Lala Yusifova (, born 16 October 1996) is an Azerbaijani

rhythmic gymnast Rhythmic gymnastics is a sport in which gymnasts perform individually or in groups on a floor with an apparatus: hoop, ball, clubs, ribbon and rope. The sport combines elements of gymnastics, dance and calisthenics; gymnasts must be strong, fle ...

currently competing for

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...

Career

Junior

Yusifova began competing in as a junior in international competition in 2009. She won the silver medal in ball at the 2010 European Junior Championships and briefly competed as a member of the Azerbaijani group who won the bronze medal 2011 European Junior Championships in

Minsk Minsk (, ; , ) is the capital and largest city of Belarus, located on the Svislach (Berezina), Svislach and the now subterranean Nyamiha, Niamiha rivers. As the capital, Minsk has a special administrative status in Belarus and is the administra ...

Senior

Yusifova debuted as a full senior in 2012. In the absence of most veteran rhythmic gymnasts competing in the Grand Prix series after the

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012, were an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

, she was able to compete at the 2012 Grand Prix Final in

Brno Brno ( , ; ) is a Statutory city (Czech Republic), city in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. Located at the confluence of the Svitava (river), Svitava and Svratka (river), Svratka rivers, Brno has about 403,000 inhabitants, making ...

. There, she won silver medals in ribbon and clubs behind the reigning Olympic silver medalist Daria Dmitrieva. In 2013, at the 2013 Miss Valentine Cup in

Tartu Tartu is the second largest city in Estonia after Tallinn. Tartu has a population of 97,759 (as of 2024). It is southeast of Tallinn and 245 kilometres (152 miles) northeast of Riga, Latvia. Tartu lies on the Emajõgi river, which connects the ...

, Estonia, Yusifova won the bronze medal in hoop, and she won another at the 2013 Irina Deleanu Cup. She competed at the 2013 European Championships in

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

, Austria where she and teammate Marina Durunda represented Azerbaijan and finished 4th in the team event. She qualified to the clubs final and finished 7th at the final. At the 2013 Azerbaijan National Championships, she won the silver medal behind champion Marina Durunda. At the 2013 World Cup Final in

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

, Russia, she finished 8th in the all-around and qualified for the ball final, where she finished 8th. Yusifova tied for 13th place with

Jana Berezko-Marggrander Jana Berezko-Marggrander (, born 17 October 1995 in Tolyatti, Samara Oblast, Russia) is a German retired individual rhythmic gymnast. She is the 2010 Youth Olympic all-around bronze medalist. Career Junior Berezko-Marggrander moved to Germ ...

in the all-around at the 2013 World Championships. She competed at the 2013 Grand Prix Brno and finished 9th in the all-around, then at the 2013 Grand Prix Final in

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

, where she finished 6th in all-around. She qualified to four event finals and won bronze in clubs. At the 2013 Aeon Cup in

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

, Yusifova finished 5th in the team event and 6th in the all-around finals. In 2014, Yusifova missed the early season due to a shoulder injury. In April, she returned to competition at the 2014 Azerbaijan National Championships, where she won the all-around silver medal behind reigning national champion Marina Durunda. Yusifova competed in her first international event of the season at the 2014 Corbeil-Essonnes World Cup and finished 16th in the all-around. She qualified to the ball event final and finished 6th. Shortly after her brief return, Yusifova announced her retirement on September 3.

Comeback

In October 2024, she announced on her social media that she was returning to competitive

rhythmic gymnastics Rhythmic gymnastics is a sport in which gymnasts perform individually or in groups on a floor with an apparatus: hoop (rhythmic gymnastics), hoop, ball (rhythmic gymnastics), ball, Clubs (rhythmic gymnastics), clubs, ribbon (rhythmic gymnastics), ...

. In 2025, she represented

at the international tournament Miss Valentine in

, Estonia. She took 17th place in hoop and 19th place in clubs.

Personal life

Yusifova is a mother of two children - a boy and a girl. She is currently living in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

and coaching at London Sport Academy Putney Ltd. In 2024, she opened her own club for rhythmic gymnastics - Lala Yusifova Gymnastics Academy.

Routine music information

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Yusifova, Lala 1996 births Living people Azerbaijani emigrants to England Azerbaijani rhythmic gymnasts Gymnasts from Baku British rhythmic gymnasts