Azerbaijan is now amongst the top countries for individual and group rhythmic gymnastics. The development of the sport particularly boosted after Mehriban Aliyeva became the President of the Azerbaijan Gymnastics Federation in 2002. In 2007, Mariana Vasileva who was a former Bulgarian rhythmic gymnast and a coach in Levski club in Sofia came to Azerbaijan to coach Azerbaijani gymnasts. Since 2009, Vasileva has been appointed as head coach of the Azerbaijan Rhythmic Gymnastics Federation. Notable rhythmic gymnasts include 2011 World All-Around bronze medalist Aliya Garayeva, Anna Gurbanova, Dinara Gimatova, Zeynab Javadli, Lala Yusifova, Marina Durunda, Zhala Piriyeva, Elif Zeynep Celep, Ayshan Bayramova and Zohra Aghamirova. Azerbaijan competes at the European Championships, even though it is geographically located at the crossroads of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. Azerbaijan hosted a number of large competitions, including 2005 World Rhythmic Gymnastics Championships, 2007 Rhythmic Gymnastics European Championships, 2009 Rhythmic Gymnastics European Championships, 2014 Rhythmic Gymnastics European Championships, and 2019 World Rhythmic Gymnastics Championships.