In the sports center "Dokhsun" the lanes were being cleaned with vacuum cleaners. And on the carpet under the rock-climbing wall, graceful gymnasts from Kazakhstan were already doing their first training. We approached the tall beautiful slim girl, who was waiting for five girls from Shymkent to finish group exercises in order to bring out her two pupils from Astana, who will perform in the individual program. Meet Meruert Balginbaeva, rhythmic gymnastics coach.
- Meruert, we know that Kazakhstan always brings a strong national team to the Children of Asia Games. How is it this time?
- It is. We seem to have the largest delegation - 250 people. We participate in almost all sports. As I know, the national team has participants from almost all cities - Almaty, Astana, Karaganda, Shymkent, Taraz, Uralsk and others. Kazakhstan has a strong school of boxing - there are Olympic champions, world and Asian champions. So we will fight for victory.
- Your pupils passed the selection within Kazakhstan?
- Of course, they won the national championship in rhythmic gymnastics. Oksana Stanislavovna Zavalnaya and her students won in group exercises. I brought the champion of Asia 2024 Akmaral Erekesheyeva and the prize-winner of republican competitions Risbek Aygana, born in 2011, to "run-in" her. These are her first big competitions abroad.
- Where are you accommodated, how are you fed?
- The Children of Asia Games are good because it is a kind of Children's Olympics. There is an Olympic village, many representatives of different sports come together, there is a national team. So for the next starts, up to the Olympic Games, it is a very good psychological and competitive pump. The Games are very good complex competitions, I've heard a lot about them. We arrived on June 22. We were accommodated perfectly, all together in one building of the university campus. We are fed in a separate food block, there is halal food and European cuisine. Nearby accomodations of the teams of Syria and Laos.
- The age of female perfomers is very short. More often only one Olympic cycle ...
- Now the rules are changing in the direction of simplification to remove complex elements that lead to childhood traumatism. Rhythmic gymnastics is a young sport that is difficult to coordinate. After the Olympics in Paris, the rules will change again. Maybe then the age of gymnasts will be longer.
- We wish you good luck!
- Thank you.
P.S. It should be said that Meruert Balginbayeva is a master of sports of Kazakhstan in rhythmic gymnastics and as a senior coach of the national team led to bronze medals at the Youth Olympics in China in 2014.
