Valentina Rodionenko has told TASS news agency that it is unlikely that Aliya will compete at Russian nationals in April. The Championships had been planned as the Olympic Champion's return to competition following knee surgery, but she is not yet fully ready, and it seems that more recovery time is necessary. Her last competition was the European Games in Baku, last June.
If this turns out to be true, it isn't the end of the world. Aliya herself would most probably say that she herself just doesn't know as yet whether she will compete.
Besides, there are plenty more competitions for Aliya in the coming months!
By the way, congratulations are due to the Russian team, who won today's DTB Team Challenge with some very convincing performances, and to Nikolai Kuksenkov who won a bronze medal in the DTB Cup!