Natalia Vasiliyevna Laschenova (russian: Наталья Васильевна Лащенова) (born September 16, 1973 in Jelgava,

Latvian SSR The Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic (Latvian SSR), also known as Soviet Latvia or simply Latvia, was a federated republic within the Soviet Union, and formally one of its 16 (later 15) constituent republics. The Latvian Soviet Socialist Rep ...

, Soviet Union) is a retired

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...

gymnast. Laschenova competed at the

1988 Summer Olympics The 1988 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad () and commonly known as Seoul 1988 ( ko, 서울 1988, Seoul Cheon gubaek palsip-pal), was an international multi-sport event held from 17 September to 2 October ...

and the

1989 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships The 25th Artistic Gymnastics World Championships were held in Stuttgart, West Germany, in 1989 from October 14 to October 22. The scoring rule ''New Life'' was introduced. This meant that gymnasts' scores were not carried over to the all-around ...

. Laschenova is best known for her difficult skills, deceptive power, strong technique and highly expressive dance.

Early career

Laschenova had started gymnastics at the age of 6, reaching the international gymnastics scene at age 12 with her first competition, the 1985 Riga International. Laschenova did well, placing 2nd in the all around, 2nd on vault and 1st on balance beam. Laschenova continued to compete internationally at the 1986 Belgian Gym Masters, 1986 Moscow News and 1987 US vs USSR.

1988-1989

Laschenova competed at the

, contributing to a team gold medal for the Soviet Union and placing 5th in the all around. The following year she competed at the

, where she won a silver medal in the all around along with a gold medal with the team.

Post 1989

Laschenova was hampered in 1990 by an injury. After the breakup of the Soviet Union, Latvia did not compete with most of the former Soviet states as the Unified Team meaning that Laschenova would be unable to make the

1992 Summer Olympics The 1992 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1992, ca, Jocs Olímpics d'estiu de 1992), officially known as the Games of the XXV Olympiad ( es, Juegos de la XXV Olimpiada, ca, Jocs de la XXV Olimpíada) and commonly known as ...

. She retired in 1991.

Recent news

In 2010 it was reported that Laschenova and her family were facing deportation from the United States, where she now lives in Marysville, Ohio and coaches in

Hilliard, Ohio Hilliard is a city in Franklin County, Ohio, United States. The population was 37,114 at the 2020 census. It is a suburb of Columbus and part of Norwich Township. Hilliard is home to the Early Television Museum (the only one of its kind in Unite ...

Competitive history

References