Darja Wladimirowna Kondakowa ( Russian Дарья Владимировна Кондакова ; born July 30, 1991 in Sochi , Soviet Union ) is a former Russian rhythmic gymnast . Her greatest successes include two gold (team, rope) and three silver medals at the 2010 World Gymnastics Championships in Moscow (all-around, hoop and ribbon) and one at the 2010 European Championships. She is best known for her elegance, especially with the Band, and has an advertising contract with the Swiss watch manufacturer Longines .
Athletic career
Kondakova started rhythmic gymnastics in her hometown of Sochi. From there she moved to Dmitrov near Moscow in 2005 . In 2006, at the age of 15, she won the international junior championship with an exercise on tape, which was her first international success. In 2009 she became Russian champion on tape and won the gold medal with the Russian team in the team competition of the World Cup in the same year. This was her greatest success up to the 2010 World Cup, when she finally established herself in the front row of Russian top gymnasts. At the 2011 World Championships, she won the silver medal in all individual devices, always behind her teammate Yevgenia Kanajewa, who was then dominant in the gymnastics world . At the height of her career, Kondakova was considered the second best gymnast in the world. In 2012 she had to take a longer break due to a knee injury and therefore did not take part in the Olympic Games. At the beginning of 2013 she announced her final retirement from her active sports career due to her injury.
Russia
