Natalia Godunko

Natalia Oleksandrivna Godunko (Ukrainian: Наталія Олександрівна Годунко; Russian: Наталья Александровна Годунко, born 5 December 1984) is a Ukrainian former rhythmic gymnast. She is the 2001 team all-around world champion, 2005 European ribbon champion and the 2004 Grand Prix Final all-around champion.

Natalia Godunko
Personal information
Full name	Natalia Oleksandrivna Godunko
Alternative name(s)	Nataliia Godunko Nataliya Hodunko
Country represented	Ukraine
Born	(1984-12-05) 5 December 1984 Kiev, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union
Discipline	Rhythmic gymnastics
Level	Senior elite
Years on national team	1998–2010
Club	Deriugins School
Head coach(es)	Albina Deriugina
Assistant coach(es)	Irina Deriugina
Retired	2010
Medal record Rhythmic gymnastics Representing Ukraine World Championships 2001 Madrid Team 2002 New Orleans 5 ribbons 2003 Budapest Team 2005 Baku Team 2005 Baku Ribbon European Championships 2005 Moscow Ribbon 2001 Geneva 5 clubs 2002 Granada Team 2004 Kyiv Team 2005 Moscow Team 2007 Baku Team European Team Championships 2003 Moscow Team World Cup Final 2006 Mie Rope 2006 Mie Ribbon 2006 Mie Clubs 2008 Benidorm Hoop Grand Prix Final 2004 Deventer All-around 2004 Deventer Ball 2004 Deventer Ribbon 2005 Berlin Ribbon 2003 Innsbruck Ribbon 2004 Deventer Clubs 2004 Deventer Hoop 2003 Innsbruck All-around 2003 Innsbruck Clubs 2005 Berlin Rope 2006 Berlin Ball 2006 Berlin Clubs 2006 Berlin Ribbon World Games 2005 Duisburg Ribbon 2005 Duisburg Rope 2005 Duisburg Clubs Summer Universiade 2005 Izmir Ribbon 2005 Izmir Ball 2005 Izmir Clubs 2005 Izmir Rope 2007 Bangkok Ball 2005 Izmir All-around 2007 Bangkok Rope

Personal life

Godunko was born in Kyiv, in the Ukrainian SSR of the Soviet Union (in present-day Ukraine).

Godunko online auctioned her Team All-Around gold medal won in the 2001 World Rhythmic Gymnastics Championships to support the Ukrainian army who at the time was fighting a war in Donbass.

Career

Junior

Godunko started training in rhythmic gymnastics in 1990 at age six. She trained in Kyiv under the mother/daughter coaching team of Albina and Irina Deriugina. Her coaches did not notice her for a while—she was not tall with long legs, which was preferred by the Deriugins School—but her speed and technique with apparatus and on elements eventually attracted their attention.

In 1998, Godunko became a member of the Ukrainian national team and competed as a junior at the World Youth Games in Moscow, placing sixth.

Senior

As a senior, Godunko competed as part of the Ukrainian group for several years, as well as occasionally competing in individual events with little success. With the Ukrainian group, she won the 2001 World Championship team all-around and the five ribbons gold medal at the 2002 World Championships. She was the third-ranked gymnast in Ukraine for a while. She began her breakthrough at the 2002 Ukrainian Nationals, winning bronze in all-round and all gold medals in the finals. In 2003, she competed in ball at her first Grand Prix, the Deriugina Cup, and then competed in hoop and ribbon at the Holon Grand Prix and in ribbon at the Berlin Grand Prix. She won the bronze all-around medal at the 2003 Grand Prix Final in Innsbruck, Austria.

At the 2004 Athens Olympics, Godunko qualified in fourth with a score of 102.750. In the final, she scored: ribbon 26.125, clubs 26.375, ball 25.800, hoop 25.500, and finished fifth overall behind Kazakh gymnast Aliya Yussupova. She won the 2004 Grand Prix Final in all-around and won two more gold medals in ball and ribbon.

In 2005, Godunko was a rival to Anna Bessonova for the position of Ukraine's top gymnast. In front of a home audience, Godunko won the Deriugina Cup title. She was the only Ukrainian to win a gold medal, in ribbon, at the 2005 European Championships. At the 2005 World Championships, Godunko won team silver and ribbon bronze.

In 2006, Godunko won gold in rope, silver in ribbon and bronze in clubs at the Mie World Cup. She won bronze in hoop at the Benidorm World Cup. At the Berlin Grand Prix she won bronzes in ball, clubs and ribbon.

In 2007, she won team silver at the European Championships, as well as ball silver and rope bronze at the Summer Universiade.

At the 2008 Summer Olympics, Godunko finished seventh in the all-around finals with an overall score of 68.850 points.

She briefly returned to competition in 2010, competing at the 2010 World Championships where she finished 18th all-around.

Routine music information

Year	Apparatus	Music title
2010	Hoop	Smooth Criminal music from Encore! by David Garrett
	Rope	Hot Fuji music from The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift by Brian Tyler
	Ball	Palladio music from Escala by Escala
	Ribbon	"Grand Guignol" from Mar dulce by Bajofondo
2008	Hoop	Night on Bald Mountain by Modest Mussorgsky
	Rope	Gopak (Ukrainian traditional)
	Clubs	"L'estate" (Summer) 3. Presto music from The Four Seasons Concerto No. 2 in G minor, Op. 8, RV 315 by Vivaldi
	Ribbon	Tsyganochka
2007	Hoop	Night on Bald Mountain by Modest Mussorgsky
	Rope	Act 1 finale Death of Giselle, Love Scene music from Giselle by Adolphe Adam
	Clubs	Better Have Some Ky / Dazzle Me / You Can Save Her music from Déjà Vu by Harry Gregson-Williams
	Ribbon	Beirut Taxi music from Syriana by Alexandre Desplat
2006	Ball (second)	Santa Maria (Del Buen Ayre) by Gotan project
	Ball (first)	Attack music from Pearl Harbor by Hans Zimmer
	Rope	Act 1 finale Death of Giselle, Love Scene music from Giselle by Adolphe Adam
	Clubs	Gopak (Ukrainian traditional)
	Ribbon	Night Borders / Camel Race / Main Theme music from The Mummy by Jerry Goldsmith
2005	Ball	Taped Evidence / Cat and Mouse music from Paparazzi by Brian Tyler
	Rope	La Goutte D'Or by Saint Germain
	Clubs	Gopak (Ukrainian traditional)
	Ribbon	Bumble Bee Boogie by Robert Wells
2004	Hoop	Suite No. 2: Entrance of the Merchants – Dance of a Roman Courtesan – General Dance music from Spartacus Suite by Aram Khachaturian
	Ball	Technologicque Park by Orbital
	Clubs	Tetsujin music from The Matrix Revolutions by Juno Reactor and Don Davis
	Ribbon	Bumble Bee Boogie by Robert Wells
2003	Hoop	Session / Zion / Mona Lisa Overdrive music from The Matrix Reloaded by Linkin Park / Fluke / Don Davis & Juno Reactor
	Ball	Ruby Rap / The Diva Dance music from The Fifth Element by Éric Serra
	Clubs	Movement X music from Mythodea by Vangelis
	Ribbon	Bumble Bee Boogie by Robert Wells
2002	Hoop	Revisiting The Race, The Race music from The Skulls by Randy Edelman
	Rope	Sing! Sing! Sing! (Part 1) / Sing! Sing! Sing! (Part 2) by Bob Fosse
	Clubs	Movement X music from Mythodea by Vangelis
	Ball	Heat Miser by Massive Attack

Detailed Olympic results

Year	Competition Description	Location	Music	Apparatus	Score-Final	Score-Qualifying
2008	Olympics	Beijing		All-around	68.850	69.400
			Night On Bald Mountain by Modest Moussorgsky	Hoop	17.500	17.375
			Hopak – Ukrainian Folk	Rope	16.700	17.500
			"L'estate" (Summer) 3. Presto by Vivaldi	Clubs	17.525	17.650
			Tsiganochka / Gypsy Girl	Ribbon	17.125	16.875

Year	Competition Description	Location	Music	Apparatus	Score-Final	Score-Qualifying
2004	Olympics	Athens		All-around	103.800	102.750
			Technologicque Park by Orbital	Ball	25.800	25.900
			Spartacus Suite by Aram Khachaturian	Hoop	25.500	25.975
			Tetsujin music from Matrix Revolutions by Juno Reactor & Don Davis	Clubs	26.375	26.075
			Bumble Bee Boogie by Robert Wells	Ribbon	26.125	24.800

External links

• Nataliia Godunko at the International Gymnastics Federation
• Natalia Godunko at Olympics.com
• Nataliya Hodunko at Olympedia