International Gymnastics Federation Suspends Russia's Top Coach Irina Viner For 2 Years

The International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) said on Monday it had suspended the president of the Russian Rhythmic Gymnastics Federation and head coach of the Russian national team Irina Viner for two years

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 06th March, 2023) The International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) said on Monday it had suspended the president of the Russian Rhythmic Gymnastics Federation and head coach of the Russian national team Irina Viner for two years.

The proceedings against Viner were related to the withdrawal of the candidacy of Russia's Natalia Kuzmina from the elections to the FIG rhythmic gymnastics technical committee in 2021, Viner's public statements in the media following the results of the Russian rhythmic gymnastics team at the Tokyo Olympics, were recognized as "abusive" and violating FIG rules.

Kuzmina's name appears in a scandal involving rhythmic gymnastics refereeing at the Tokyo Olympics. At the 2020 Games, the Russian athletes were left without gold medals for the first time since 1996, while Israeli rhythmic gymnast Linoy Ashram won in the individual all-around, even despite dropping the ribbon in her last discipline.

Several countries at once filed protests during the competition. Later, the technical committee headed by Kuzmina did not reveal bias and violations in the work of referees at the Tokyo Olympics.

In September 2021, Viner told RIA Novosti that the Russian Rhythmic Gymnastics Federation had removed Kuzmina from the elections and would prepare a "normal" candidate. On October 30, it became known that the FIG again included Kuzmina in the list of candidates "in accordance with a temporary measure prescribed by the FIG ethics commission." In November of the same year, an independent FIG ethics commission upheld the removal of Kuzmina's candidacy from the election to the post of head of the technical committee.