"This is a Misyutin interview I translated for Gym Stars but it never got used. I think it's pretty funny (unintentionally), since Grigory's work ethic leaves a lot to be desired. It's quite a contrast to what he says in the interview! I actually think he's talking about himself in the "slacking off" section." --Beth

Lugansk, Ukraine

Question. - If you look back at the past from the height of the years you have spent in gymnastics, who was luckier - you in having the coach you did, or your coach in having you as a gymnast?

Answer. - We were both lucky. I was lucky because Nikolai Vasilyevich Degtyaryov found me and convinced me to move to the sports boarding school in Lugansk, something I really resisted. To me the words "boarding school" were associated with orphanhood. He made me into a real fighter and professional. Degtyaryov had other pupils besides me, but none of them got any higher than Master of Sport. In this respect, my coach was probably lucky in having me as a gymnast. I made the USSR National Team, as a member of which I later became an Olympic champion. Perhaps it was this event that marked the point at which we found one another, you could say.

Question. - Are you often able to spend time at home, in Aleksandria?

Answer. - Now I come here to visit three or four times a year. In the past, there wasn't enough time at all. Gymnastics is a sport in which you have to maintain your form every day, especially before major competitions. Even now, on the eve of the Olympics, the senior coach of the Ukrainian National Team, Anatoly Petrovich Shemyakin, let me go only for a couple of days to rest and undergo some medical treatment. I had a lot of competitions this year: the World Championships, the European Championships, and Grand Prix tourniments. I took part in seven competitions in three months. I was supposed to go to Italy now for another Grand Prix event, but I refused - I'm terribly tired.

Question. - Does gymnastics give more to you or take more from you?

Answer. - It gives more, of course. In fact, I can't even imagine my life without gymnastics. Being a gymnast is all that I know, and I know how to do it professionally.

Question. - In order to become a great gymnast, one has to be talented. Or can someone conquer great heights simply through persistence?

Answer. - You can't do anything in gymnastics without talent. If you don't have the abilities, no matter how hard you work nothing will come of it. On the other hand, without persistence, daily work and exhausting training sessions, your talent won't be worth a thing. If a gifted gymnast realizes that he can master an element in just a couple of days while it would take his teammates a month to do so, he might slack off and then he won't be able to force himself to do the simplest moves. I can remember many such examples. Every person travels his own path to perfection. When I was competing for a professional German club, strangers - coaches and gymnasts - often filmed me on video. Later they would watch the tape several times, but they couldn't understand how I did everything, so they came to me for explanations. I explained what I could, but told them that a gymnast must polish every last detail on his own.

Question. - Have you ever regretted that you devoted your entire youth to sports?

Answer. - No, not at all. Yes, it is hard, painstaking work every day, a lot of pressure (physical and psychological), and injuries are virtually inevitable. But on the other hand, it's an interesting life - I've traveled all over the world. Plus I'm used to it.

Question. - To what extent is the element of creativity present in gymnastics?

Answer. - All of it is creativity. When you begin to learn the basics of gymnastics, you do everything as dictated by your coach. But at the top level of the sport, the gymnast and the coach work as equals in putting together a program. It is clearer to the gymnast himself how to approach one element or another.

Question. - Is there an element called "the Misyutin" in world gymnastics?

Answer. - No, but there could have been. In the past I used to do a completely new trick on the vault - a double front with a twist - which no one else in the world has yet been able to do, and it's unlikely anyone will master it anytime soon. But I was not allowed to perform it at official competitions where it could have been named after me. Leonid Arkayev, former coach of the USSR National Team, evidently didn't want to take the risk. Indeed, the vault is very complex and dangerous, and I easily could have broken my neck. Now I've simply decided against doing this vault - I have more common sense, plus I don't have the same strength that I used to.

Question. - In your opinion, how might the Ukrainian team "shine" in Atlanta?

Answer. - We were recently second at the European Championships. And that was despite the fact that Igor Korobchinsky didn't compete because of an injury. Basically all the teams in Copenhagen sent their strongest athletes. Only Nemov didn't perform for the Russians. In Atlanta we can realistically hope for a spot in the top three. The teams from China and Russia will be our "obstacles." Their gymnasts are a little younger, plus the number five and number six gymnasts are a little stronger. The Belarusians don't have any strong gymnasts except Shcherbo and Ivankov.

Question. - Can you venture a guess right now as to who will fight for the AA gold in Atlanta?

Answer. - I think Shcherbo, China's Li Xiaoshuang and the Russian Nemov.

Question. - You don't include yourself?

Answer. - Right now I'm not ready to perform in the compulsories, and it's impossible to become a finalist in the AA without them. And I haven't been trained to go out and perform poorly - I'd let down not only myself but the team as well. Among our gymnasts, Sharipov and Svetlichny will fight in the AA. But their chances aren't great compared to the favorites. Although, I'd be happy to be mistaken about this. But we will definitely fight for medals in the individual events.

Question. - What do you think you will do after the Olympics?

Answer. - Right now I don't have any plans. To be more accurate, I have some rough ideas and thoughts. I might go to Brazil to be with my coach Degtyaryov. I've also been invited to Germany.

Thanks to Beth Squires for the contribution