The rhythmic gymnastics World Challenge Cup in Kazan at the end of the 2019 summer was another stop where Dina and Arina Averina showed why they were the gymnasts to beat. Competing in Russia, the twins dominated the individual competition. The group events told a different story: Bulgaria's group took a title and stopped a complete Russian sweep.
The World Cup circuit
The rhythmic World Cup and World Challenge Cup events run through the season, giving gymnasts regular international competition between championships. They are important for rankings and for testing new routines in front of international judges.
The Averinas at home
For the Averinas, Kazan was home ground in the broader sense. Russian events offered large, enthusiastic crowds, and the twins rarely disappointed them. Their consistency on all four apparatus made them nearly unbeatable in this period.
Bulgaria's group tradition
Bulgaria is one of the great rhythmic gymnastics nations. Its senior group has a long history of World and European medals and went on to win Olympic gold in Tokyo in 2021, a result that surprised many observers but made perfect sense to anyone who had followed the group's progress. A title in Kazan was part of that build-up.
Why the result still matters
- Bulgaria's group showed it could beat Russia on Russian soil. - The Averinas' dominance reflected the depth of Russian rhythmic gymnastics at the time. - World Cup results often hint at which routines will succeed at the next championships.
Looking back
In hindsight, the Kazan results help explain the Tokyo group final. Bulgaria's success there was not a one-off; it grew from years of strong results on the World Cup circuit.
See the Rhythmic Gymnastics page and our rhythmic apparatus guide.
