‘Symbol of Russian national character’ Averina was victim of ‘political games’ in Olympic medal row, claims State Duma sports boss

A Russian politician on the country's sports committee has said gymnast Dina Averina was a victim of "political games" when she was controversially denied a gold medal at the Olympic Games.

Senior lawmaker Boris Paikin has lavished praise on Averina after the star was reduced to tears by a contentious judging decision, missing out on the 40th title of her senior career despite Israeli rival Linoy Ashram dropping the ribbon during her routine.

Paikin drew parallels with the scandal involving former Olympic champion Alexei Nemov, who was awarded a bafflingly low score for a spectacular high bar routine at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens.

Angry crowds jeered the judges for several minutes after that saga, forcing International Gymnastics Federation bosses to confront the judges and agree on a higher score for Nemov.

"Three-time world champion Dina Averina has fallen victim to political games," said Paikin, the chairman of the State Duma Committee on Physical Culture, Sports, Tourism and Youth Affairs, speaking to Tass.

"For us, Dina will remain an absolute winner. Her skills, her courage and her tears will become a symbol of the Russian national character in sports.

"Along with our champions of the Athens Olympic Games, we also remember Alexei Nemov and unfair refereeing during his performance.

"We remember how viewers cheered him as the true winner. Dina Averina will make history in the same way, as an undefeated champion."

Describing Russia's "fantastic" performance at the Games as demonstrative of a "sports superpower", Paikin is the latest high-profile name to question the judges' decision.

National team head coach Irina Viner-Usmanova blasted the scoring when she spoke to RT Sport, and Maria Zakharova, the official representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, told Sport Express that the panel had "let down the people who entrusted them".

Legendary coach Tatiana Tarasova again lashed out over the shock result, insisting that politics were behind it and coaches were demotivated to work by "ugly and dishonest" competition.

Ukrainian judge Lydia Vinogradnaya said that the difficulty had decided the contest, calling Ashram's lead "simply enormous".

2008 Olympic champion Anna Gavrilenko discussed wehter there was a "sense of political overtones" in the verdict. "It is surprising that the complexity of the body did not change during the program, neither for Dina nor for Lina," she observed.

"And here the question is immediately: why was Dina ahead in qualifying, given that the performances did not change? Here, of course, questions arise. But only qualified judges can make out in detail everything.

"In general, all attempts to explain something to ordinary fans do not add clarity. The problem in rhythmic gymnastics is the same as in other sports, where subjectivity and the assessment of other people are present – there seem to be clear assessment criteria, but there are also many different little things that each judge can interpret in different ways. Hence all the problems and scandals."

Ashram's coach, Ayelet Zussman, asked to be allowed to enjoy the victory when he was asked about the uproar. "The Russians are among the world leaders in rhythmic gymnastics but Lina showed the best performance of her life," she told the Jerusalem Post.

"I knew that she could win any medal. This is Lina Ashram – she knows how to do the right thing at the right time."

Ashram pointed out that she had beaten Russian athletes before. "I understood that I was a serious threat to them and felt that we were on the same level," she told One.

"I know that a scandal erupted in Russia after our performances in Tokyo, but I had nothing to do with it. I only did what had to be done and achieved incredible results for my country."