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As mentor to Elizabet Paisiyeva, Stela Salapatiyska has rebounded from a painful past
ONCE upon a time, the Bulgarian rhythmic gymnasts stunned the world with their brilliance, earning public adoration along with world titles. Forever known as the "Golden Girls of Bulgaria," legendary champions Lilia Ignatova, Deliana Georgieva, Iliana Raeva, and Anelia Ralenkova are national heroes to this day.
The 1990s brought political and economic change to Bulgaria, but the harsh methods used to push the gymnasts toward perfection remained. National team member Stela Salapatiyska of Plovdiv experienced that system firsthand, but when she stood up against it, her promising career was cut short.
On the eve of the 1997 World Championships in Berlin, Salapatiyska and teammate Maria Gateva had a falling out with head coach Neshka Robeva. Both were suspended from competition for two years. Even with the help of a new coach, Salapatiyska had lost all hope of competing. She chose to retire and enroll at the National Sports Academy in Sofia.
"I retired because of the conflict we had with Neshka," Salapatiyska says. "I couldn't survive Robeva's methods of coaching. "
Berlin was the second major setback for Salapatiyska, who did not make the '96 Olympic team despite her fifth-place finish at the '96 Europeans. Instead, Diana Popova, who finished seventh, was selected to compete in Atlanta.
Despite the disappointment of an unfulfilled career, Salapatiyska...