Mariana Vasileva: "Let's look at champions and become champions"

The head coach of the Azerbaijani national rhythmic gymnastics team Mariana Vasileva told Vestnik Kavkaza about the opening ceremony of the FIG Rhythmic Gymnastics World Cup, which will be opened tomorrow in Baku.

Mariana Vasileva emphasized that the main idea of ​​the opening was that champions can give any child an example in any sports, and those, after a certain time, might be like these champions. "We show every moment of the career of any gymnast from the very beginning, including those moments when parents bring children to the gym. I believe that the creation of an athlete involves the coach, then the athlete, the parents and the environment. The parents are very important, since small children do not know what they want and change their desires very quickly," she pointed out.

"Discipline must start at home. When children enter the gym, they should already know that they will sacrifice their time when they could play with toys. This is a call to parents: educate your children in a spirit of diligence, honesty, respect for adults. It's the only way to save our children," the head coach of the Azerbaijani national rhythmic gymnastics team expressed confidence.

Mariana Vasileva said that the creation of the opening ceremony took 10 days. "It's a huge work of our choreographers, coaches and all employees of the federation. Of course, we have worked out an idea and a work plan in advance. In spite of the fact that the World Cups in various kinds of gymnastics are held in Baku three times a year, and we also hold European championships, every time we show something new. And this time the opinions of many people created the idea to tell about the life of any athlete," she said.

"I hope they will like our story and everyone will understand the meaning that we wanted to show. The athlete's way to success is not easy in any sports. Many people are behind the victory of each athlete. Unfortunately, when the athlete wins, everyone remembers only his name, and when he loses, his coaches and leadership are guilty. Therefore, our athletes must understand that it is not only their huge work, but of all of us as a whole," the head coach of the Azerbaijani national rhythmic gymnastics team said.

The opening ceremony will include 178 gymnasts. "Everyone participates - the rhythmic gymnastics, the acrobatics, the artistic gymnastics, only gymnasts on trampoline will not be there," Mariana Vasileva noted.

The opening ceremony will be called 'Let's look at the champions and become champions'. The ceremony begins from me bringing Marina Durunda to the stage, and I am her last stage of development, because there were other coaches who trained her. If we all work together in one direction, it's easier for us to achieve results. And if we work on different programs, there is no unity, as it is harder to correct than to learn from scratch. Therefore, the work of the first coach, the second and the third, up to the athlete's entry into the national team, is very important," she concluded.

"The main hero of the ceremony will be a metamorphosis, which the person undergoes from the youngest child to the Olympic champion. And the coach plays the main role in it," the Azerbaijani national rhythmic gymnastics team added.