Alina Kabaeva

Personal life

Kabaeva, the daughter of a Tatar father and Russian mother, was born in Tashkent, Uzbek SSR, in the Soviet Union, on 12 May 1983. Kabaeva's father, Marat Kabayev, was a professional football (soccer) player, and the family was constantly following him to different places in Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, and Russia.

In July 2013, Kabaeva reported that she does not have any children. In March 2015, Kabaeva was reported to have delivered a baby in at the VIP-hospital of Saint Ann in Ticino, Switzerland.

Rhythmic Gymnastics career

Kabaeva started Rhythmic Gymnastics at age 3, with Coach Margarita Samuilovna.

In her young teens, Kabaeva moved to Moscow, where her mother took her to the Russian Head Coach, Irina Viner.

1996 to 1999

Kabaeva stayed with Viner, and made her international debut in 1996. In 1998, the 15-year-old Kabaeva won the European Championships in Portugal. At the time, Kabaeva was the youngest member of the Russian squad, competing alongside internationally recognized teammates, such as Amina Zaripova. In 1999, Kabaeva became the European Champion for the second consecutive time, and won the World Title in Osaka, Japan. Kabaeva went on to win a total of 5 All-Around titles at the European Championships.

2000 to 2003

At the 2000 Sydney Olympics, in Australia, Kabaeva was expected to claim Gold in All-Around; however, due to an error in an otherwise exceptional performance—she dropped her hoop, and ran to retrieve it outside of the competition area—Kabaeva won the Bronze Medal, with the final score of 39.466 (Rope 9.925, Hoop 9.641, Ball 9.950, Ribbon 9.950). Belarus' Yulia Raskina took the Silver Medal, while fellow Russian teammate, Yulia Barsukova, won the Olympic Gold Medal.

At the 2001 World Rhythmic Gymnastics Championships, Kabaeva won the Gold Medal for the Ball, Clubs, Hoop, Rope, the Individual All-Around, and the Team competitions. At the 2001 Goodwill Games in Brisbane, Australia, Kabaeva won the Gold Medal for the Ball, Clubs, and Rope competitions, and the Silver in the Individual All-Around, and Hoop. However, Kabaeva and her teammate, Irina Tchachina, tested positive to a banned diuretic (furosemide), and were stripped of their medals.

Viner, the Russian Head Coach, who also served as the Vice President of the FIG Rhythmic Gymnastics Technical Committee at the time, said her gymnasts had been taking a food supplement called "Hyper", that contained mild diuretics, which, according to Viner, the gymnasts were taking for premenstrual syndrome. When the supply ran out shortly before the Goodwill Games, the team physiotherapist restocked at a local pharmacy. According to Viner, the supplement sold there was fake and contained furosemide. The Committee requested that the Goodwill Games Organizing Committee nullify Kabaeva and Tchachina's results. The FIG also nullified their results from the World Championships in Madrid, Spain, causing Ukraine's Tamara Yerofeeva to be declared the 2001 World Champion.

Kabaeva added another World Title in 2003 in Budapest, Hungary.

Kabaeva won the All-Around Gold Medal at the 2003 World Championships, as well as the event final in Ribbon and Ball ahead of Anna Bessonova from Ukraine.

2004 to 2007

In 2004, Kabaeva won the All-Around Gold at the 2004 European Championships in Kiev. At the 2004 Athens Olympics, Greece, Kabaeva won the Gold Medal in the Individual All-Around for Rhythmic Gymnastics, with a score of 108.400 (Hoop 26.800, Ball 27.350, Clubs 27.150, Ribbon 27.100), the Silver Medal went to her teammate, Irina Tchachina.

In October 2004, Kabaeva announced her retirement from the sport. However, in June 2005, the Russian Head Coach Irina Viner announced a possible comeback. Kabaeva resumed her sport career at an Italy-Russia friendly competition in Genoa, on 10 September 2005. On 5 March 2006, Kabaeva won the Gazprom Moscow Grand Prix, with fellow Russians Vera Sessina and Olga Kapranova, taking the Second and Third places. Kabaeva won the Silver Medal in All-Around at the 2006 European Championships, behind teammate, Sessina.

At the 2007 European Championships in Baku, Azerbaijan; Kabaeva, Sessina, and Kapranova were chosen to represent Russia. However, on the eve of the competition, Kabaeva withdrew due to an injury. Viner selected rising upcoming gymnast Evgenia Kanaeva from Russia's National Team as the replacement. Kabaeva finished 4th in All-Around qualifications at the 2007 World Championships, and did not advance into the finals due to the two per country rule, with Vera Sessina and Olga Kapranova placing ahead of Kabaeva.

Kabaeva completed her career after the 2007 Season.

Contributions to Rhythmic Gymnastics

Kabaeva revolutionized rhythmic gymnastics as one of the few gymnasts to have performed new skills and elements, including the back split pivot with hand help (also known as "The Kabaeva"), the ring position with a slow full turn, and the backscale pivot that she first performed.

Rhythmic Gymnastic achievements

2014 Winter Olympics torch bearer in Sochi, Russia

Kabaeva was among the six Russian athlete torch bearers who carried the Olympic flame through Fisht Stadium during the Opening Ceremony of the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics. Kabaeva's selection as a torch bearer generated controversy in the international media because of her close relationship with President Vladimir Putin.

Model, film and Post Gymnastics careers

In 2001, Kabaeva appeared in the Japanese movie, Red Shadow, performing her gymnastic routine.

In May 2009, Kabaeva traveled to Japan and participated in a bikini photo shoot.

In January 2011, Kabaeva appeared on the cover of Vogue Russia. In the same month, Kabaeva launched her singing career, taking to the stage for the first time.

In 2015, Kabaeva was an honorary guest at the 2015 World Championships in Stuttgart, Germany. In 2017, Kabaeva became the official FIG Rhythmic Gymnastics Ambassador at the 2017 World Championships in Pesaro, Italy.

Political career

Since 2005, Kabaeva has been a member of the Public Chamber of Russia.

Since February 2008, Kabaeva has been Chairman of the National Media Group's Public Council, the media group that controls Izvestia, Channel One and REN TV.

Between 2007 and 2014, Kabaeva has been a Member of the Russian Parliament, the State Duma, representing the United Russia party. In her capacity of a Member of Parliament, Kabaeva voted for a number of controversial laws that were speedily adopted in 2012 and 2013, including the Anti-Magnitsky bill on the ban of inter-country adoption (of Russian orphans) by families in the United States, as well as the Russian gay propaganda law that focuses on the prohibition of the homosexual propaganda aimed at adolescents, on extrajudicial ban of access to websites which may host materials violating copyright laws, and on the reorganization of the Academy of Sciences.

In September 2014, Kabaeva resigned from the Duma and accepted the position of Chair of the Board of Directors of the National Media Group, the largest Russian media conglomerate.