Olga Strazheva (USSR)
1988 USSR Cup AA Champion
1989 World AA
Bronze Medalist
Medal Total
Olga was born on November 12, 1972 in Zaporozhie, Ukrainian SSR. She was coached by Viktoria and Alexander Zaruba at Profsoyuz Zaporozhie. Her first international competition was the European junior championship in 1986. The all-around silver medal she won (along with two more individual event medals) were the first of many. She didn't compete at the 1987 world championship due to an injury and was looking forward to vying for medals at the 1988 Seoul Olympics. Unfortunately, she injured her knee on balance beam during the team optionals, but she won a gold medal in the team classification. When her coaches took a job in France in 1990, she trained with Oleg Mischenko (Svetlana Baitova's coach) for a while.
After leaving competitive gymnastics, Olga performed with a German circus for several years, then returned to Ukraine where she currently works as an associate professor in the Physical Education department of the Classic Private University in her hometown. She's divorced and has a daughter, Anna, who was a rhythmic gymnast.
1985
All-Union Youth Games: 1st Team, 2nd AA (Candidate for Master)
Jr. USSR Championships: 1st Team, 2nd AA, 1st FX
1990
Dutch Open: 15th AA
USSR Cup: 18th AA