Emin Garibov hoped to compete at the first European Games but couldn’t participate because of an injury. This time, he came to the Games as one of the officials, he is the head of marketing at the Russian Artistic Gymnastics Federation. He shared his thoughts on the competitions with the Russian Olympic Committee.
A: The team will arrive in Minsk three days before the competition. The competitors in Minsk will be David Belyavskiy, a silver Olympic medalist from Rio, and the silver World medalists Vladislav Poliashov and Dmitri Lankin.
Q: The European Games will be David’s first major competition this season.
A: Exactly. He needs to prove himself once again, to show his level and to go through this competition smoothly. It’s also important to test the routines he’s preparing for the World Championships in Stuttgart.
Q: Which women will compete in Minsk?
A: It will be the leader of the Russian team, silver Olympic medalist Angelina Melnikova, the bars European champion Anastasiia Iliankova, and a rising gymnastics star, 16-year-old Aleksandra Shchekoldina.
Q: Why isn’t Aliya Mustafina on the team?
A: She has recently had a minor injury. The coaches decided to be a bit cautious with her since the main competition of the season is the World Championships.
Q: How will the Worlds team be selected?
A: As it is done traditionally, the team will be formed according to the results of the Russian Cup which will take place in Penza, on August 21-27.
Q: What does participating in the European Games mean for the Russian gymnasts?
A: For them, of course, every competition is important and the European Games are not an exemption. However, I want to note that it will be one more stage of the preparation for the main competition of the season – Worlds – and the main competition of the quad – the Olympic Games in Tokyo.
Q: Gymnasts from which countries will be fighting for medals in Minsk?
A: The competition promises to be interesting since many European teams have strong gymnasts. Dmitrii Lankin will have a lot of competition on rings. Nastia Iliankova will have to compete with the World Champion Nina Derwael from Belgium. In the all-around, Marios Georgiou from Cyprus, the bronze European AA medalist, can be pointed out. It’s important not to underestimate the competitors, after all, anything can happen in a competition. You need to perform cleanly because a mistake can cost you a medal.
Q: Have you already visited Minsk-Arena which will host the artistic gymnastics competition?
A: Of course. The organizers made sure to take care of all the guests of the Games and to make everyone comfortable – the spectators, the VIP guests, the journalists, and, most important, the athletes. At the moment, the arena has the rhythmic and acrobatic floor because these two sports will open the gymnastics competition. The organizers decided to leave our sport for dessert. Perhaps, that’s because most medals are given in artistic gymnastics.
Q: You weren’t able to compete at the first European Games. Can I congratulate you on your debut here, even if not in an athlete’s role?
A: Yes, unfortunately, I could not compete in Baku because of an injury. Nevertheless, I heard a lot of good reviews about the games. Big multi-sport competitions always have a friendly atmosphere. It’s a great opportunity to meet athletes from other countries and other sports.
Q: Is it easier emotionally to compete or to watch the competition from the stands?
A: When I was asked this question right after retiring, I always replied that watching from the stands was harder. Now I understand that the emotions you experience during when competing and when watching from the stands are incomparable, they’re very different.
Q: Which sports do you plan to follow here?
A: First of all, all the gymnastics disciplines: trampoline, rhythmic gymnastics, and acrobatics. Especially, since we all compete under the roof of Minsk-Arena. It would be nice to watch the 3×3 basketball which is making its debut at the Olympic Games. I’ll gladly cheer on beach football since this sport is very close to me. I’m friends with an ex-keeper of the team, Andrey Bukhlitskiy.
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