Our photographer Alexandra Leask was at podium training today for the junior competitors of this year’s International Gymnix. She let us in on some fun info, like one of the Japanese juniors doing her floor routine to Winnie the Pooh and a bunch of the Russians using variations of Pink Panther music, and she also took some gorgeous pics of many of the competitors, which you can check out below. Enjoy!
Gabby Perea, United States
Emma Malabuyo, United States
Sunisa Lee, United States
Emma Malabuyo, United States
Maile O’Keefe, United States
Maile O’Keefe, United States
Daria Belousova, Russia
Ana Padurariu, Canada
Ana Padurariu, Canada
Emma Malabuyo, United States
Alice D’Amato, Italy
Emma Malabuyo, United States
Giorgia Villa, Italy
Arina Strukova of Russia wolf jumps over Italy’s Elisa Iorio
A lovely sheep jump from Arina Strukova
Irina Komnova, Russia
Asia D’Amato, Italy
Daria Belousova, Russia
Elena Gerasimova, Russia
Emma Malabuyo, United States
Daria Belousova, Russia
Daria Belousova, Russia
Alina Strukova
Elena Gerasimova, Russia
Elena Gerasimova, Russia
Elisa Iorio, Italy
Daria Belousova gives us a smile while Arina Strukova, Irina Komnova, and Elena Gerasimova prepare for floor
Daria Belousova, Russia
Maile O’Keefe, United States
Gabby Perea, United States
Gabby Perea, United States
Gabby Perea, United States
Sunisa Lee, United States
Valeri Liukin was happy with how podium training went (even if he looks VERY sad)
The D’Amato twins on the left with Elisa Iorio back right and Giorgia Villa front right.
Elena Gerasimova, Arina Strukova, Daria Belousova, and Irina Komnova
Photos by Alexandra Leask
The Gymternet 
I watched all the Flo PT videos, and I’m really surprised with:
A. Sunisa Lee’s improvement. 1. Church to pak to maloney to geinger. 2. Double double on floor.
B. Arian Strukova’s beam routine. She looks really confident and she’s clean on all her skills. (Also has an aerial to back tuck which I think is cool).
C. Emma Malabuyo’s beam routine and Emma Malabuyo in general.
D. Four Italian girls had DTYs all of them looking pretty good.
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Three things:
1. I LOVE the US leos for some reason- they just appeal to me!
2. I find it really funny that the D’Amato twins are so indistinguishable that they have to be referred to as “one of the twins”
3. Is it just me or does Valeri kind of look like Putin in that picture?
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I love the US Leo’s as well! So pretty!
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Hahaha my goal this weekend is to figure out a way to tell the D’Amatos apart. Apparently one is a tiny bit taller than the other…that’s how I tell the Merkova twins apart. But that doesn’t really help when only one of them is around and I’m like WHO ARE YOU. I mean I can barely tell all of the little blonde Russians apart, so when there are two people who are actually identical I’m like yeah this isn’t gonna happen.
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The one who is in the pictures is the one with tape on her knee.
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I *think* that’s Alice, but I’ll find out tomorrow.
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I’m impressed with all the videos of PT training! These juniors (regardless of the country) would have outscored ANY competitor at American Cup last week big time! Way to go for the juniors, LOTS AND LOTS to improve for the international senior scene.
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I really love that Russia’s sending four 2004 girls to compete – they don’t have the biggest difficulty yet but they’re all so clean, imagine them in two years! Hopefully Russia has realized that their gymnasts need experience and not just talent
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Can I be a little bit daring and say that the second picture (the one of the gymnast labeled as Gabby Perea doing a bhs stepout) is actually Emma Malabuyo? Because Gabby (and Sunisa Lee) are lefties, and Emma is a righty, and the picture shows the right leg coming down first, indicative of a righty.
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You’re probably right! I couldn’t see her face so went with her hair and it looked identical to Gabby’s (and came immediately after Gabby from the camera) so I just assumed but yeah, now that I’m looking closer it looks more like Emma.
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