Yevgeniya Kanayeva

Evgeniya Olegovna Kanaeva OMF (; born 2 April 1990) is a retired Russian individual rhythmic gymnast. She is the only individual rhythmic gymnast in history to win two Olympic all-around gold medals, winning at the 2008 Summer Olympics, where she finished with 3.75 points ahead of silver medalist Inna Zhukova, and at the 2012 Summer Olympics, where she also became the oldest gymnast to win the Olympic gold. On 4 July 2013, Kanaeva received the International Fair Play Award for "Sport and Life".

Kanaeva holds the record for most World titles with seventeen and thirteen European titles. Kanaeva shares the record for most individual world all-around titles with Maria Petrova (1995 tied with Ekaterina Serebrianskaya), Maria Gigova (1971 tied with Galima Shugurova) and fellow Russian gymnasts Yana Kudryavtseva and Dina Averina, and Kanaeva is the one of only three gymnasts to have won all three titles without being tied, impossible due to the tie breaking system even though she never was tied for a title.

At the 2009 World Championship in Mie, Japan, Kanaeva became the first rhythmic gymnast to win all six titles. She repeated the feat at the 2011 World Championship in Montpellier, France, equaling her own record.

In 2009, Kanaeva was awarded the title Merited Master of Sports in Russia. After the 2012 Summer Olympics, on 15 August at the Grand Kremlin Palace, Kanaeva, along with fellow Olympic gold medalists, was awarded the Merit for the Fatherland IV Degree. Russian President Vladimir Putin presented the honors.

Kanaeva is the only gymnast to receive a perfect score under the 30-point judging system, having done so twice: in the 2011 Grand Prix Final in Brno and in the 2012 Grand Prix in Vorarlberg.

Early life Evgeniya Kanaeva was born on 2 April 1990 in Omsk, Soviet Union. Her mother, Svetlana, was also a rhythmic gymnast and was granted the title of Master of Sports. Her father, Oleg Kanaev, was a coach and a former Greco-Roman wrestler. She has an elder brother named Egor who is also a Greco-Roman wrestler.

Her grandmother introduced 6-year-old Kanaeva to rhythmic gymnastics. Her first trainer, Yelena Arais, was the daughter of Kanaeva's later trainer, Vera Shtelbaums. Shtelbaums, who worked in the same gymnastics school, recalled Kanaeva spending long hours practicing even though all other students were gone, while her grandmother stood in the corridor waiting to take her home.

Career Senior debut After the Olympic Games 2004, at which Kabaeva and Tchachina won the gold and silver medals respectively, Kabayeva remained competitive while Vera Sessina and Olga Kapranova rose to become Russia's new leading rhythmic gymnasts. Kanaeva made her senior international debut in 2006 at the International Tournament Schmiden where she won gold in all-around and event finals. She competed at the World Cup stage in Mie competing in clubs and ribbon where she finished 5th.

In summer 2007, Kanaeva competed in World Cup in Corbeil-Essonnes winning the all-around gold medal. She also won gold in hoop, rope and ribbon final defeating Anna Bessonova. She then competed at the World Cup series in Ljubljana where she won bronze in all-around, rope and silver in clubs. At the 2007 European Championships in Baku, Azerbaijan, Kabaeva, Sessina, and Kapranova were chosen to represent Russia. However, on the eve of the competition, Kabaeva withdrew because of an injury. Viner selected Kanaeva from the reserve team as the replacement. Despite the short notice, Kanaeva impressed by winning gold medals in both the individual ribbon and team competition. A few months later, she won another gold medal in the team competition at the World Championship in Patras, Greece.

2008 Olympics season Kanayeva in 2008 performing her clubs routine in a middle of a rotation. In preparation for 2008 Beijing Olympic Games qualification, Kanaeva's routines (hoop, clubs, rope and ribbon) were designed with high difficulties and her music was selected to bring out her uniqueness, one of which was her ribbon routine performed with the special edited piano version of 'Moscow Nights (Подмосковные вечера)'.

In the beginning of 2008 season, Kanaeva still faced tough competition from veteran teammates Vera Sessina, Olga Kapranova and Ukrainian rhythmic gymnast, the then-World Champion, Anna Bessonova. However, by mid-spring, Kanaeva began to establish herself by winning all the individual all-around titles in the Grand Prix and World Cup series, as well as the Russian National Championship. She defeated Bessonova and Kapranova with high scores in all her routines (18.875 in rope, 18.925 in hoop, 18.875 in ribbon and scored a 19.050 in clubs). At the 2008 European Championships she became the All-around champion. Viner selected Kanaeva and Kapranova as Russia's entries for the Olympic rhythmic gymnastics competition.

Kanaeva was the youngest among all the finalists in the Olympic rhythmic gymnastics competition. In her words, the Olympic Games were "different from all other competitions. You just have to concentrate on yourself, the apparatus and the carpet. You should not pay attention on anything else. I persuaded myself that everything would be alright, that I should not worry." She was also hailed as the "Heroine of the Games" by the official website of Universiade Belgrade 2009.

In September, Kanaeva competed at the World Championships in Mie Prefecture, Japan. Kanaeva qualified for the individual all-around final by placing first in every single apparatus, each with a gold medal. Her results in individual apparatuses (along with those of her teammates Olga Kapranova, Daria Kondakova, and Daria Dmitrieva) helped win the team gold for Russia. In the individual all-around final, Kanaeva won her sixth gold medal by a margin of 0.600, beating by one the record set by Russian gymnast Oxana Kostina in 1992 of most gold medals won in a single rhythmic gymnastics World Championship. President Medvedev again acknowledged Kanaeva's new record by sending her a telegram of congratulations.

2010 & 2011 seasons Kanaeva at the 2011 LG WHISEN Rhythmic All Stars Gala doing Freehand. In 2010, Kanaeva had an undefeated all-around season winning the gold medals in all-around and event finals at the Grand Prix Final, she repeated as the 2010 European all-around champion ahead of teammate Daria Kondakova. At the 2010 World Championships, she won gold in the all-around, ball, hoop and silver in rope behind teammate Daria Kondakova.

Kanaeva started her 2011 season competing at the 2011 Moscow Grand Prix where she won gold in all-around and all event finals, she won silver in all-around at the Pesaro World Cup behind teammate Daria Kondakova nevertheless, she won all her other World Cup and Grand Prix series all-around competitions. She competed at the 2011 European Championships where she won gold in hoop, ball and a silver medal in ribbon behind Belarusian gymnast Liubov Charkashyna. In the 2011 World Championships, Kanaeva broke her record by again winning 6 gold medals in a single World Championship, the all-around, event finals (hoop, ball, clubs, ribbon) and team event. At the 2011 Grand Prix Final in Brno, Kanaeva won gold in all-around and all event finals where she scored a perfect 30 in ribbon under the 30-point judging system. She finished her season winning the all-around at the 2011 Aeon Cup in Japan. She ranked 5th in the world ranking 2011 season, dropped from the 1st in 2010 season due to she didn't take part in many competition in the 2011 season. However, she ranked the 1st again in the 2012 season.

2012 Olympics season Kanaeva in 2012, in her starting position for ribbon, with the routine music being Frédéric Chopin’s “Fantasie Impromptu”. Kanaeva started her season with new hoop, clubs and ball routines at the Moscow Grand Prix. She finished 2nd in the all-around at the 2012 Moscow Grand Prix behind teammate Daria Kondakova, but won gold medals in the ribbon, clubs and hoop finals ahead of Daria Dmitrieva and Daria Kondakova. She followed her win at the Grand Prix by winning the all-around at the International Thiais Tournament. She went on to compete on her first World Cup of the season at Pesaro and won the all-around title as well the clubs, ball and hoop finals. She withdrew from Penza World Cup citing illness. She returned to competition at the Sofia World Cup where she beat the defending champion Daria Kondakova and won the event finals in ball and hoop. She did not qualify for the ribbon finals because of the two-per-country rule, with Kondakova and Dmitrieva ahead of her in the ribbon qualifications. She was also the champion in all-around at the 2012 Corbeil-Essonnes Cup ahead of compatriots Daria Dmitrieva and Alexandra Merkulova.

At the 2012 European Championships, Kanaeva won her third consecutive European All-around title and posted a score of 29.700 in her ball routine. In an interview after the event, she said: "This victory didn't come easy. In the future I have to put effort on executing elements stronger and more precisely. My coaches are satisfied, and it's very important. I don't live by victory but by what I do." Kanaeva then competed at the Grand Prix Vorarlberg in Austria, where she won gold medals in the all-around and all the apparatus finals. At the World Cup series in Minsk, Kanaeva won the gold medal in all-around ahead of teammate Daria Dmitrieva (silver) and Belarusian Liubov Charkashyna (bronze). Kanaeva also won all the gold medals (Ball, Hoop, Clubs and Ribbon) at the event finals.

In the qualifications at the 2012 Olympics, Kanaeva ranked 2nd on the first day, behind teammate Daria Dmitrieva, after an unusual errant of fumbling her hoop routine. On the second day, she moved ahead of Dmitrieva with a total score of 116.000 points.

She was the only gymnast to score more than 29 points in the ball, hoop and clubs, falling short of that mark only with the ribbon that scored 28.900.

At a conference of the Russian Rhythmic Gymnastics Federation (RRGF) on 4 December 2012 in Novogorsk, Kanaeva announced the end of her competitive career, saying "Most probably, I have finished my career. There was a choice between labor in training and switching to another activity." At the same conference, it was announced that Kanaeva had been elected a vice-president of the RRGF, along with 2004 Olympic silver medalist Irina Tchachina. Kanaeva had expressed a desire to remain in rhythmic gymnastics indefinitely as a coach or in an administrative position. In June 2009, Shtelbaums stated that Kanaeva had the quality to become a good coach because of her attentiveness in instructing young female rhythmic gymnasts.

Kanaeva was ranked 1st as the most Successful Female Athlete of Russia in 2012 beating Aliya Mustafina (2nd) and Maria Sharapova (3rd) for the top ranking. The overall rating was formed in the basis of the greatest number of votes of experts. Also, the maximum figures for the number of references in the paper and press the number of requests in the Russian segment of the Internet for a year.

In September 2013, Kanaeva was named "Woman of the year" by GQ Russia magazine. The award ceremony was held in Mayakovsky Theatre in Moscow.

On 15 February 2015, a gala was held in Russia for the 80th founding anniversary of Rhythmic Gymnastics. The venue was held in the historical Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg. Among those who performed at the gala were Russian former Olympic champions, Olympic medalists and World champions including: Kanaeva, Yulia Barsukova, Irina Tchachina, Daria Dmitrieva, and Yana Batyrshina.

Endorsements Kanaeva became the ambassador for luxury watches house Longines in 2009–2012. She was one of the chosen recipient of the Visa Sponsorship for the 2012 London Olympics. Kanaeva was also one of the nine elite athletes chosen to be the ambassador for Pantene for the Olympic Games. She has appeared in a commercial video for Pantene Pro-V.

Kanaeva was one of the 50 elite athletes of Russia chosen as an honorary ambassador for the 2013 Summer Universiade in Kazan.

Personal life Kanaeva was enrolled at the Siberian State University of Physical Training and Sports. Kanaeva has expressed an interest in learning to draw and play the piano after her sporting career. According to her mother, Kanaeva saves her prize money for future education.

Kanaeva has stated that if she wasn’t a gymnast, she would take up professional dance.

On 8 June 2013, Kanaeva married ice hockey player Igor Musatov who plays for the HC Slovan Bratislava of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). In August, Irina Viner announced Kanaeva was pregnant. However, the pair have since divorced in 2018.

On 8 October 2013, Kanaeva's father Oleg died of a heart attack on a plane during a flight from Turkey to Moscow while returning from the World Cup Championships of Greco-Roman wrestling.

On 19 March 2014, Kanaeva gave birth to the couple's first child, a boy named Vladimir.

As of February 2020, Kanaeva has been working as a coach for The Junior Russian Gymnastics Team. She now coaches Sofya Agafonova, a junior member of the Russian National Team, and also, together with Vera Shtelbaums to Anastasia Simakova, 2019 junior world champion in rope and team.

Eponymous skills Kanaeva has one eponymous skill listed in the code of points, a 180 degree turn on the stomach with the gymnast's legs held in a split position with no hand or arm assistance. NameDescriptionDifficultyKanaeva Rotation 180 on the chest, legs in split position without help 0.4 base value

Routine music information Kanaeva performing her hoop routine at the 2012 Vorarlberg Grand Prix that scored a perfect 30 points.

Year Apparatus Music title 2012 Hoop (third) "The Rite of Spring", by Igor Stravinsky Hoop (second) "Egypt Is Yours For Only One Day" (Cleopatra OST), "To Speed You on Your Way", "In The Eyes of the Gods We Are One" by Trevor Jones Hoop (first) "Liebestraum", by Franz Liszt Ball (second) "Concerto (Ballet)" (Les Demoiselles de Rochefort OST), by Michel Legrand Ball (first) Sleuth OST by Patrick Doyle Clubs "Poeta (remix)", original by Vicente Amigo, remix by Maxime Rodriguez Ribbon "Fantasie Impromptu", by Frédéric Chopin Gala at EC Nizhny Novgorod "L-O-V-E", by Nat King Cole (performed by Joss Stone) 2011 Hoop "L'Ete Indien", by Joe Dassin Ball (second) "Elegy in E-Flat Minor", by Sergey Rachmaninov Ball (first) "Picture of Dorian Gray", by Charlie Mole; "Catch the Falling Sky", by Immediate Music Clubs "Bolero", by Maurice Ravel Ribbon "Fantasie Impromptu", by Frédéric Chopin Gala at EC Minsk "You Lost Me", by Christina Aguilera 2010 Rope (second) Smuglyanka Moldovanka Rope (first) "Pigalle (Interlude)", by Patricia Kaas Hoop "The Rite of Spring", by Igor Stravinsky Ball "Mix of Loss and Decision", by Zbigniew Preisner Ribbon "Tango", by Denis SungHô, Soledad Group Gala at GP Thiais "Notre Dame de Paris" (musical) Gala at EC Bremen "Oblivion", by Astor Piazzolla Gala at WCH Moscow "Who Wants to Live Forever", by Queen, Sarah Brightman version 2009 Rope (second) "Kadril Veselaya", by Svetoch Rope (first) "Carmen Suite", Rodion Shchedrin Hoop "Fantasia on Russian Folksongs", by Anton Arensky Ball (second) "Concierto de Aranjuez", by Joaquín Rodrigo Ball (first) Spartacus, by Aram Khachaturian Ribbon "Padam Padam", by Edith Piaf Gala-Autumn "You are in My September", by Igor Krutoy Gala (WCH Mie) Basement Jaxx 2008 Rope "El Conquistador", by Maxime Rodriguez Hoop "Tristan & Iseult", by Maxime Rodriguez Clubs "Jota Aragonesa", by Glinka Clubs at LA Lights (same music as CariPrato 2007) Ribbon "Moscow Nights", by Igor Krutoy, composed by Vasily Solovyov-Sedoi Gala-2 Ribbons "Kadril Veselaya", by Svetoch Gala-Autum "You are in My September", by Igor Krotoy 2007 Rope Ivan Petrovich Larionov Hoop "La forza del destino", by Giuseppe Verdi, composed by Pompon Finkelstein Clubs (second) — Clubs (first) "Act 1 Largo al factotum", by Gioachino Rossini Ribbon "Walls of Akendora", by Keiko Matsui Gala (CariPrato with Ermakova) "Song #1", by Serebro Gala-2 Ribbons (WCH Patras) "Kadril Veselaya", by Svetoch 2006 Rope "Playing Marilyin Monroe", by Oleg Kostrow Ball (second) "Moonlight Rumba", by Gustavo Montesano Ball (first) "Earthsong", by Karunesh Clubs — Ribbon "Walls of Akendora", by Keiko Matsui Gala-free hand "Earthsong", by Karunesh 2005 Rope "Laissez Moi Me Griser", by Maurice El Mediouni Hoop "Big Drum, Small World", by Dhol Foundation Clubs "Animals", by X-Mode Ribbon "Besame Mucho", by Gadjo 2004 Rope "Black Cat, White Cat", by Goran Bregovic Ball PC Game Pharaoh OST, mix of jakb+jrj-Hb-sd Clubs "Hey Pachuco" (The Mask OST), by Royal Crown Revue Clubs (Aeon Cup) — Ribbon "Besame Mucho", by Gadjo 2003 Rope "Black Cat, White Cat", by Goran Bregovic Ball — Clubs — Ribbon "I Wanna Be Like You", by Big Bad Voodoo Daddy

Competitive highlights (Team competitions in seniors are held only at the World Championships, Europeans and other Continental Games.)

International: Senior 2011–2012 Season Year Event AA Team Hoop Ball Clubs Ribbon 2012 Olympic Games 1st World Cup series: Minsk 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st Grand Prix Vorarlberg 1st 1st 1st 1st 2nd European Championships 1st NT World Cup Corbeil-Essonnes 1st 1st 1st 2nd 3rd (Q) World Cup Sofia 1st 3rd(Q) 1st 1st 1st World Cup Pesaro 1st 1st 1st 1st 3rd (Q) Grand Prix Thiais 1st 3rd 1st 1st 1st Baltic Hoop 1st 2nd 1st 1st 1st Grand Prix Moscow 2nd 1st 3rd(Q) 1st 1st 2011 Aeon Cup 1st 1st Grand Prix Final: Brno 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st World Championships 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st Grand Prix Berlin Masters 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st Summer Universiade 1st 1st 1st 1st 2nd International Tournament of Prato 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st European Championships 1st 1st 1st 6th 2nd World Cup Corbeil-Essonnes 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st World Cup Portimao 2nd 1st 1st 5th (Q) 3rd (Q) Grand Prix Thiais 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st World Cup Pesaro 1st 1st 1st 5th 2nd Grand Prix Holon 1st 1st 5th (Q) 1st 1st Grand Prix Moscow 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st International: Senior 2009–2010 Season Year Event AA Team Rope Hoop Ball Ribbon 2010 Grand Prix Final: Berlin Masters 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st Grand Prix Brno 1st 1st 1st 1st 3rd (Q) Aeon Cup 1st 1st World Championships 1st 1st 2nd 1st 1st 3rd (Q) Grand Prix Holon 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st World Cup series: Pesaro 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st International Tournament of Prato 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st Grand Prix Innsbruck 1st 1st 1st 3rd (Q) 1st World Cup Minsk 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st Grand Prix Marbella 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st European Championships 1st NT World Cup St. Petersburg 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st Grand Prix Thiais 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st World Cup Portimao 1st 1st 3rd (Q) 1st 1st World Cup Debrechen 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st Grand Prix Moscow 1st 2nd 1st 1st 2nd World Cup Montreal 1st 3rd 2nd 1st 1st 2009 Grand Prix Final: Berlin Masters 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st World Championships 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st World Cup series: Minsk 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st World Games 1st 1st 1st 1st Summer Universiade 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st International Tournament of Prato 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st Grand Prix Marbella 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st European Championships 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st World Cup Pesaro 1st 1st 1st 1st 2nd Grand Prix Holon 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st World Cup Portimao 1st 1st 2nd 1st 1st World Cup St. Petersburg 1st 1st 1st 1st 2nd Grand Prix Thiais 1st 1st 1st 1st 2nd Grand Prix Brno 1st 2nd 1st 1st 1st World Cup Budapest 1st 1st 1st 1st 2nd Grand Prix Moscow 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st International: Senior 2007–2008 Season Year Event AA Team Rope Hoop Clubs Ribbon 2008 Aeon Cup 1st 1st World Cup Final: Benidorm 4th 1st 1st 1st Olympic Games 1st World Cup Irkutsk 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st World Cup Astana 1st 2nd 1st 1st 2nd European Championships 1st NT World Cup Corbeil-Essonnes 1st 1st 1st 1st 2nd Grand Prix Marbella 1st 1st 6th 3rd 1st World Cup Portimao 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st World Cup Maribor 1st 1st 2nd 1st 1st Grand Prix Thiais 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st MTM Ljubljana 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st World Cup Kyiv 4th 3rd 3rd 2nd Grand Prix Moscow 3rd 2nd 2nd L.A. Lights 2nd 2007 World Championships 1st 4th (Q) IT Finland 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st World Cup series: Ljubljana 3rd 3rd 2nd Black Sea Games 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st European Championships 1st 1st International Tournament of Prato 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st World Cup Corbeil-Essonnes 1st 1st 1st 5th 1st World Cup Kyiv 3rd 4th 4th 5th (Q) 2nd International: Senior 2005–2006 Season Year Event AA Team Ribbon Rope Ball Clubs 2006 World Cup Final: Mie 5th 5th World Cup Portimao 6th 2nd 6th 1st International Tournament of Prato 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st World Cup Corbeil-Essonnes 4th 2nd 4th 1st 4th International Tournament Schmiden 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st 2005 International Tournament of Prato 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st International: Junior Year Event AA Team Ball Ribbon Rope Clubs 2005 Aeon Cup 1st 1st 2004 Aeon Cup 1st 1st International Tournament of Prato 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st Junior Grand Prix Thiais 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st 2003 Aeon Cup 1st 1st International Tournament of Prato 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st International Tournament Calais 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st Q = Qualifications (Did not advance to Event Final due to the 2 gymnast per country rule); WD = Withdrew; NT = No Team Competition held

Detailed Olympic results Year Competition Description Location Music Apparatus Rank-Final Score-Final Rank-Qualifying Score-Qualifying 2012 Olympics London All-around 1st 116.900 1st 116.000 "Concerto (Ballet)" (Les Demoiselles de Rochefort OST) by Michel Legrand Ball 1st 29.200 1st 29.525 "Fantasie Impromptu No 66" by Frédéric Chopin Ribbon 2nd 28.900 1st 29.400 "The Rite of Spring" by Igor Stravinsky Hoop 1st 29.350 2nd 28.100 "Poeta (remix)" original by Vincente Amigo remix by Maxime Rodriguez Clubs 1st 29.450 1st 28.975 Year Competition Description Location Music Apparatus Rank-Final Score-Final Rank-Qualifying Score-Qualifying 2008 Olympics Beijing All-around 1st 75.500 1st 74.075 Moscow Nights by Vasily Solovyov-Sedoi Ribbon 1st 18.850 1st 18.825 "El Conquistador" by Maxime Rodriguez Rope 1st 18.850 4th 17.850 Tristan & Iseult by Maxime Rodriguez Hoop 1st 18.850 1st 18.700 "Jota Aragonesa" by Glinka Clubs 1st 18.950 1st 18.700