Mariana Vasileva, who was removed from her post as deputy minister of youth and sports last year, has been appointed to a new position. According to Gununsesi.info, Vasileva has been named executive director of the Azerbaijan Athletics Federation by the federation’s president, Javid Gurbanov.
Before being appointed deputy minister in 2021, Vasileva served as head coach of the Azerbaijan Gymnastics Federation, which First Vice-President Mehriban Aliyeva heads.
In December 2024, a report by the Gymnastics Ethics Foundation’s Disciplinary Commission Panel revealed allegations of abuse by Vasileva against Azerbaijani gymnasts.
The Gymnastics Ethics Foundation, while investigating complaints received in 2020, concluded that former head coach Mariana Vasileva had beaten athletes over weight gain, verbally abused them and forced gymnasts to continue training even when they were unwell.
There were also allegations that Vasileva had misappropriated athletes’ prize money and financial rewards. By the time the investigation’s findings were published, she was no longer serving as head coach. Vasileva had spent three years as Azerbaijan’s deputy minister of youth and sports. Several weeks after the report was released, she was removed from her position.
As a result of the violations attributed to Vasileva, the Azerbaijan Gymnastics Federation was banned from participating in international events for six months. Vasileva herself was barred from involvement in International Gymnastics Federation activities and international competitions for eight years.
She was also prohibited from becoming head coach of any federation affiliated with the International Gymnastics Federation for the rest of her life. The sanctions stated that the honorary coach diploma awarded to Vasileva by the International Gymnastics Federation in 2019 would also be revoked.
Although the alleged abuse took place during Vasileva’s tenure as a coach at the Gymnastics Federation, she continued to receive support from Mehriban Aliyeva. The report stated that complaints submitted to the leadership of the Azerbaijan Gymnastics Federation regarding physical and psychological abuse of gymnasts had gone unanswered.