Russia Olympians Anna Pavlova and Konstantin Pluzhnikov will now represent Azerbaijan internationally, as will 2011 Russian world team member Yulia Inshina, the FIG announced Thursday.

 

The International Gymnastics Federation officially announced the changes of nationality for six artistic gymnastics on Thursday in its bulletin.

 

The popular Pavlova, a 2004 and 2008 Olympian, has not represented Russia in a major competition since the 2008 Olympics. Now 26, she has continued training and competing regularly but in smaller international invitationals.

 

The 26-year-old Pluzhnikov, a 2008 Olympian and the 2011 European champion on still rings, reportedly decided to compete for Azerbaijan in 2012 when rival rings specialist Alexander Balandin was chosen over him to represent Russia at the Olympics in London.

 

Inshina, 18, was a member of Russia's silver-medal squad from the 2011 World Championships in Tokyo, where she finished sixth in the balance beam final.

 

The former Soviet republic of Azerbaijan, which has a population under 10 million, has produced several strong rhythmic gymnasts who train with the Russian team. Its most successful gymnasts were Russian-born Aliya Garavayeva, who won eight world and five European medals (including one gold) and world medalists Dinara Gimatova and Anna Gurbanova.

 

The oil-rich nation has not yet had a strong presence in artistic gymnastics, however, but has been attempting to recruit gymnasts from abroad.

 

Athletes switching nationalities for ethnic reasons or financial support is nothing new, but Azerbaijan has openly adopted the practice of recruiting athletes, which erupted in an epic bidding battle prior to the 2012 Olympics. Azerbaijan agreed to pay more than $500,000 for two Bulgarian weightlifters, Boyanka Kostova and Valentin Hristov, to switch nationalities. However, when Bulgarian officials realized the change of nationality would occur prior to the Olympics, its federation reportedly demanded more money. The weightlifters eventually represented Azerbaijan in London, where Hristov won the bronze medal, the first for an Azeri athlete in the sport.

 

Azerbaijan also announced its intention to pump up its presence at the upcoming Winter Olympics.

 

"Azerbaijan will be represented by four athletes in the upcoming 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi," Youth and Sports Minister Azad Rahimov said at a press conference in September. "Of course, it is not enough. The country has all necessary conditions for the development of winter sports, so we can start to prepare the athletes. For now, we are holding negotiations with several sports federations to recruit athletes and coaches."

 

2012 Ukrainian Olympians Nikolai Kuksenkov (who now represents Russia) and Oleg Vernyayev both said they turned down lucrative offers to represent Azerbaijan.

 

The most famous gymnast to come from Azerbaijan to date is Valery Belenky, a gold and bronze medalist for the Unified team at the 1992 Olympic Games. At the 1993 World Championships, Belenky competed under no flag as Azerbaijan had not yet established an independent gymnastics federation with the FIG. He later went on to represent Germany, where he has become a successful coach.

 

Shakir Shikhaliyev represented Azerbaijan at the 2012 Olympic Games in London. He lives and trains in Germany, where he is coached by Anatoly Yarmovsky, coach of Belenky and the legendary Alexander Dityatin.

 

The Azeri capital of Baku has played host to several major rhythmic events, including the world championships in 2005, and the European championships in 2007, 2009 and will again in 2014.

 

Baku also will be the site of the inaugural European Games, a new multi-sport event set to take place in 2015. The massive event will feature some 7,000 athletes representing 49 European nations in at least 18 sports. (International Gymnast Magazine)