Fired by Crimea, Ukrainian targets Russia at Rio

Fired by Crimea, Ukrainian targets Russia at Rio

KIEV - For Ukrainian rhythmic gymnast Ganna Rizatdinova the Rio Games offers a chance of redemption and revenge after powerhouse Russia annexed her home region Crimea.

Gymnast Ganna Rizatdinova is Ukraine's biggest hope to get on the podium in a discipline traditionally dominated by Russian competitors

Former world championship gold medallist Rizatdinova, 23, is Ukraine's biggest hope to get on the podium in a discipline traditionally dominated by Russian competitors.

The contest in Brazil plays out against the backdrop of intense tensions between Kiev and Moscow after Russia annexed Crimea following Ukraine's ouster of a pro-Kremlin leader in early 2014.

"I have the biggest chances," Rizatdinova told AFP. "It is all in my hands."

Rizatdinova -- the daughter of a Tatar Muslim and an ethnic Russian -- comes from the city of Simferopol in Crimea but moved to train in Ukraine's capital Kiev at the age of 16.

In 2012 she finished a disappointing 10th place at the Olympic Games in London but managed to fight her way back to win a silver medal at the all-around event and gold medal in the hoop at the world championships in Kiev in September 2013.

"As I was standing on top of the podium in Kiev and the anthem played in my honour I realised that I will also have a chance at the Olympics," she said.

- Crimea seized -

But just months later the city erupted into mass protests against Russia-backed president Viktor Yanukovych that turned the centre of the capital into a war zone.

Those events set off a chain reaction that saw the Kremlin seize control of Crimea in March 2014 and sent relations between Russia and the West to their lowest since the Cold War.

"I couldn't think about competition, all my thoughts were with my parents in Crimea, I thought about the fate of Crimea," said Rizatdinova, whose parents continue to live on the Black Sea peninsula.

"Crimea was taken over, it was very painful for me."

In the wake of the takeover and as the fighting spread to other areas of eastern Ukraine -- competitors from those regions saw the political crisis hit their sporting futures.

Athletes, including gymnasts, have come under pressure to make a choice as the two nations squared off against each other -- to stick with Ukraine or switch to Russia.

Rizatdinova's teammate Eleonora Romanova in early 2016 slipped away from the training base in Kiev and reportedly moved to Russia without letting her coaches know.

The young gymnast was from the rebel-held part of east Ukraine but her parents had sought refuge in Russia.

For Rizatdinova there was never really any choice to make.

She says that even if the offer had been extended to switch from the blue-and-yellow Ukrainian flag to the Russian tricolor, she would have given it a "100 percent refusal".

"I have been brought up as a gymnast here and it would be a kind of betrayal to move to Russia," she said.

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