Elena Zamolodchikova is an outstanding Russian gymnast

The second half of the 90's and early 2000's was the time of the undivided rule of two great Russian gymnasts. Two such different and unlike each other athletes. On the one hand, high, constantly in the spotlight Svetlana Khorkina, and on the other - a small, sparingly answering journalists' questions, serious Elena Zamolodchikova.

Nevertheless, they were united by one thing: they were the last big champions brought up in the legendary Soviet school of gymnastics. After them came a failure for a while, and only in the last few years girls from a new generation of Russian athletes began to show decent results.

Elena Zamolodchikova - two-time Olympic champion, medalist of world championships. Her story deserves special attention.

As a little girl from the communal apartment became a great gymnast

Zamolodchikova Elena Mikhailovna was born in September 1982 in Moscow. Dad was a military man who gave his life all his life, mother - a teacher of computer science. Since childhood, Lena has become accustomed to the harsh conditions of life. Her family occupied two rooms out of four in a communal apartment. The sportswoman herself remembers about this period of her life with warmth, in her memory there were joint games with other children in the corridors of the common dwelling.

Unlike many other girls, Lena was not forced by force to go in for sports. On the contrary, legends tell how Zamolodchikova could sit for hours at the TV screen, watching the gymnasts' competitions. The fate of the girl was solved - she was sent to the school of the Olympic reserve.

The first and only trainer in her life is Nadezhda Maslennikova. Initially, no one saw in Lena great potential. There were obvious problems with plastic, choreography. However, there are no such difficulties that Elena Zamolodchikova could not overcome. The gymnast compensates for the lack of plasticity by explosive acrobatics, jumping, developed coordination. Possessing an ideal height for gymnastics, Lena was notable for her well-developed and graceful musculature. Her favorite disciplines were her free exercises and a leap, where she could demonstrate her best qualities.

Champion's way of sportswoman

In the Russian national team, Elena Zamolodchikova is already at the age of 14 years. The first major international competitions are the World Youth Games held in Russia. There she became a winner.

Not getting out of the gym, Elena Zamolodchikova is preparing for the main start of her life - the Olympic Games in Sydney. At the 1999 World Cup, she takes the gold medal in her favorite base jump. To her she added silver in the team and bronze in the all-around, thus collecting a full collection of medals of all merits.

For the 2000 Olympics Elena is riding in the shadow of her oldest friend on the team - Svetlana Khorkina. All the attention of the press, fans is primarily drawn to the legendary champion games in Atlanta in 1996. This allows the 18-year-old athlete to calmly prepare for the competition, without being distracted by extraneous things. If Svetlana could not stand the burden of responsibility and terrible tension, having made a number of insulting mistakes, Zamolodchikova calmly performs in her main disciplines, showing the maximum.

As a result, gold is in both the floor exercises and the base jump. To gold medals the sportswoman adds silver in team competitions.

Difficult period

The same qualities that made Elena a great champion, and let her down. To constantly be in shape, the gymnast spends whole days honing her skills. The strong, but fragile body of a girl can not withstand a constant superhuman overload. Injuries fell on the athlete one after another.

She is still able to become the world champion in a leap in 2001, to take awards in team competitions. But for the Olympics in Athens, the gymnast does not fit in such combat form as four years earlier. Nevertheless, Elena remains one of the leaders of the Russian national team, and in many respects thanks to her the women's gymnastics team wins a bronze medal.

Zamolodchikova dreams of repeating the feat of Svetlana Khorkina and taking part in the third Olympics, which will be held in Beijing in 2008. She prepares on a special schedule, coaches are in her position, but at the very last moment Elena makes a difficult decision to give way to more young athletes. After loud victories to be an extras at major tournaments - not in her character. In 2010, she finally leaves the big sport.

Life out of competition

Elena Zamolodchikova, from childhood, lived in gymnastics and remained in it after the end of her great career. After graduating from the Academy of Physical Culture, she becomes a children's coach in her native school of the Olympic reserve.

Openness and participation in social events - this is not what distinguishes Elena Zamolodchikova. The personal life of the legendary sportswoman remains a secret for a wide range of people. Nothing is known about the men in her life. As Elena herself says, she has not yet met a worthy person.

Zamolodchikova also took part in the television project "Cruel Games", where she became a winner. She ironically says that only after that she was recognized on the streets.

Continuous injuries prevented Elena from fully revealing herself in the sport, but her unique performances in Sydney, the World and European Championships will always be remembered for ever. Athletes like her are a rarity.