Two-time world champion Aleksandr Maltsev announced via Instagram that Maya Gurbanberdieva would be his new partner for the mixed duet events for the 2018 season, representing the Russian Federation.

Gurbanberdieva has had a stellar junior career, and was a member of the national team for three years. She won two gold medals in the team and combo events at the 2015 European Games in Baku, Azerbaijan, as well as at the 2016 FINA Jr. World Championships in Kazan, Russia, and the 2016 Jr. European Championships in Rijeka, Croatia. In 2017, she was part of the team that won gold at the Jr. European Championships in Belgrade, Serbia, and silver at the European Cup in Cuneo, Italy.

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Знакомьтесь, моя новая партнёрша Майя Гурбанбердиева – двукратная чемпионка мира и четырехкратная чемпионка Европы среди юниоров, двукратная чемпионка Европейских игр. Впереди – чемпионат Европы-2018! 🇷🇺 New Russian mixed duet – Aleksandr Maltsev/Maya Gurbanberdieva. #artisticswimming #mixedduet #russianteam #AleksandrMaltsev #MayaGurbanberdieva

A post shared by Aleksandr Maltsev | А. Мальцев (@a.maltsev_synchro) on Nov 28, 2017 at 10:06am PST

Maltsev was previously with Michaela Kalancha during the 2016 and 2017 seasons. The pair won two gold medals at the 2016 European Championships in London, and most recently won a gold and a silver medal at the 2017 World Championships in the free and technical events, respectively.

Maltsev and Gurbanberdieva are preparing for the 2018 European Championships to be held in Glasgow, Scotland.

Article by Christina Marmet.