Sports achievements of Adam Kanaev. Evgenia Olegovna Kanaeva: biography, career and personal life

Childhood

Zhenya’s mother is a master of sports in rhythmic gymnastics. But at the age of 6, she was introduced to sports by her grandmother, who loved figure skating and rhythmic gymnastics. Young Evgenia showed impressive abilities. Elena Arais, the daughter of the gymnast’s current coach Vera Shtelbaums, began training Kanaeva. The first coach was amazed by the student’s desire to learn new and complex elements. At the sports school, everyone noticed that Kanaev’s wife often stayed to train when everyone had already left. The grandmother waited for her granddaughter in the hallway for hours.

12-year-old Kanaeva was invited to Moscow for a training camp for young Omsk gymnasts. Amina Zaripova saw her performance; this coach was responsible for training the juniors. Later, the girl was invited to train at the Olympic reserve school. Zhenya began to improve her results, thanks to the fact that Vera Shtelbaums was next to her in Moscow.

In 2003, Kanaeva competed for Gazprom in Japan at the club championship in the junior category and won. The gymnast represented Russia together with Alina Kabaeva and Irina Chashchina. At the same time, she was noticed by Irina Viner, the head coach of the Russian rhythmic gymnastics team. The girl was invited to the base of the Russian national team members, to the Novogorsk training center. As Wiener says, this was a turning point in the athlete’s life.

“Kabaeva also once began her training among the stars. And Zhenya was lucky that coach Vera Shtelbaums worked in the Novogorsk center. And we were lucky that we decided to send Kanaev there. And she showed herself to be talented and skillful, and besides, she loves gymnastics,” says Wiener.

Start of a sports career

Zhenya Kanaeva’s climb to the podium was not easy. This is due to the fact that there are a lot of talented gymnasts in Russia. After Kabaeva and Chashchina won medals at the 2004 Olympics, Olga Kapranova and Vera Sesina began to rise to the top. They then became the leaders of rhythmic gymnastics in the country. Kabaeva continued to perform, so there was no place for Kanaeva in the Russian team. But the girl continued to work and luck was on her side in 2007. Then, in the summer, the composition of the team for the European Championship was already known - it was Sesina, Kapranova and Kabaeva. But Alina was seriously injured and was unable to go. A replacement was found in Kanaeva, and the gymnast was entrusted with performing the ribbon.

Evgenia appeared on the carpet for an instant, but did not let her fans and coaches down. She won gold in the final, performing with a ribbon, and won in the team competition. Well, a few months later the gymnast brought gold at the World Championships, in the team competition.

Olympic season

The four programs of the 2008 Olympics (ribbon, jump rope, hoop, clubs) were quite complex and musically thought out. The performances revealed individuality. The program with the tape was compiled for the piano version of “ Moscow evenings" Then Kanaeva performed in the shadow of Kapranova and Sesina, as well as the current world champion Anya Bessonova. But by mid-spring the girl was able to win the overall championship at the Grand Prix and World Cup stages. Kanaeva became the absolute champion of Russia.

And at the European Championships, the girl had already left the reserves and was part of the Russian national team. Zhenya beat Kapranova and Bessonova and won the title of European Champion. Even then, the gymnast was considered the main contender for participation in Olympic Games Oh. And so it happened, at the Beijing Olympics the girl represented the country together with Kapranova.

It is worth noting that Zhenya Kanaeva became the youngest among the finalists in the rhythmic gymnastics competition at the Games. By the way, she made the fewest mistakes. As a result, the athlete won the Olympics.

And in 2012, at the London Olympic Games, Evgenia Kanaeva became a two-time champion.

Record holder

In 2009, when new rules were introduced, the gymnast's style changed. At the beginning of the season, the girl was tormented by fatigue and injuries. But she continued her streak of victories in absolute championship. In several finals with individual programs, she lost to Anna Bessonova or Vera Sesina. Then, at the European Championships, which took place in Baku, Zhenya took gold in all types of the program. Then she won 9 gold medals at the Universiade and World Games. For her excellent result at the Universiade, the girl was awarded the title “Heroine of the Games.” In the fall of the same year, Kanaeva had the opportunity to win the world champion title. Zhenya qualified with the first results in the programs, she won four gold medals. She also received a medal as part of a team together with Daria Dmitrieva, Daria Kondakova and Olga Kapranova. By the start of the competition, she already had 5 gold medals at one World Championship, as a result, Kanaeva repeated Oksana Kostina’s record in 1992. After the performances, the gymnast won her sixth medal, thereby breaking the record at a single championship.

Evgenia Kanaeva on video

At the 2011 World Championships, Evgeniya repeated her achievement and again won 6 out of 6 highest awards in personal disciplines. So, based on the results of the competition, Kanaeva became a 17-time world champion in her sport.

Personal life of Evgenia Kanaeva

Zhenya’s success not only brought her the love of fans, but also continued the tradition of the Omsk school of preparing excellent athletes. Sports commentator and former gymnast Laysan Utyashcheva said that Kanaeva is Kabaeva and Chashchina combined. But Zhenya doesn’t like comparisons. In her interviews, she often talks about the future, says that she lives only for today, and victories only motivate her to achieve even better results. Coaches say that the athlete lives by the principle “it’s either hit or miss,” and this is what sets her apart from other gymnasts. Victory and defeat serve as a lesson for Evgenia.

Evgenia Kanaeva always listens to her coaches, but at the same time always expresses her opinion when drawing up programs. She constantly learns, not without pleasure, new elements, and also tries new styles. And the main thing in gymnastics for an athlete is not the scores at all, but the reaction of the audience. Current coaches say Kanaeva will make an excellent coach herself.

Evgenia in her small homeland

Now the girl is studying at the Siberian State University of Physical Culture and Sports. After finishing her sports career, Zhenya intends to learn to draw and play the piano. Besides, he dreams of learning English language and learn to use a computer. In 2009, Zhenya was given the title of “Honored Master of Sports of Russia.”

Double Olympic champion told an SE correspondent about how she made the decision to end her career and about her new job with young gymnasts

- They say that you are now the head coach of the youth team.

When I read this news, I thought: “Wow.” In fact, I became the coach of the Russian national team. We do not have any division by age. I work with young gymnasts and help the main athletes create programs. Irina Aleksandrovna Viner connects me if she needs help.

- How did you end up in the coaching field?

All my life, rhythmic gymnastics has been my main thing. For me it is like creativity. I can't live without her. Some people want to go into show business, others want to become a TV presenter, but I like gymnastics. At the same time, I understand that I need to develop myself in a variety of areas. For this reason, I entered the university to get a second higher education.

- You look wonderful. It must have been difficult to maintain your figure after retiring?

You would know how sharply I began to gain weight after the Olympic Games in London! I was seriously drying myself out in preparation for them. And after they ended, the body began to catch up. Everything stabilized only after the birth of the child. Now I don’t go on strict diets, but I restrain myself within reason.

- Some of the gymnasts of the 2012 Olympic team found themselves on television. You could probably do it too.

By the way, I was invited. But I believe that to engage in this activity you need to receive a special education and be a competent person in this environment. Going on television simply because you have the name and title of Olympic champion is wrong.

- What about your teammates?

They are probably learning... And in general I shy person. I feel uncomfortable when I am filmed or even photographed. I'm very self-critical and weird. For example, I always loved to train. Even when it was hard. Maybe I'm a masochist (laughs).

- Is coaching serious and long-term?

Wait and see. At the moment I really like everything. I get great pleasure and want to help our country maintain its brand in rhythmic gymnastics.

- Do you work with someone individually?

Yes. But these girls are still young. There are some very promising ones.

- Are they listening?

Yes, in different ways. There are also very successful people who look straight into their mouths and hang on to every word. But there are very few of them. It's a different time now. It seems to me that the current generation is more talented, but this very “looking into the mouth” is lacking.

- How can a young athlete not do this if in front of him is a legend of his sport?

It happens. There was one striking example...

- If necessary, can you kick me out of training?

I've never been kicked out and I don't intend to do that. I don't think this method is correct. I can only say that the doors are always open, and if someone doesn’t want to study, they can leave. I didn’t come here to force an athlete to work against his will, but to help him achieve something in life.

- You yourself announced your retirement relatively recently. When did you make this decision internally?

No one touched me or pressed me. They gave me the opportunity to think calmly. We recently spoke with my first coach Vera Shtelmbaus, and she said: “But you could continue. I saw fire and desire in you.” In general, she had hope until the last moment. But I still decided to switch to family life. Plus, my health was not all right. I just didn't talk about it. And everything has its time. I have achieved some success in gymnastics, now I need to move on.

How were your first days without gymnastics?

It was a terrible situation. Feeling like you are in emptiness. Before life was built according to a clear schedule, I always understood what would happen tomorrow, the day after tomorrow and even in six months. And then you wake up - and that’s it, the thread is cut. You need to look for yourself again. Everyone deals with the situation differently. I went to my family and gave birth to a child. I believe that this is the main event in life for any woman.

- By the way, about women. Rhythmic gymnastics is the only sport in which there are no men yet...

Apparently, we will soon cease to be an exception.

Kanaeva Evgenia Olegovna was born in April 1990 in the city of Omsk. Kanaeva was able to become a two-time Olympic champion, as well as a seventeen-time world champion. Evgenia Kanaeva’s height is 168 centimeters. The girl's weight is only 42 kilograms (at the time she performed). Kanaeva’s success after the end of her career has not yet been repeated by any of the gymnasts of the Russian rhythmic gymnastics team. Evgenia also remains a favorite of the famous coach of many champions - Irina Viner.

The childhood of an Olympic champion

Evgenia’s mother is a master of sports in rhythmic gymnastics. Evgeniy Kanaev at the age of six years in sports section Grandma gave it to me. The first coach of the talented little girl was Elena Arais. Elena was amazed at Zhenya’s great effort in learning new elements and training with all her might. The little girl often stayed in the gym after class and continued to train hard. Grandmother Evgenia often had to wait for her in the corridor.

When Zhenya turned 12 years old, she was first invited to a training camp in Moscow. The girl’s performance was seen by the coach, who herself is a champion. It was Zaripova who was responsible for training juniors, and she invited Evgenia Kanaeva to train at the Olympic reserve school. Evgenia achieved better and better results in her training. Evgenia Kanaeva's coach was Vera Shtelbaums.

Crucial moment

In 2003, when the girl was only 13 years old, she went to defend the honor of Gazprom at the club championship in the junior category in Japan. The championship ended with Evgenia winning. By the way, A. Kabaeva and I. Chashchina performed with her. It was then that Irina Viner, who is to this day the head coach of the Russian rhythmic gymnastics team, noticed her. The girl was invited to train in Novogorsk.

Start of a sports career

In her career, Evgenia Kanaeva faced not only the difficulty of winning medals, but also the difficulty of simply getting into the Russian national team, since among the contenders Russian gymnasts a lot of. At that time, Alina Kabaeva and Irina Chashchina shone, who won gold medals at the Olympic Games in 2004. After them, Vera Sesina and In 2007, Kabaeva was unable to go to the European Championship due to injury, this was Kanaeva’s real chance to get into the national team. And the girl completely lived up to expectations. In exercises with ribbon, Evgeniya Kanaeva won gold medal. She also won the team competition. Just a few months later, the World Championships began, where Evgenia again received a gold medal in the team performance.

Olympic Games

In 2008, Evgenia Kanaeva goes to the Olympic Games, Kapranova and Sesina are going with her. Evgenia had four routines planned: with a ribbon, with clubs, with a hoop and with a skipping rope. All four numbers were characterized by increased complexity and were also thought out from a musical point of view. For example, the program with the tape was accompanied by musical accompaniment in the form of a piano version of “Moscow Evenings.”

In the spring of 2008, Kanaeva won all stages of the Grand Prix and also took 1st place in the World Cup. The gymnast becomes the absolute champion of Russia. At the 2008 European Championships, Evgenia beat all her competitors and climbed to the top step of the podium. She joined the main roster of the Russian national team, and Olympic medals were predicted for the gymnast. In fact, Kanaeva and Kapranova went to the Olympics in Beijing as part of the main team of the Russian rhythmic gymnastics team. Evgenia Kanaeva became the youngest gymnast among the finalists in artistic competition. gymnastics at the Beijing Olympics. Kanaeva won the Olympic Games in Beijing, becoming an Olympic champion.

Evgenia repeated her success at the 2012 Olympic Games, again winning gold and Kanaeva becoming a two-time champion.

In 2009, at the European Championships, held in the capital of Azerbaijan, Evgenia won gold medals in all types of the program. The rivals of the mistress of the ribbon and hoop never dreamed of such a result. Kanaeva’s next achievement was 9 gold medals received at the World Games and the Universiade. The next goal was the 2009 World Championship, but even there Kanaeva showed an excellent result, winning four medals of the highest standard, as well as a gold medal as part of a team that also included Kondakova, Dmitrieva, and Kapranova. The total number of gold medals won at the championship reached 6. Kanaeva broke the record. At the 2011 World Championships, Kanaeva again achieves a mind-blowing result, winning 6 gold medals out of six. At the end of the World Championships, E. Kanaeva becomes the 17-time world champion in rhythmic gymnastics.

Experts' opinions about the gymnast

Laysan Utyasheva, also a famous gymnast in the past, stated that, in her opinion, Kanaeva is a combination of Alina Kabaeva and Irina Chashchina. Also, according to Utyasheva, Kanaeva will be able to become an excellent coach after finishing her career. In 2009, Evgenia received the title “Honored Master of Sports of the Russian Federation.”

Many experts in rhythmic gymnastics spoke positively about the athlete’s character and hard work. She always enjoyed learning new elements of the program, during the preparation of which she could express her opinion to the coach.

Personal life of Evgenia Kanaeva

The girl has always been modest and hid the details of her personal life from prying eyes. Fans and friends of Kanaeva were taken by surprise by the news of her marriage to the famous hockey player Igor Muskatov. The wedding of outstanding athletes took place in June 2013.

Evgenia and Igor met at the emergency room in 2011. At that moment, both athletes received minor injuries and arrived at the medical center to receive assistance. After the Olympics in London, Igor proposed to his beloved. And although before Igor’s marriage there was a trail of rumors about drunkenness and antics, after the wedding, according to relatives and friends, the young man settled down. In 2014, the couple had a son. The boy was named Vladimir.

Education

Several years ago, an outstanding gymnast completed her studies at the Sibirsk state university Physical culture and sports. In 2017, Evgenia, tired of injuries and worries, decides to leave big sport and take up a new activity for her - becoming a coach.

Records

For the first time in history, Evgenia Kanaeva became an athlete who won 6 out of 6 possible gold medals in rhythmic gymnastics during the World Championships. Moreover, a few years later the girl again repeated her own record, again winning 6 gold medals out of 6 possible.

In addition, Evgenia became the first gymnast in history to take 1st place at the World Championships for 3 years in a row. She became the only athlete in rhythmic gymnastics who won gold medals in all types of programs. Kanaeva is also the only winner of 17 gold medals at the World Championships in artistic expression. gymnastics

Sports achivments

• In 2007, he took 1st place at the European Championships.
• In 2008, he rose to the highest step of the podium - 1st place at the European Championships.
• In 2009 in certain types all-around wins gold medals at the European Championships, which took place in Baku.
• In 2009, she also became the absolute world champion in all-around, in addition, Kanaeva won a gold medal in the team and in individual all-around events. The tournament took place in Japan. Result: 6 gold medals out of 6 possible.
• In 2009, at the Universiade held in Belgrade, Evgenia won 5 gold medals.
• In 2010, at the European Championships held in Bremen, Kanaeva won 1st place in the all-around. In the same year, already at the World Championships in Moscow, Kanaeva won four gold medals: in the ball exercise, in the hoop exercise, in the all-around and in the team championship.
• In 2011, the European Championship was held in Minsk. Evgenia Kanaeva wins a gold medal in the team event, a gold medal in the ribbon exercise, and a gold medal in the hoop exercise. And at the Universiade that same year, held in the Chinese city of Shenzhen, Kanaeva performed and won first place in the all-around.
• In the same 2011, Evgenia became the absolute world champion in the all-around, winning a gold medal in the team exercise and a gold medal in individual all-around events. The World Championships took place in France. The result of the performance was 6 gold medals out of 6 possible.

• At the Summer Olympics in London (2012), Evgenia becomes the Olympic champion in the individual all-around.

Post-career activities

Today she is a patient mentor to young gymnasts. Evgenia Kanaeva trains young students of the Russian rhythmic gymnastics team. Evgenia's pupils are girls aged 12-14 years. According to the Olympic champion, today's gymnasts train much less than she did in her time. According to Kanaeva, this is due to the fact that now young gymnasts have more opportunities and more temptations. However, the girl also notes that at one time she also trained much less than another legendary champion, Irina Chashchina.

Occasionally, the famous sportswoman appears at social events; one of these appearances was the wedding of another no less famous Olympic champion in arts. gymnastics of Margarita Mamun.

Social media

Evgenia, like many girls, loves to take pictures and share her pictures on social networks. The girl prefers to use social network"Instagram". Hundreds of fans “followed” the famous athlete; there were always many comments under the photo of Evgenia Kanaeva, the Olympic champion, most of which were compliments. But today the girl maintains a private page, closed from large quantity users. In general, catching the Olympic champion is difficult even for journalists; the girl does not like to give interviews.

The biography of Evgenia Kanaeva is quite interesting; in it you can trace how a very young girl was able, through training and a great desire, to “grow” into a two-time Olympic champion and 17-time world champion. Today, Kanaeva coaches the Russian youth team, which includes gymnasts aged 12-14 years. Evgenia’s main task is to provide the students with a “candidate master of sports” program. Also, sometimes news appears in the press about the family of a famous athlete.

The anniversary XXX Olympics in London has passed. Passions subsided, the fans were charged with positivity, and the athletes, fueled by their support, returned to their training and competition schedules. the site met with Evgenia Kanaeva as soon as she returned from London. The record holder in rhythmic gymnastics, two-time Olympic champion, Honored Master of Sports of Russia, winner of the Order of Merit for the Fatherland and the Order of Friendship turned out to be a charming and sociable girl.

About how to achieve success in your chosen field, about daily beauty rituals, diet and sports career Zhenya tells the readers of Passion.ru.

How is your day going at the training camp?

I wake up at 7-30, breakfast at 8-00, choreography starts at 9 - an hour and a half, then training follows, somewhere until 14-00. Then 2 hours of rest and a second workout, which lasts about 4 hours. And then we have about 2-3 hours left before bed. If we finish training earlier, there is time left for hardware recovery and treatment. All my free time is spent on my health. Sometimes we go to the bathhouse, swimming pool, and recover.

Do you have free time that you spend as you please?

There is one training session per day. For example, after treatment. And then I have the opportunity to meet with friends.

How did you spend your vacation after the Olympics?

I managed to relax for 5 days in Sardinia. The head coach gave us a wonderful holiday. You could say we were in a fairy tale.

And now I give a lot of interviews , I attend receptions.

How tall are you and what weight do you maintain?

My height is 171 cm, I do not maintain a stable weight, but I have not weighed myself since the Olympics. I only look in the mirror. Of course, I gained weight, because I didn’t train. But I get into shape very quickly, as soon as I don’t eat in the evenings for a week, the weight immediately drops. If a person says “I’m on a diet and I’m not losing weight,” this is an excuse: if you don’t eat, you’ll lose weight.

Secret from Zhenya Kanaeva: how to lose weight in a week?

Do not eat! (smiles). For example, when I was preparing for the Olympics, during exercise I ate everything except bread, sweet , fat. A week before the Olympics, I even limited myself in drinking. All the time I was preparing for it, my weight was going down.

In the morning I ate porridge, strawberries, and could also eat some fruit. For lunch, after training, I tried to eat meat or chicken and vegetables. And for dinner I tried not to eat, at most I could drink something. On the weekend I tried not to eat at all. I only drank half a glass in the morning green tea and didn't eat anything else. We only had three days off during the entire preparation period, and I lost weight on these days.

What style of clothing do you prefer: casual and for going out?

I really love dresses and heels. But since this is not always convenient, I wear jeans, shorts, T-shirts, tops and boots. I rarely wear sneakers now.

Of course, a girl should always remain a girl and look perfect. There are very beautiful clothes, but first of all I make sure that they fit me well, that they suit me in style and color.

What's included in your daily care behind you?

Every morning and evening I wash my face with cleansing gel, then wipe my face with toner. For the body, I prefer shower gel and oil after it. For hair care I use Pantene Pro-V. I really like their hair mask.

Evgenia Kanaeva: “Everything in life comes from positivity”

Who do you consider your closest competitors in sports?

To be honest, I never think about opponents. When I perform, I think about what I'm doing and what's happening at the moment. I sometimes see how the girls I perform with work. I go out on the mat and try to do my exercise as a performance, without thinking that I will drop or lose the object. As soon as such thoughts appear, I immediately make mistakes.

Everyone who performed in the top ten was very strong, and even the top twenty were very close to the favorites - everyone was close to tenth. There is a lot of competition in rhythmic gymnastics.

But we have an excellent head coach, she creates wonderful atmosphere. Irina Aleksandrovna gathers gymnasts all over the country and invites them to work with their coaches. My coach is Vera Efremovna Shtelbaums, she previously coached Ira Chashchina, Daria Dmitrieva (silver medalist of the 2012 Olympics) has her own coach - Olga Vladimirovna Buyanova.

Evgenia Kanaeva: “Everything in life comes from positivity”

We have an excellent director Irina Borisovna Zenovka. Irina Aleksandrovna takes the advantages from each coach and shares her experience with them.

Which coach played the most significant role in your life?

First of all, this is my coach - Vera Efremovna, who was and is with me day after day, as well as the head coach, who gave me a chance to perform at the European Championships when Alina Kabaeva was injured, and then allowed me to perform for the first time at the Olympics games. I cannot single out anyone, because this is common work and common forces.

About sports... and more!

They say stress doesn't affect you. This is true? What instructions do you give yourself at critical moments?

When I’m on the court, many people say to me: “Zhen, you’re not afraid at all, not a single muscle twitches on your face.” In fact, all mistakes come from the head. You should “turn it off” and go towards your goal, your dream.

Evgenia Kanaeva: “Everything in life comes from positivity”

First of all, you need to convince yourself that everything will work out well, and if a person has done everything to reach his goal, he will achieve it. Therefore, there is no point in being nervous and worrying.

Do you keep in touch with fans around the world and how?

I have a lot of fans, and it’s very nice. I received a huge number of SMS and emails, as well as parcels.

Fans provide great support for the athlete, you want to perform even more and better, and your mood only rises. I'm performing for the audience.

Evgenia Kanaeva: “Everything in life comes from positivity”

Where can I write to Zhenya Kanaeva?

Letters are sent to me by email, and also sent through the Rhythmic Gymnastics Federation or to Novogorsk.

In one of your interviews, you said that if you left sports, you would start painting and playing the piano.

I would like. I really loved drawing as a child. My grandmother had a friend in Omsk, an artist. I was 6 years old then, I was on fire, I dreamed of becoming an artist, and in class we drew what we saw.

When I came to rhythmic gymnastics, the coaches, through my parents, offered me a choice: either draw or play sports. After all big sport you need to devote a lot of time.

How was the music selected for the London Olympics?

The beginning of the year is the most difficult period for sports. The athlete gets into shape, trains new exercises, new elements, which are difficult to practice.

Nowadays it is very difficult to find music that has not already been used. Irina Borisovna, the director, helped with this, the ideas of Vera Efremovna and the head coach, my comments were also taken into account.

Evgenia Kanaeva was born on April 2, 1990 in Omsk. She won the Olympics twice - in 2008 and 2012. For the first time in history, she became a two-time Olympic champion in the all-around. He holds the title of Honored Master of Sports of Russia.

Start

Evgenia was lucky with her parents: her mother is a master of sports in rhythmic gymnastics. Sports genes and the example of her mother largely determined the future success of the champion. Kanaeva came to sports at the age of 6. Despite such a young age, she immediately began to show great potential. The coaches were amazed and delighted by the young gymnast’s desire to learn new complex elements. All the children had already gone home, and Zhenya was still training.

At the age of 12, Evgenia Kanaeva, as part of gymnasts from Omsk, was invited to a training camp in Moscow. There she was noticed by Amina Zaripova, a junior training coach.

In 2003, Zhenya competed in the Gazprom team at the World Club Championship in the junior category. She became the winner of these competitions. Around the same time, the head coach of Russian artistic gymnasts, Irina Viner, drew attention to her. Kanaeva was invited to train at the Novogorsk center, the base of the Russian national team members. This completely changed the athlete’s life. Now she has real chances to achieve the greatest heights in gymnastics.

Way up

There are a lot of talented gymnasts in Russia, high competition, so it is very difficult for any athlete to get to the top. Evgenia Kanaeva was no exception. Her competition included such giants as Vera Sesina and Olga Kapranova. There was no place on the team for Zhenya.

Evgenia Kanaeva speaking

In 2007, luck finally smiled on the athlete. Alina Kabaeva was seriously injured, and Irina Viner chose Evgenia as a replacement. Kanaeva’s visit to the carpet was, one might say, fleeting. Head coach I only trusted her with exercises with the band. And Zhenya did not let down either the coaches or the sports fans. She won the ribbon final and the team competition.

A few months later, she took gold in the team competition at the world championship in the Greek city of Patras.

Olympics

Evgenia won her first Olympic gold at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. Zhenya had a number of difficulties, but in the end she overcame everything and became the champion by a wide margin. All four programs (ribbon, jump rope, clubs and hoop) by Kanaeva at the Beijing Olympics were highly complex, were well thought out in terms of musical accompaniment and revealed the athlete’s individuality. The tape was composed to the original “Moscow Evenings”, performed on the piano.

Zhenya began the 2008 Olympic season in the shadow of Kapranova, Sesina and the current world champion, Ukrainian Anna Bessonova. But in mid-spring all obstacles were behind us. Kanaeva won all stages of the Grand Prix and World Cups and became the absolute champion of Russia.

At the European Championships in Turin, Italy, she was already a full-fledged member of the Russian team. Then she left Kapranova and Bessonova behind and became the European champion with high marks.

Head coach Irina Viner by that time already considered Evgenia the main contender for a place in the Olympic team. As a result, Wiener decided that Russia would be represented at the 2008 Olympics by Kanaeva and Kapranova. Zhenya became the youngest Olympic finalist in rhythmic gymnastics. However, she was the most collected and made the fewest mistakes.

According to Evgenia Kanaeva, the Olympics are not like other competitions, here you need to fully concentrate on yourself, the apparatus and the mat, you cannot be distracted by anything. She convinced herself that everything would be fine, that there was nothing to worry about. That’s what happened in the end - Zhenya won the Olympics, scoring an excellent 75.50 points. She was ahead of Inna Zhukova from Belarus by 3.50 points.

Irina Viner then said that it would not be very easy to repeat Kanaeva’s result in the near future.

At the 2012 Olympic Games in London, Zhenya became the champion for the second time. She was unattainable for her rivals with a score of 116.9 points in exercises with a ball, hoop, ribbon and clubs.

Evgenia Kanaeva and gold at the 2012 Olympic Games in London

After London, Evgenia is the first ever two-time Olympic champion in the individual all-around.

Records

The only one in history two-time champion Olympic Games individual all-around (London).

At the 29th World Championships she won all the gold (6 medals).

The 31st World Championship was the third won in a row. The second time she won 6 out of 6 gold medals. She became the only winner in history of 17 gold medals at world championships.

At the Grand Prix final in Brno (Czech Republic), she was the first in history to score 30 points out of a possible 30.

Personal

On June 8, 2013, she became the wife of KHL hockey player Igor Musatov. The couple dated for a year before the London Olympics. After the Olympics, Igor proposed to Evgenia.