Ekaterina Kurbatova

Ekaterina Vladimirovna Kurbatova (born October 7, 1992) is a Russian gymnast.

Career Kurbatova competed in the 2009 Glasgow Grand Prix in May, winning vault and placing 3rd on the uneven bars. She also went to the world championships that year in London, where she qualified for the all-around and placed 9th on uneven bars behind Italy's Serena Lichetta. In the all-around competition, she fell on balance beam taking her out of the medals.

In 2010, Kurbatova competed at the European Championships, where she won the gold medal with her team and on vault. At the 2010 Moscow World Cup, she made both vault and floor finals, and finished on 4th and 1st respectively. She was also part of the 2010 World Championship team and was mostly taken along due to her vaulting, when it became clear that the Russian team was in desperate need for a third vaulter in team finals. The team went on to become the first Russian gymnastics team ever to win a team gold medal in a World Championship or Olympic Games.

Kurbatova is known for her unique style: a "kick-in" on vault with an unorthodox leg form. Her choreography is viewed as distinctive, reaching it's zenith with performing a combination of Pak salto into a Khorkina II transition. She is one of the few Russian gymnasts ever having performed a one-armed pirouette which is more often seen amongst Chinese gymnasts.

Competitive history

Year Competition Description Location Apparatus Rank-Final Score-Final Rank-Qualifying Score-Qualifying 2009 World Championships London All-Around 10 55.475 6 55.950 Vault 4 14.337 5 14.225 Uneven Bars 9 14.200 Balance Beam 19 13.750 Floor Exercise 13 13.475 2010 European Championships Birmingham Team 1 169.700 1 168.325 Vault 1 14.287 4 14.075 Uneven Bars 57 11.425 World Championships Rotterdam Team 1 175.397 1 234.521 Vault WD 4 14.633 Uneven Bars 13 14.300