Angelina Melnikova

The Russians are back at European Championships this week for the first time in five years following a lengthy ban in the wake of the country’s Ukraine invasion.

Led by Olympic champion Angelina Melnikova, who won four individual medals when Russia last appeared at Euros, the team faced some drama earlier this week as Croatia denied visas for four WAG athletes, including both Melnikova and her Tokyo 2020 teammate Viktoria Listunova, who won the Euros all-around title in 2021, along with reigning national champion Anna Kalmykova and world cup medalist Leila Vasilieva, both of whom made their world championships debuts last year.

Last year, World Gymnastics began allowing Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete internationally again as neutral athletes, and in May of this year, the governing body lifted all restrictions against athletes from these nations, allowing them to compete under their national flag. However, while governing bodies across various sports are getting more lenient about these regulations, governments still have the right to deny anyone the right to enter. Like the Indonesian government refused to allow Israeli athletes to enter the country to attend worlds last year, Croatia determined that nine members of the 65-person Russian federation would not be allowed in, stating that there was “no justification for the purpose and conditions of the intended stay.”

This was the formal reason for the initial denial, but of course, the real motivation behind it was almost certainly political (and arbitrary, according to the Russian federation). The federation worked with European Gymnastics leadership to fight the decision, and Croatia reversed its decision for four of the nine individuals who were denied, including Melnikova, Kalmykova, and Vasilieva on the women’s side, though Listunova remains out.

My guess is that this is because Listunova’s pro-war activity is public and provable, while the others are more suggestible and harder to verify. Melnikova, for example, trains at a club funded by the Ministry of Defense and ran in a primary election for the United Russia party, but training at state-supported clubs is quite common in Russia, and she never officially joined the United Russia party before withdrawing from politics completely to ensure that she could qualify for neutral status, which she was granted.

Listunova’s biggest offense – being photographed with the pro-war Z symbol and used as state propaganda when she was 16 – really doesn’t seem all that serious in the grand scheme of things, in my opinion. But because this was a very public show of support and the core reason for World Gymnastics denying her neutral status, it seems like the most provable offense even if it’s not the most egregious, putting her in a kind of scapegoat position for nations that want to continue to sanction Russia despite World Gymnastics moving away from these standards.

The Russian team set to compete in Zagreb this week now includes Melnikova and Kalmykova alongside Alyona Glotova, Lyudmila Roshchina, and Elizaveta Us, with Vasilieva coming in as the reserve athlete. They and the Belarusian athletes will compete neutrally, however, as Croatia has imposed this rule as host of this year’s European Championships, which European Gymnastics has opted to respect despite initially following World Gymnastics’ decision to lift all restrictions.

Okay, that was a lot. Let’s move on to everything else you need to know about Euros this year, including who’s competing, when it’s happening, and how to follow along!

What’s at Stake?

All of the continental championship meets this season most importantly serve as qualifiers for world championships, which will take place this autumn in Rotterdam, Netherlands. Unlike last year, nations can only attend worlds in 2026 and 2027 if they qualify teams or individual athletes. For WAG, the European continent is allotted 13 teams and 25 individual all-around spots based on this week’s competition.

Of course, medals are also up for grabs here! This will be the primary goal for the junior athletes competing in Zagreb.

Who’s Competing?

See below for a full list of senior and junior athletes expected to attend.

When’s It Happening?

Here is the complete schedule. All times are local to Zagreb.

How Can We Follow Along?

Senior qualifications and junior qualifications/apparatus finals will stream live via GymTV for a cost of €20 for WAG alone, or you can bundle WAG and MAG (which takes place next week – more info coming soon!) for €30.

Senior finals will stream on Eurovision Sports for countries without TV broadcasters (like the United States and other non-European countries). Otherwise you’ll have to check the TV rights holders list to see how you can watch.

Live scores will be available through SmartScoring.

We’ll also be live blogging every session throughout the meet, so check back with us for updates if you can’t watch!

Article by Lauren Hopkins