreign rivals, Soviet gymnasts invariably became winners and medalists at European and world championships and the Olympic Games. But there were no longer any Georgian athletes in the national team. It so happened that representatives of our republic were left out of the national team before the most important competitions, and if they did make it onto the team, they spent the competitions on the substitute's bench.
Perhaps this year the tradition will be broken. Preparing for the current Olympic Games in Munich is Rusudan Sikharulidze, the all-around champion of Georgia, winner of many international competitions, and a member of the USSR national team.
We met Rusudan in her hometown of Batumi, in the gymnastics hall of the children's sports school. "There," we were told at the regional sports committee, "you can see Rusiko any day - weekdays or holidays." However, distracting her for even a few minutes to conduct an interview proved to be a difficult task: she worked with much dedication and single-mindedness on every element of her new program.
Finally Rusudan's coach Anzhelina Anisimnovna Gabriadze allowed her protege to take a ten-minute break.
Q: Rusudan, when did you achieve your first success in gymnastics?
A: Two months after I started training, I competed in the Georgian gymnastics chamionship held in Tbilisi, performing at the Second Junior level, and took second place. But true success came two years later, when I competed at the First Senior level and won first place and the title of Georgian champion of 1966.
Q: How did your debut on the international stage go?
A: From my first trip abroad to Bulgaria, where the championships of Dinamo team from socialist countries was held, I brought back four silver medals won on the individual events, and one gold medal in the team competition.
Q: Since then, you have had to compete in many important competitions, both in the Soviet Union and abroad. What are the results of the last few years?
A: These were mainly national championships, international competitions, and the Spartakiad of the Peoples of the USSR, where I performed quite consistently. I was unlucky at the dress rehearsal before the world championships in Ljubljana. I lost the top spot to Tamara Lazakovich from Vitebsk and, along with Olga Korbut, ended up on the reserve bench.
Q: After the world championships in Ljubljana, you performed quite successfully in the international gymnastics meet between the USSR and the USA, and in the match between Japan and the USSR...
A: Yes. In Philadelphia, for example, I took second place in the all-around competition after L. Turischeva, and in Pennsylvania I came in third after L. Turischeva and Z. Voronina. My result was more modest in Tokyo, where I finished sixth.
Q: How do you assess your chances of making in onto the Olympic team?
A: It's hard to say, but I haven't lost hope. Before the current national championship in Kiev, I suffered a leg injury. It's still bothering me, but it's manageable. Now I'm preparing for the USSR Cup, which will be held in Moscow. My goal is to finish in the top five...
Q: What if you succeed in your task?
A: After Moscow, we will have a training camp in Leselidze, and then, in July, a test event before the Olympic Games in Minsk. That's where the final team roster will be determined.
Q: Imagine yourself on the Olympic team for a moment. Who do you consider your main competitors for the fight for the top Olympic medals?
A: From our team, there are L. Turischeva, O. Korbut, T. Lazakovich, L. Burda, and N. Dronova, and from abroad, Karin Janz and Erika Zuchold from the GDR, and Rigby from the USA. This is in the all-around competition. Of course, there will be significantly more competitors on the individual apparatuses.
Q: What are you focusing on in your training right now?
A: I'm working in refining the elements of both the compulsory and optional programs. I spend a lot of time, four hours a day, working on the uneven bars and horizontal bar [sic], which are the weakest links in my program. However, I think I can mainly compensate for this through floor exercises and beam exercises.
G. EDISHERASHVILI