Tatiana Gutsu
Encyclopedia
Tatiana Konstantinivna Gutsu ' onMouseout='HidePop("16250")' href="/topics/Odessa">Odessa
) is a Ukrainian
(and former Soviet
) gymnast
, winner of the 1992 Olympic
all-around title. Renowned as a trickster, the routines she competed were some of the most difficult ever in the sport. Fifteen years after her debut, few Olympic gymnasts compete such difficult beam and floor routines as she did.
descent, Gutsu first started in gymnastics at age 6. She became a member of the national team of the Soviet Union
in 1988. Her first major international competition was the 1991 World Championships
in Indianapolis
, where she won the team title with the Soviet Union and finished fifth in the individual all-around, while winning silver medals in two individual apparatus finals - the bars and beam. Here, she was noticed for her difficulty, as one of the first gymnasts in the world to perform a double twisting Yurchenko vault
. She also debuted a double layout somersault on floor
with split leg in the first salto. Very few others have been able to compete this move. Perhaps most impressively, she ended her floor routine in the team competition with a double layout somersault.
In early 1992, Gutsu won the all-around, vault
, and balance beam at the European Championships. She was the most successful gymnast of the championship and clearly established herself as one of the favorites for the Olympic all-around title. However, the 15-year-old Gutsu almost missed the final of that event. In the Olympic preliminaries, Gutsu fell from the balance beam, qualifying 9th all-around. She had been on course to win the optional portion of the team competition, and was also one of the favourites for the beam gold medal, but the fall meant she did not qualify.
Although 36 gymnasts qualified for the all-around, only 3 competitors from each country were allowed in the final, and because of Gutsu's fall, three other competitors from the Unified Team
had already placed higher. However, the team coaches felt that Gutsu had a better chance of bringing home all-around gold than her teammates Svetlana Boguinskaya and Rozalia Galiyeva
. They considered scratching Boginskaya, but felt that she was too famous and there would be a scandal. As a result, they forced Gutsu's younger teammate Galiyeva to forfeit her place in the final so that Gutsu could compete. Galiyeva was forced to claim a severe knee injury, and this was 'verified' by the team physician.
In one of the deepest fields ever for the all-around, Gutsu was in a close race for the gold medal. None of the problems from qualifying were repeated, as she went through her difficult sets without major errors. Most of the other contenders also avoided mistakes, but with one apparatus to go, Gutsu was tied for first place. Her final performance on vault (a full-twisting layout Yurchenko) was just enough to hold off the challenge of American Shannon Miller
- Gutsu won the title by .012. In a very successful Olympic campaign, she also took home additional medals in the team competition (gold), uneven bars (silver) and floor exercise (bronze).
What set Gutsu apart from Shannon Miller was her difficulty - she was competing during the height of the 'pixie' era when the favoured type of gymnast was a small athlete capable of extreme difficulty, and Gutsu exemplified this. In Barcelona, Gutsu used the same vault as most other leading gymnasts (except Tatiana Lysenko
) but her difficulty on the other three exercises was high. Beam was especially notable - she showed probably the most difficult dismount sequence of all time, three back handsprings into a tucked full-in. She also used a standing tucked full back somersault. On floor, Gutsu's opening pass was a split leg double layout, closing with a piked full-in. On bars, she dismounted with a double layout. Miller, in contrast, showed comparatively less difficulty, on the floor exercise in particular (whip to tucked full-in for her mount, a whip to double pike for her middle pass, and a tucked full-in for her dismount.), but was extremely impressive with her flip flop to three layouts sequence on beam, superior form, and a stuck full-in dismount.
Galiyeva was always angry and bitter about having given up her place to Gutsu, feeling that she had had no option but to agree. The two split the prize money between them, but they stopped speaking after the Olympics. The substitution was against the rules (as Galiyeva's injury was not genuine), but such switches were and are common in gymnastics, usually when a gymnast considered to be the best on the team makes a mistake in qualifications and thus finishes behind another, apparently weaker teammate.
Other notable examples include the replacement of Alexandra Marinescu
for Simona Amânar
in the 1996 Olympics, and the Soviet coaches removal of Olga Mostepanova
for Elena Shushunova in the 1985 world championships
. On both occasions, the gymnast substituted in took a medal. Usually, such behaviour does result in the best gymnast competing, but there is also the argument that only those who have qualified legitimately have the right to advance. Coaches now have the right to make such substitutions anyway.
After retiring from competitive gymnastics, Gutsu moved to the United States
, where she now is a gymnastics coach and has U.S. citizenship. Gutsu tried for a comeback to compete at the 2003 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships
as a three-event specialist (vault, beam and floor) but was unsuccessful.
Odessa
Odessa or Odesa is the administrative center of the Odessa Oblast located in southern Ukraine. The city is a major seaport located on the northwest shore of the Black Sea and the fourth largest city in Ukraine with a population of 1,029,000 .The predecessor of Odessa, a small Tatar settlement,...
) is a Ukrainian
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
(and former Soviet
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
) gymnast
Gymnastics
Gymnastics is a sport involving performance of exercises requiring physical strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, and balance. Internationally, all of the gymnastic sports are governed by the Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique with each country having its own national governing body...
, winner of the 1992 Olympic
Olympic Games
The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
all-around title. Renowned as a trickster, the routines she competed were some of the most difficult ever in the sport. Fifteen years after her debut, few Olympic gymnasts compete such difficult beam and floor routines as she did.
Career
Born into a Ukrainian family of MoldovanMoldovan
Moldovan and Moldavian refer to something of, from, or related to Moldova, a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, or the region of Moldavia, which currently spans 8 north-eastern counties of Romania, the Republic of Moldova, and small parts of Ukraine...
descent, Gutsu first started in gymnastics at age 6. She became a member of the national team of the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
in 1988. Her first major international competition was the 1991 World Championships
1991 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships
The 26th Artistic Gymnastics World Championships were held in Indianapolis, USA, in the Hoosier Dome, September 6 to 15, 1991.-Medals:-All-round:-Apparatus:-All-round:-Apparatus:-References:**...
in Indianapolis
Indianapolis
Indianapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Indiana, and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population is 839,489. It is by far Indiana's largest city and, as of the 2010 U.S...
, where she won the team title with the Soviet Union and finished fifth in the individual all-around, while winning silver medals in two individual apparatus finals - the bars and beam. Here, she was noticed for her difficulty, as one of the first gymnasts in the world to perform a double twisting Yurchenko vault
Yurchenko (vault)
Yurchenko is the name of both a specific vault and a vault family in artistic gymnastics. The Yurchenko was named after Soviet gymnast Natalia Yurchenko, who originated the vault in the early 1980s....
. She also debuted a double layout somersault on floor
Floor (gymnastics)
In gymnastics, the floor refers to a specially prepared exercise surface, which is considered an apparatus. It is used by both male and female gymnasts. The event in gymnastics performed on floor is called floor exercise. The English abbreviation for the event in gymnastics scoring is FX.A spring...
with split leg in the first salto. Very few others have been able to compete this move. Perhaps most impressively, she ended her floor routine in the team competition with a double layout somersault.
In early 1992, Gutsu won the all-around, vault
Vault (gymnastics)
The vault is an artistic gymnastics apparatus, as well as the skill performed using that apparatus. Vaulting is also the action of performing a vault. Both male and female gymnasts perform the vault...
, and balance beam at the European Championships. She was the most successful gymnast of the championship and clearly established herself as one of the favorites for the Olympic all-around title. However, the 15-year-old Gutsu almost missed the final of that event. In the Olympic preliminaries, Gutsu fell from the balance beam, qualifying 9th all-around. She had been on course to win the optional portion of the team competition, and was also one of the favourites for the beam gold medal, but the fall meant she did not qualify.
Although 36 gymnasts qualified for the all-around, only 3 competitors from each country were allowed in the final, and because of Gutsu's fall, three other competitors from the Unified Team
Unified Team
The Unified Team was the name used for the sports team of the former Soviet Union at the 1992 Winter Olympics in Albertville and the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona. The IOC country code was EUN, after the French name, Équipe Unifiée...
had already placed higher. However, the team coaches felt that Gutsu had a better chance of bringing home all-around gold than her teammates Svetlana Boguinskaya and Rozalia Galiyeva
Rozalia Galiyeva
Rozaliya Ilfovna Galiyeva or Roza Galieva is a gymnast who competed in the 1992 Summer Olympics and 1996 Summer Olympics....
. They considered scratching Boginskaya, but felt that she was too famous and there would be a scandal. As a result, they forced Gutsu's younger teammate Galiyeva to forfeit her place in the final so that Gutsu could compete. Galiyeva was forced to claim a severe knee injury, and this was 'verified' by the team physician.
In one of the deepest fields ever for the all-around, Gutsu was in a close race for the gold medal. None of the problems from qualifying were repeated, as she went through her difficult sets without major errors. Most of the other contenders also avoided mistakes, but with one apparatus to go, Gutsu was tied for first place. Her final performance on vault (a full-twisting layout Yurchenko) was just enough to hold off the challenge of American Shannon Miller
Shannon Miller
Shannon Lee Miller is a former artistic gymnast from Edmond, Oklahoma. She is the most decorated gymnast in U.S. History, and considered one of the greatest gymnasts the United States has ever produced...
- Gutsu won the title by .012. In a very successful Olympic campaign, she also took home additional medals in the team competition (gold), uneven bars (silver) and floor exercise (bronze).
What set Gutsu apart from Shannon Miller was her difficulty - she was competing during the height of the 'pixie' era when the favoured type of gymnast was a small athlete capable of extreme difficulty, and Gutsu exemplified this. In Barcelona, Gutsu used the same vault as most other leading gymnasts (except Tatiana Lysenko
Tatiana Lysenko
Tatiana Felixivna Lysenko is a Soviet and Ukrainian gymnast, who had her senior competitive career from 1990 to 1994.She is Jewish. Tatiana was known for her exceptional difficulty level and haughty style on the floor...
) but her difficulty on the other three exercises was high. Beam was especially notable - she showed probably the most difficult dismount sequence of all time, three back handsprings into a tucked full-in. She also used a standing tucked full back somersault. On floor, Gutsu's opening pass was a split leg double layout, closing with a piked full-in. On bars, she dismounted with a double layout. Miller, in contrast, showed comparatively less difficulty, on the floor exercise in particular (whip to tucked full-in for her mount, a whip to double pike for her middle pass, and a tucked full-in for her dismount.), but was extremely impressive with her flip flop to three layouts sequence on beam, superior form, and a stuck full-in dismount.
Galiyeva was always angry and bitter about having given up her place to Gutsu, feeling that she had had no option but to agree. The two split the prize money between them, but they stopped speaking after the Olympics. The substitution was against the rules (as Galiyeva's injury was not genuine), but such switches were and are common in gymnastics, usually when a gymnast considered to be the best on the team makes a mistake in qualifications and thus finishes behind another, apparently weaker teammate.
Other notable examples include the replacement of Alexandra Marinescu
Alexandra Marinescu
Alexandra Marinescu is a retired Romanian Olympic artistic gymnast. She is an Olympic bronze medalist with the team and a two-time world champion with the team. Individually, she is a world silver medalist on beam and a seven-time Junior European medalist. She currently works as a minimal electro...
for Simona Amânar
Simona Amânar
Simona Amânar is a Romanian gymnast. She is a seven-time Olympic medalist and a ten-time world medalist. Amânar helped Romania to win four consecutive world team titles as well as the 2000 Olympic team title. She has a vault named after her, the Amanar...
in the 1996 Olympics, and the Soviet coaches removal of Olga Mostepanova
Olga Mostepanova
Olga Vasilyevna Mostepanova is a retired prominent Soviet gymnast. Her birth year has been variously reported as 1968 or 1969, but Mostepanova herself has stated that she was actually born in 1970.-Gymnastics career:...
for Elena Shushunova in the 1985 world championships
1985 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships
The 23rd Artistic Gymnastics World Championships were held in Montreal, Canada, in 1985.-Medals:-All-around:- Floor exercise :-Pommel horse:-Rings:-Vault:-Parallel bars:-Horizontal bar:-Team final:-All-around:- Vault :...
. On both occasions, the gymnast substituted in took a medal. Usually, such behaviour does result in the best gymnast competing, but there is also the argument that only those who have qualified legitimately have the right to advance. Coaches now have the right to make such substitutions anyway.
After retiring from competitive gymnastics, Gutsu moved to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, where she now is a gymnastics coach and has U.S. citizenship. Gutsu tried for a comeback to compete at the 2003 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships
2003 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships
The 37th World Artistic Gymnastics Championships were held in Anaheim, California, United States, in 2003.Tie-breakers were not used at this competition...
as a three-event specialist (vault, beam and floor) but was unsuccessful.