Celebration of sports and beauty: "Heavenly Grace Cup" starts in Qatar

The Heavenly Grace international tournament has been held on the initiative of Olympic champion Alina Kabaeva since 2021. This time it will be held in Doha from November 20 to 22 and will become one of the brightest events of the year in rhythmic gymnastics. Athletes from 25 countries will take part in the competition in the capital of Qatar.

In the finals, the audience is waiting for a colorful gala show, which will perform not only the participants of the tournament, but also other gymnasts, including honored masters of sports Dina and Arina Averina.

Four years of success

The first Heavenly Grace tournament was held three years ago in Moscow at the VTB Arena. The main feature of the competition was the unique rules that combined the standards of the early 2000s - the golden age of rhythmic gymnastics - and modern requirements to work with the apparatus, which are prescribed in the regulations of the International Federation FIG. The experimental format allowed the athletes to show the uniqueness and diversity of the most beautiful sport. In 2021, Moscow fans and TV viewers saw participants from 13 countries.

A year later, the competition came to the Black Sea coast. In December 2022, the tournament was hosted by the federal territory "Sirius" - the tournament was timed to coincide with the opening of the Academy of Rhythmic Gymnastics "Heavenly Grace" Alina Kabaeva. Gymnasts from 14 countries took part in it, and the rope exercise, now excluded from the adult program of FIG rules, returned to the competition program.

In 2023, the international tournament was held outside Russia for the first time - in Beijing. It was in the capital of China that the program for the first time included performances of junior women. In total, gymnasts from 25 countries took part in the competition. And the absolute champion three years in a row became the Russian prima Lala Kramarenko.

"I am very grateful to Alina Kabaeva for inviting us every year," said Manuela Gallego of Colombia at the Heavenly Grace 2023 international tournament. - This is a great opportunity for all gymnasts to fulfill their potential. At this tournament we can fulfill our dreams. The rules of Heavenly Grace are a little complicated. But by overcoming the difficulties, we grow and move forward and learn from the Russians and other strong female athletes."

The tournament in Doha promises a lot of interesting things. For the first time the competition will feature group exercises: athletes will compete in individual events under the Seniors' program. In the individual program seniors will participate in both all-around and individual events, juniors - only in individual events.

Each tournament traditionally ends with a gala concert. In Doha, in addition to the gymnasts, the State Academic Dance Ensemble "Vainakh", the State Academic Choreographic Ensemble "Berezka", the St. Petersburg State Ballet Theater of Boris Eifman, the State Academic Igor Moiseyev Folk Dance Ensemble, the Sretensky Monastery Choir, the Kuban Cossack Choir, dancer Martin Abzhalimov, balalaika player Andrei Kiryakov and singer Ragda Khanieva will take part in it. A flash mob with the participation of Olympic champions will be a bright point of the international tournament.

Development of rhythmic gymnastics in Russia and the world

The organizer of the tournament in Qatar is the International Association of Clubs "Heavenly Grace", which was founded in early 2023. Its main goals were the development and popularization of rhythmic gymnastics in Russia and the world. Today the association has 250 partners. It has become another platform that supports promising female athletes and gives them the opportunity to perform at major international tournaments. The debut of the Heavenly Grace team as a world team took place last summer at the BRICS Games in Kazan, where the gymnasts won 14 medals. Heavenly Grace representatives from Russia, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan also successfully competed at tournaments in Italy, Azerbaijan and Hungary.

"The gymnasts from my club were very much looking forward to the girls from Heavenly Grace," said Irina Berek, the chief judge of the competition, during the Golden Autumn Cup tournament in Budapest. - We have not seen such beauty, such gymnastics for a long time. Many observers had eyes like cups, mouths open. I am very pleased that now our girls have seen where they can strive".

Selection of athletes for the international "Cup "Heavenly Grace" in 2024 was held at interregional and All-Russian competitions, as well as at the international tournament "Grand Prix "Heavenly Grace" in Minsk. In total, the association held 12 tournaments, where more than 2 thousand gymnasts from different countries performed.

In 2025, the association plans to hold 30 interregional competitions for selection to four all-Russian tournaments, three international stages of the Grand Prix, which will be qualifying starts for the new "Cup "Heavenly Grace". In addition, an international tournament "Games of Countries" is planned, which will be a qualifier for the CIS Games.

Alina Kabaeva's Rhythmic Gymnastics Academy "Heavenly Grace" plays a big role in the Association's activity. The Academy's mission is to develop rhythmic gymnastics all over the world and to introduce children to the sport that combines aesthetics, strength and grace. Regional teams and clubs regularly hold training camps at the academy. In addition, athletes from different parts of the world come here to prepare for tournaments of the highest level. Among the guests are gymnasts from the Philippines, Cuba, Congo, Kyrgyzstan, Venezuela, China, Guatemala and other countries. During such training camps all the athletes live, train and prepare for the starts with the coaches of the academy.

To date, 36 young female athletes from different regions of Russia live and train at the academy permanently. They have the opportunity to study at the Sirius Presidential Lyceum, and they are assisted by tutors who make sure that their training is organized organically into the training process. All expenses are covered by the academy. In addition, since 2023, groups of additional education for preschoolers have started working here. The main focus is on the comprehensive development of children, and the training, which is partly in English, includes artistic gymnastics, choreography, rhythmics, as well as classes for the development of logic and intelligence.