Olga Mostepanova - from beautiful daydream to World Champion

Young Olga in her white leotard and orange hair bows, at her first international competition in Wembley, 1980

I had only been in the Olympiski Stadium, Moscow, for a few moments when it happened: I found myself surrounded by a little army of tiny children, excitedly chattering away in Russian, a language I don't speak.   I strained my ears and heard the names : Aliya, Nastia, Ksenia; I was swept along by this blizzard of pigtails, giggles and pretty eyes; and suddenly I lost myself, and started looking for Olga Mostepanova amongst them.  She might have been there, but (now in her forties) it is more likely that she was hard at work in her own gym, helping a young gymnast learn how to do a walkover on beam.

Mostepanova was always like that, even as a child: her gymnastics appeared like a beautiful daydream, but the reality was infinitely more prosaic.  The exquisite plasticity that made her a Champion, the beautiful line for which she is famous, were the product of persistent hard work, a fierce ambition and skillful coaching.  Her gymnastics looked effortless, but Mostepanova, the epitome of the Russian artistic gymnast, was a disciplined athlete, a powerful gymnast, a tireless dancer, the fiercest competitor who just became 'stronger, and stronger and stronger' as she progressed through a meet.

Not surprising then that in conversation with Olga, what comes across first and foremost is a down-to-earth approach to her life, work and gymnastics,  Olga is a leader everywhere: at home, at work and as a role model.  She believes gymnastics should be a combination of artistry and acrobatics, but primarily urges the Russian team to train hard, think positive and avoid unnecessary distractions.   She devotes her life to her family, and to the interests of the young gymnasts whom she coaches today in the same gym as she once trained, Dynamo Moscow. 

Now read on, as Olga tells us a little about her time as a gymnast, and her opinions on Russian gymnastics today.

Olga, I remember you from one of your very first senior international competitions, Champions All in London in 1980, your white leotard and orange hair bows, how beautiful your beam routine was, and how coach Vladimir Aksyonov held your hand between apparatus.  What memories do you have of the competition, if any? 

I remember this!  It was my first international competition  And my leotard was very unusual.  I remember it was an Adidas leotard – and they were so difficult to come by in those days.  I was so happy to have this white leotard, it was so special to me.  These days, girls can go out and buy as many leotards as they like, but this was my best leotard, the only really special one I owned at that time.

Aksyonov was very skilled at preparing gymnasts for international competitions.  He knew exactly how to support me.

What was the training like for a young gymnast at the time that you competed?  How long were the training camps?  How often were you able to see your family? 

At that time we didn’t really have camps – we lived in a gymnastics specialist group at the Dynamo club.  We went home at the weekends, and our parents could visit us whenever we wanted, at the specialist hotel where we stayed.

Do you feel you missed anything in childhood?

I don’t feel we missed out on anything – children are children, whatever the circumstances.  All of us were little girls, and we didn’t realise that what we were doing was hard work because it was just all part of the day to day activity of our life.  Gymnastics was like play to us at first – we played like children on the apparatus, we lived together like a family, and we were always very busy and happy.

Who were the people who most influenced your gymnastics?  Who helped you through the difficult times?

I don’t really like to talk of ‘difficult times’.  They existed, but we do not really remember them because we were busy and just getting on with our lives.  The people who helped me most were Vladimir Aksyonov, my coach; Boris Galperin, who was Director of the Dynamo School of Gymnastics; my choreographer, Elena Kapitanova.  Coach Vladimir Kondratienko helped me to create my signature move on beam.  And, of course, Coach Vladimir Zaglada was always there when I needed him.

What do you think are the most important qualities in a gymnastics coach?  Any examples?

The most important thing is that a coach works hard for his gymnasts.  When a coach works hard and believes that he can achieve, his work will be successful.  It is important to be very consistent and logical, and very focussed.

Besides your many competitive successes, what were the most memorable occasions in your gymnastics career? 

Winning competitions was not as important to me as the whole process of competing.  I just loved to compete and during competitions I used to feel that I was becoming stronger, and stronger, and stronger.

What experiences did you have when visiting countries overseas? 

We did not really have any time at all to visit anything during our time overseas because we were always occupied with competitions and training, and very focussed on our work.

I saw you at the Wembley display in 1987 and you seemed to be on fine form - it was a surprise to me that you did not compete at the World Championships that year.  What made you decide to retire from the sport?

I decided to retire and stopped training for a while because of an injury.  Then I tried to come back, and managed to perform all the elements in my beam exercise with beauty, and head coach Leonid Arkayev asked me if I would like to train for the World Championships.  I had to say, ‘Leonid Yakovlevich, I’m done, I am retiring.  For myself, I could recover, but not to the same level as before’. 

Your choreography was always a strength of your gymnastics and you are widely acknowledged as one of the most graceful gymnasts ever in the history of the sport.  What do you think of the choreography and artistry in today's gymnastics?  Whose work would you consider to be the most interesting in gymnastics today?

Choreography has gone from gymnastics, and gymnastics should really be more artistic.  Choreography, difficulty and artistry should be present in equal measure in gymnastics routines.  I do not want to mention any particular names right now, but one of the things I really like about gymnastics today is the dynamic work and power that we see.  I’m really impressed by the unbelievable power of certain gymnasts, gymnastics has become a very dynamic sport, and I love watching the energetic routines where gymnasts seem to perform without stopping for a breath!

Did you watch the 2012 Olympics?  What did you think of the Russian team's performance?  Would you have any advice for the Russian gymnasts as they prepare for their next Olympics, in 2016?

I did not see as much of the Olympics as I would have liked, but I did not think that the Russian team was strong enough.  They needed to be more focussed and aggressive.  To be winners, you need to be strong and solid like America.  The Americans were aggressive and happy – always smiling and jumping.  I did not see this in the Russian girls, who seemed to lack confidence and power.

My advice to the girls would be – train to be more consistent and do not interrupt your training by going to too many small competitions, making appearances, or to train at the beach in Spain.  The girls have got good routines, but they need to be consistent enough to be competitive and to achieve better results on a regular basis.

What would you like to tell my readers about your work today?

I work as a children’s coach at Moscow Dynamo club and I am incredibly happy doing this work.  Our club has just moved to a new facility at the Olimpiski stadium – it is difficult for some of the children to travel there as it involves a 90 minute or two hour commute for so many of them – not ideal.  But the facilities are OK, and we will continue to work with our children.

What would you like fans to know about your life and family today?

I am a very happy mother to five beautiful children, a happy coach to all the young children at Dynamo, and a kind and happy daughter to my parents, my mum and my dad.

1979 Jr. USSR Championships: 7th AA
1979 Jr. Friendship Tournament: 1st T, 5th AA
1979 Jr. USSR vs. ITA: 1st T, 4th AA
1980 Champions AA: 3rd AA
1980 Coca Cola Int'l: 4th AA, 3rd BB, 1st FX
1980 Jr. USSR Championships: 2nd AA
1981 Jr. Friendship Tournament: 1st T, 3rd AA
1981 Jr. USSR vs. GDR: 2nd AA
1982 Blume Memorial: 1st AA
1982 Jr. European Championships: 3rd AA, 2nd V, 7th UB, 1st BB
1982 USA vs. USSR Dual Meet: 1st T, 4th AA
1982 USSR Championships: 3rd AA, 3rd V, 2nd UB, 3rd BB, 2nd FX
1983 USSR Cup: 2nd AA
1983 Moscow News: 3rd AA, 3rd BB
1983 USA vs. USSR: 1st T, 2nd AA, 2nd V (tie), 3rd UB, 6th BB, 4th FX
1983 USSR Championships: 7th AA
1983 World Championships: 1st T, 2nd AA, 1st BB, 2nd FX
1984 Alternate Games (Olomouc): 1st T, 1st AA, 1st V, 1st BB, 1st FX
1984 USSR Championships: 2nd AA, 1st UB
1984 USSR Cup: 1st AA, 1st BB, 1st FX
1985 World Championships: 1stT*

 *Olga qualified to the AA in 1985, but - citing a lack of psychological readiness - head coach Andrei Rodionenko replaced her - and team mate Irina Baraksanova -  - with Oksana Omelianchik and Elena Shushunova, who went on to win the competition.   

See more photographs of Olga. 

That beam magic, scoring 10 in Oloumoc 1984



With many thanks to Vladimir Zaglada.