Maria Filatova

Maria Filatova
— Gymnast —
Full name	Mariya Yevgenyevna Filatova
Country represented	Soviet Union
Born	(1961-07-19) July 19, 1961 (age 55) Leninsk-Kuznetsky, Kemerovo Oblast, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union
Residence	Rochester, New York
Discipline	Women's artistic gymnastics
Retired	1982
Medal record Representing  Soviet Union Olympic Games 1976 Montreal Team 1980 Moscow Team 1980 Moscow Uneven Bars World Championships 1978 Strasbourg Team 1981 Moscow Team 1979 Fort Worth Team 1981 Moscow All-Around World Cup Final 1977 Oviedo All-Around 1977 Oviedo Floor Exercise 1978 Sao Paulo All-Around 1978 Sao Paulo Floor Exercise 1977 Oviedo Vault 1977 Oviedo Uneven Bars 1980 Toronto Balance Beam European Championships 1977 Prague Floor Exercise 1977 Prague Balance Beam

Maria Evgenievna Filatova (Russian: Мария Евгеньевна Филатова) (born July 19, 1961) is a retired Soviet gymnast who competed at the 1976 and 1980 Olympics.

Filatova began competing for the USSR junior team in 1974. In 1976 she placed fourth at the USSR National Championships and competed well in various international events.

Filatova was originally named as an alternate to the Soviet team at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal. However, during podium training, she received such a positive reaction from the crowd that she was added to the team roster. She shared in the team gold medal and was ranked ninth overall after the team competition. Because four of her teammates scored higher than she did and only three gymnasts per team were allowed to compete in the all-around, she did not advance to the AA finals in spite of her high placement.

Following the Olympics and the retirements of several high-profile gymnasts, including Ludmilla Tourischeva and Olga Korbut, Filatova emerged as one of the leaders of the Soviet team. She won the World Cup in 1977 and 1978; the USSR Nationals in 1977, and the Riga International meet in 1977 and 1979. At the 1980 Olympics, Filatova served as the lead-off gymnast on several events and contributed to the team's gold medal. She continued to the 1981 World Championships, where she was the silver medalist in the all-around.

British journalist David Hunn referred to Filatova as a "fifteen-year-old in the Korbut tradition." As Korbut, Filatova was known for her enthusiastic, expressive floor exercise routines and her difficult acrobatic skills. She was one of the first female gymnasts to successfully compete a double back somersault on floor in 1975.

Following her retirement in 1982, Filatova worked for several years with the British Gymnastics Federation (in Belfast) before moving to the United States. She now lives and coaches in Rochester,NY.

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