Home Uncategorized When 17-year-old Ukrainian gymnast Viktoriia Onopriienko stepped onto the Olympic floor at Tokyo 2020, it felt like the air changed. This wasn’t just another routine—it was a full-blown spectacle. Dancing like Michael Jackson had taken over her body, she moved with unreal smoothness, then casually pulled out football tricks so wild they left people rubbing their eyes. The ball stayed glued to her leg as she cartwheeled in place, flew into the air mid-flip, and somehow landed right back on her body without her even looking. Every move bent her body in ways that seem physically impossible, the kind that would send most people straight to the hospital.

When 17-year-old Ukrainian gymnast Viktoriia Onopriienko stepped onto the Olympic floor at Tokyo 2020, it felt like the air changed. This wasn’t just another routine—it was a full-blown spectacle. Dancing like Michael Jackson had taken over her body, she moved with unreal smoothness, then casually pulled out football tricks so wild they left people rubbing their eyes. The ball stayed glued to her leg as she cartwheeled in place, flew into the air mid-flip, and somehow landed right back on her body without her even looking. Every move bent her body in ways that seem physically impossible, the kind that would send most people straight to the hospital.

Uncategorized · February 10, 2026 · comments off

Viktoriia Onopriienko Ball AA - Grand-Prix "Deriugina Cup 2020" - YouTube

When 17-year-old rhythmic gymnast Victoriia Onopriienko made her Olympic debut at the 2020 Tokyo Games, she dazzled the crowd with a routine set to Michael Jackson’s “Smooth Criminal” – whilst unlocking a mind-melting new football challenge in the process!

Viktoria Onoprienko ball 2020 || music for rhythmic gymnastics

Music Man readers can dive into Viktoriia’s wonderfully unusual performance in the video below. It’s already wowed over 80,000 viewers to date!

So what makes Viktoriia’s routine stand out amongst the leagues of legendary Olympic competitors? This Ukrainian star was not only the youngest individual rhythmic gymnast to enter the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, but she performed her entire routine with a red, football-sized ball, pulling off unusual tricks that could put even David Beckham to shame.

From the first glance of her starting position, doubled-up over backwards on a ballet-pointed toe, with her right leg stretched over 90° in the air, it’s clear that Viktoriia’s routine is about to blow all others out of the water. Soon, she lets the red ball fly high above her, catching it between her shoulder blades as MJ’s music blasts from the speakers, throwing it again in the midst of a graceful front flip and catching it with the base of her back.

But that’s just a warm-up to what is yet to come! With superhuman control, Viktoriia cartwheels on the spot, keeping the red ball locked beneath one leg, catching her next throw between her back-bent elbows, then under her knees, all whilst dancing along to the Jackson hit.

With mind-boggling flexibility, the teen star lets the ball roll across her torso in the midst of another cartwheel-like move, before launching it yet again and catching it during a spin that serves pure optical illusion energy. Viktoriia even manages to catch the ball once more whilst being bent over backwards, without her eyes being locked on the ball.

It seems an unusual prop to use, especially to us non-sporty individuals accustomed only to bog-standard gymnast routines. Yet Viktoriia (literally) doesn’t drop the ball once, maintaining absolute control whilst pulling off a dance-laced performance that would break most people’s spines.

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