# Soviet Union women's national artistic gymnastics team

The Soviet Union women's national artistic gymnastics team represented the Soviet Union in FIG international competitions. They were the dominant force in the sport from the 1950s until the Soviet Union's collapse. They lead the medal tally for women's artistic gymnastics with 88 medals including 33 gold. Larisa Latynina is also the most decorated female athlete at the Olympic games with a total of 18 medals. Soviet dominance was unprecedented in scale and longevity and was likely the result of the country's heavy investment in mass and elite sports to fulfill its political agenda.

## History

The Soviet Union won the team gold medal at the 1952 Summer Olympics – the first Olympics that the Soviet Union participated in, and they won the team gold for the next seven games. The winning streak was interrupted by the boycott of the 1984 Summer Olympics, but they won gold at the 1988 Summer Olympics – the last Olympics that the Soviet Union participated in. The Unified Team won the team gold at the 1992 Summer Olympics. The Soviet Union won team gold at every World Championships that they competed in (1954–1991) except 1966, 1979, and 1987 where they won silver.

## Team competition results
### Olympic Games

* 1952 — gold medal
    Nina Bocharova, Pelageya Danilova, Maria Gorokhovskaya, Medea Jugeli, Ekaterina Kalinchuk, Galina Minaicheva, Galina Shamrai, Galina Urbanovich
* 1956 — gold medal
    Polina Astakhova, Lidiya Ivanova, Larisa Latynina, Tamara Manina, Sofia Muratova, Lyudmila Yegorova
* 1960 — gold medal
    Polina Astakhova, Lidiya Ivanova, Larisa Latynina, Sofia Muratova, Margarita Nikolaeva, Tamara Zamotaylova
* 1964 — gold medal
    Polina Astakhova, Lyudmila Gromova, Larisa Latynina, Tamara Manina, Yelena Volchetskaya, Tamara Zamotaylova
* 1968 — gold medal
    Lyubov Burda, Olga Karasyova, Natalia Kuchinskaya, Larisa Petrik, Ludmilla Tourischeva, Zinaida Voronina
* 1972 — gold medal
    Lyubov Burda, Olga Korbut, Antonina Koshel, Tamara Lazakovich, Elvira Saadi, Ludmilla Tourischeva
* 1976 — gold medal
    Maria Filatova, Svetlana Grozdova, Nellie Kim, Olga Korbut, Elvira Saadi, Ludmilla Tourischeva
* 1980 — gold medal
    Yelena Davydova, Maria Filatova, Nellie Kim, Yelena Naimushina, Natalia Shaposhnikova, Stella Zakharova
* 1984 — did not participate due to boycott
* 1988 — gold medal
    Svetlana Baitova, Svetlana Boginskaya, Natalia Lashchenova, Yelena Shevchenko, Yelena Shushunova, Olga Strazheva
* 1992 — gold medal – participated as the Unified Team
    Svetlana Boginskaya, Oksana Chusovitina, Rozalia Galiyeva, Elena Grudneva, Tatiana Gutsu, Tatiana Lysenko

### World Championships

* 1934 — did not participate
* 1938 — did not participate
* 1950 — did not participate
* 1954 — gold medal
    Nina Bocharova, Pelageya Danilova, Maria Gorokhovskaya, Larisa Diriy, Tamara Manina, Sofia Muratova, Galina Rud'ko, Galina Sarabidze
* 1958 — gold medal
    Polina Astakhova, Raisa Borisova, Lidiya Kalinina, Larisa Latynina, Tamara Manina, Sofia Muratova
* 1962 — gold medal
    Polina Astakhova, Lidiya Ivanova, Larisa Latynina, Tamara Manina, Sofia Muratova, Irina Pervuschina
* 1966 — silver medal
    Polina Astakhova, Zinaida Druzhinina, Olga Karaseva, Natalia Kuchinskaya, Larisa Latynina, Larisa Petrik
* 1970 — gold medal
    Lyubov Burda, Olga Karaseva, Tamara Lazakovich, Larisa Petrik, Ludmilla Tourischeva, Zinaida Voronina
* 1974 — gold medal
    Nina Dronova, Nellie Kim, Olga Korbut, Elvira Saadi, Rusudan Sikharulidze, Ludmilla Tourischeva
* 1978 — gold medal
    Svetlana Agapova, Tatiana Arzhannikova, Maria Filatova, Nellie Kim, Elena Mukhina, Natalia Shaposhnikova
* 1979 — silver medal
    Maria Filatova, Nellie Kim, Elena Naimushina, Natalia Shaposhnikova, Natalia Tereschenko, Stella Zakharova
* 1981 — gold medal
    Olga Bicherova, Elena Davydova, Maria Filatova, Natalia Ilienko, Elena Polevaya, Stella Zakharova
* 1983 — gold medal
    Olga Bicherova, Tatiana Frolova, Natalia Ilienko, Olga Mostepanova, Albina Shishova, Natalia Yurchenko
* 1985 — gold medal
    Irina Baraksanova, Vera Kolesnikova, Olga Mostepanova, Oksana Omelianchik, Yelena Shushunova, Natalia Yurchenko
* 1987 — silver medal
    Svetlana Baitova, Svetlana Boginskaya, Elena Gurova, Oksana Omelianchik, Yelena Shushunova, Tatiana Tuzhikova
* 1989 — gold medal
    Svetlana Baitova, Svetlana Boginskaya, Olesia Dudnik, Natalia Laschenova, Elena Sazonenkova, Olga Strazheva
* 1991 — gold medal
    Svetlana Boginskaya, Oksana Chusovitina, Rozalia Galiyeva, Tatiana Gutsu, Natalia Kalinina, Tatiana Lysenko

## Most decorated gymnasts

This list includes all Soviet female artistic gymnasts who have won at least four medals at the Olympic Games and the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships combined. This list does include medals won as the Unified Team at the Olympics and the Commonwealth of Independent States in 1992 but does not includes medals won under the flag of an independent nation after the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Also not included are medals won at the 1984 Friendship Games (alternative Olympics).
Additionally medals won in the Team Portable Apparatus at the 1952 or 1956 Olympic Games are located under the Team column and are designated with an asterisk (*).
| Rank | Gymnast | Years | Team | AA | VT | UB | BB | FX | Olympic Total | World Total | Total |
| 1 | Larisa Latynina | 1954–1966 | 1956 1960 1964 1956* 1954 1958 1962 1966 | 1956 1960 1964 1958 1962 | 1956 1964 1960 1958 1962 | 1956 1960 1964 1958 1962 | 1964 1960 1958 1962 | 1956 1960 1964 1962 1958 | 18 | 14 | 32 |
| 2 | Ludmilla Tourischeva | 1968–1976 | 1968 1972 1976 1970 1974 | 1972 1976 1970 1974 | 1976 1972 1974 1970 | 1970 1974 | 1974 | 1972 1976 1970 1974 | 9 | 11 | 20 |
| 3 | Nellie Kim | 1974–1979 | 1976 1980 1974 1978 1979 | 1976 1979 1978 | 1976 1978 1979 | | 1979 1974 | 1976 1980 1978 1979 | 6 | 11 | 17 |
| 4 | Yelena Shushunova | 1985–1988 | 1988 1985 1987 | 1988 1985 1987 | 1985 1987 | 1988 1987 | 1988 1987 1985 | 1987 1985 | 4 | 11 | 15 |
| 5 | Svetlana Boginskaya | 1987–1992 | 1988 1992 1989 1991 1987 | 1988 1989 1991 | 1988 1992 | | 1991 1987 | 1988 1989 | 5 | 9 | 14 |
| 6 | Tamara Manina | 1954–1964 | 1956 1964 1956* 1954 1958 1962 | 1958 | 1956 1954 1958 1962 | | 1956 1964 | 1954 | 6 | 8 | 14 |
| 7 | Polina Astakhova | 1956–1964 | 1956 1960 1964 1956* 1958 1962 1966 | 1960 1964 | | 1960 1964 1958 | | 1960 1964 | 10 | 4 | 14 |
| 8 | Sofia Muratova | 1954–1962 | 1956 1960 1956* 1954 1958 1962 | 1960 1956 | 1960 1958 | 1956 | 1960 1958 | | 8 | 5 | 13 |
| 9 | Olga Korbut | 1972–1976 | 1972 1976 1974 | 1974 | 1974 | 1972 1974 | 1972 1976 1974 | 1972 1974 | 5 | 7 | 12 |
| 10 | Natalia Kuchinskaya | 1966–1968 | 1968 1966 | 1968 1966 | 1966 | 1966 | 1968 1966 | 1968 1966 | 4 | 6 | 10 |
| 11 | Zinaida Voronina | 1966–1970 | 1968 1970 1966 | 1968 1970 | 1968 | 1968 1966 1970 | | 1970 | 4 | 6 | 10 |
| 12 | Maria Gorokhovskaya | 1952–1954 | 1952 1952* 1954 | 1952 | 1952 | 1952 | 1952 | 1952 1954 | 7 | 2 | 9 |
| 13 | Maria Filatova | 1976–1981 | 1976 1980 1978 1981 1979 | 1981 | | 1980 | | | 3 | 4 | 7 |
| 14 | Tatiana Gutsu | 1991–1992 | 1992 1991 | 1992 | | 1992 1991 | 1991 | 1992 | 4 | 3 | 7 |
| 15 | Yelena Davydova | 1980–1981 | 1980 1981 | 1980 1981 | | 1981 | 1980 | 1981 | 3 | 4 | 7 |
| 16 | Larisa Petrik | 1966–1970 | 1968 1970 1966 | | | | 1968 1966 1970 | 1968 | 3 | 4 | 7 |
| 16 | Natalia Shaposhnikova | 1978–1980 | 1980 1978 1979 | 1978 | 1980 | | 1980 | 1980 | 4 | 3 | 7 |
| 18 | Lidiya Ivanova | 1956–1962 | 1956 1960 1956* 1958 1962 | | 1958 | | | | 3 | 3 | 6 |
| 19 | Nina Bocharova | 1952–1954 | 1952 1952* 1954 | 1952 | | | 1952 | | 4 | 1 | 5 |
| 19 | Olga Mostepanova | 1983–1985 | 1983 1985 | 1983 | | | 1983 | 1983 | 0 | 5 | 5 |
| 19 | Elena Mukhina | 1978 | 1978 | 1978 | | 1978 | 1978 | 1978 | 0 | 5 | 5 |
| 19 | Galina Shamrai | 1952–1954 | 1952 1952* 1954 | 1954 | | 1954 | | | 2 | 3 | 5 |
| 23 | Oksana Chusovitina | 1991–1992 | 1992 1991 | | 1991 1992 | | | 1991 | 1 | 4 | 5 |
| 24 | Tatiana Lysenko | 1991–1992 | 1992 1991 | | 1992 | | 1992 | 1992 | 3 | 2 | 5 |
| 25 | Stella Zakharova | 1979–1981 | 1980 1981 1979 | | 1979 1981 | | | | 1 | 4 | 5 |
| 26 | Tamara Lazakovich | 1970–1972 | 1972 1970 | 1972 | | | 1972 | 1972 | 4 | 1 | 5 |
| 27 | Oksana Omelianchik | 1985–1987 | 1985 | 1985 | 1987 | | | 1985 | 0 | 4 | 4 |
| 28 | Lyubov Burda | 1968–1970 | 1968 1972 1970 | | 1970 | | | | 2 | 2 | 4 |
| 29 | Olga Karasyova | 1966–1970 | 1968 1970 1966 | | | | | 1970 | 2 | 2 | 4 |
| 30 | Galina Minaicheva | 1952–1954 | 1952 1952* 1954 | | 1952 | | | | 3 | 1 | 4 |
| 30 | Irina Pervushina | 1962 | 1962 | 1962 | | 1962 | | 1962 | 0 | 4 | 4 |
| 32 | Olga Strazheva | 1988–1989 | 1988 1989 | 1989 | | 1989 | | | 1 | 3 | 4 |
| 32 | Tamara Zamotaylova | 1960–1964 | 1960 1964 | | | 1960 | | 1960 | 4 | 0 | 4 |