On the 3rd day of the 37th World Rhythmic Gymnastics Championships in Baku, Israeli gymnast Nicole Zelikman told Vestnik Kavkaza what connects her with Azerbaijan.
“My whole family was born here in Baku: grandparents, father and mother. They had lived here for a long time until they moved to Russia and then to Israel. That is probably why I feel comfortable here, although I was not born in Baku, "she said.
“Parents left Azerbaijan only in 1993. They told me a lot about their life here - their studies, how they met and got married,” Nicole Zelikman added.
”For the first time, I visited Baku in 2014. I really like being here - it is a comfortable city, it feels like in Israel a bit. In the future, I, mom, dad, and my three brothers will come here just to walk around Baku," the Israeli gymnast promised.
The athlete said that her mother brought her to gymnastics. “My mother is a coach, she was an acrobat in Baku. Dad, by the way, is a basketball player. My coach is Ella Samofalova, the great Israel coach who trained Neta Rivkin,” the athlete said.
This week, on September 16-22, the 37th World Rhythmic Gymnastics Championships is held at the National Gymnastics Arena in Baku. The tournament is the qualification competition for the 32nd Olympic Games in Tokyo. More than 300 gymnasts from 61 countries are competing for nine sets of medals. The motto of the tournament is “Fairy tales will come to life”
