Career
That same year she placed second overall in the Junior Union of the Soviet Socialist Republics Championships. She was a consistently strong competitor through 1977-1978, winning several vaulting and floor exercise event titles. A powerful tumbler, Zakharova was the first woman to incorporate three double-back somersaults into her floor routine.
lieutenant was the first time the Soviets had failed to beat their Romanian rivals in a major team competition.
In 1980 Zakharova continued to enjoy success, winning the gold medal with her Soviet teammates at the Olympic games and capturing a second all-around title at the World Cup. That proved to be her high-water mark, as her performances began to decline from 1981 onward.
After retirement, Stella Zakharova married Dynamo Kiev football player Viktor Khlus. Zakharova"s home country Ukraine hosts an annual Stella Zakharova Cup competition in artistic gymnastics, named in her honor.
Footage of Stella Zakharova training with the Soviet national team was captured in a 1978 Soviet Gymnastics training documentary.
Zakharova appears about one minute into the clip. Included in the film are teammates Elena Mukhina, Natalia Shaposhnikova and Maria Filatova.
