Ksenia Klimenko came to Buenos Aires as one of the main contenders for the all-around podium but ended up fifth in the final after falling on her best event, bars. The next day, she took gold on in the bars final, but getting over the mistakes she made in the AA final was quite hard for her.
She talked to TeamRussia about the all-around final and competing at the Youth Olympic Games.
A: This is already a truly adult competition: there are lots of spectators paying close attention… And when I realized that I didn’t perform well because of ridiculous mistakes, I was very upset. I expected to medal.
Q: There are enough chances to do that yet, don’t despair.
A: Here’s my approach: I select an element that isn’t working out and I keep working on it. You can’t keep doing it mindlessly but it’s necessary to eradicate the error. At the same time, I don’t have an explanation why the mistakes happened on my favorite events.
Q: Beam and bars…
A: Yes. Almost everyone is making mistakes on beam here as if it’s cursed. But bars are my best event. For the second day, I can’t seem to be able to do it. In the gym, during practices, everything’s fine, but at the competition, I keep falling on the same element.
Q: Your floor was amazing, the public applauded you.
A: I felt that. Sometimes there are doubts: is everything good compared to the other competitors? But the public reacts so well and with such understanding that everything inside me rejoices. What’s left is not to make mistakes on my favorite events.
Q: What was the reaction of your coaches?
A: My coach, when the first emotions subsided, said to me: everything would be fine, you’d win a medal, if not for that fall on bars.
Q: How are the relationships in the Olympic village?
A: I met the girls from Canda, Japan, Ukraine and athletes from other countries. We don’t have that much free time, I’m mostly thinking about the competition, but we talk a bit. All the girls are really nice.
Q: Where are your main fans?
A: At home, in Surgut. There’s a time difference of 8 hours but I know that they are watching me at any time of the day or night. The coaches at our gym are really cheering for me. I really want to make them happy.
Photo: Russian Artistic Gymnastics Federation
Support Gymnovosti on Patreon from only $1 a month and help us bring to you even more awesome gymnastics coverage!
