Voronezh gymnast Angelina Melnikova may not get to the World Cup

The Russian team in gymnastics risks not having time to start preparing for the world championship in the Netherlands. The reason was the delay in issuing visas: two days before the planned departure, the team has not yet received permission to enter. This was reported on October 9 in the Federation of Gymnastics of Russia.

The team includes Angelina Melnikova, a pupil of the Yuri Shtukman Voronezh School and one of the leading Russian gymnasts. All athletes of the national team were selected for the competition and were included in the official lists of participants of World Gymnastics.

After receiving invitations, gymnasts sent documents to the visa center. This happened between September 30 and October 5. Despite the timely submission of applications, the issue of entry documents remained unresolved at the time of publication.

The departure of the Russians is scheduled for the night from 11 to 12 October. Meanwhile, official training in Rotterdam will start on October 13, and on October 14 men will try out the competition platform. If visas are not issued on time, athletes may face difficulties in preparing for the tournament.

The World Cup will be held from 17 to 25 October 2026. It will also determine the first team quotas for the Olympic Games 2028 in Los Angeles: the vouchers will receive the three strongest women’s and three men’s teams.