Former Russian gymnast Polstyana, who plays for Latvia, was banned from participating in the World Championships

Athlete Elizaveta Polstyanaya said that she was not allowed to participate in the Rhythmic Gymnastics World Championships. She started her career in Russia, but in 2018 she received Latvian citizenship and began to play for her national team. According to her, the Latvian Olympic Committee said she needed to renounce her Russian citizenship.

The gymnast said that “sport is out of politics” – “these are empty words.” “They didn’t let me reach the goal that I had been going to all my life … They didn’t leave me a choice, they didn’t give me the right to compete at the World Championships and finish at least this season,” Polstyanaya wrote on Instagram (owned by Meta, which is recognized in the Russian Federation extremist and prohibited).

The girl admitted that she was terribly offended, but she “won’t blame anyone.” “Let it remain on the conscience of the people who made this decision… My main goal was to adequately represent Latvia in the international arena,” Polstyanaya explained, noting that she succeeded, “no matter how hard they tried to devalue it.”

In conversation with TASS she said that in February she “was given a condition to stop training in Russia” and since March she has been training in Latvia not with her personal trainer. “The Latvian Olympic Committee has set a specific condition for me: either I renounce Russian citizenship and compete further, or I will no longer be able to represent Latvia at international starts, having a passport of a Russian citizen in my hands,” said the gymnast.

Polstyanaya was born in Jurmala, but her parents moved to Moscow, and the girl competed for Russia for several years. She became the champion of Moscow three times in the team event among juniors. In 2019, after changing citizenship, she took four golds at the Latvian Championship, as well as silver in the all-around. At the 2022 European Championships, she took fourth place in the exercises with a hoop. She is a six-time Latvian champion.

The World Cup will be held in Sofia, Bulgaria from 14 to 18 September. In March, the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) announced on the removal of Russian athletes from competitions under their auspices. This decision was made against the background of the Russian military operation in Ukraine. FIG also banned use political propaganda in tournaments.

Laura Keffer