Viktoria Komova - picture gallery

I was doing something far more important, researching an article, when these pictures of Viktoria Komova caught my eye.

They are far from the standard gymnastics pictures of gymnasts celebrating, commiserating, or caught in the midst of their most graceful pose. Not the best, most aesthetic images to view. When looking at pictures of gymnasts I am often conscious of selecting the ones taken from the most flattering angle, avoiding the shot with the bent legs, the out of control arms. I took a different viewpoint here, choosing Komova at the most stressed, the least stagey point of her work. These pictures capture Komova in flight, in the height of motion and effort. There is no contrivance to them, no trained pose or pause to impress the judges.

Viktoria Komova is a rare gymnast, classical in style and execution. Her national heritage of ballet, her family heritage of the best of sport is visible in her posture and carriage. Every single move, from a simple leap or transition to the most complex of somersault, is performed with absolute amplitude, her line sharp and clear. Besides her own special talent, it is the result of the meticulous attention of a choreographer from the earliest days of her career. It is gymnastics that pays respect to a broader culture of movement that is recognisable in other art forms, such as dance. Such gymnastics renders a Code of Points useless if it can only differentiate by means of execution deductions and difficulty value.

Komova is the best gymnast in the world, and has been for the past two years. She is not always the best competitor, but then the judges make too many mistakes. Hopefully, in 2013 they will finally get it right at the third time of asking, and beyond.