CONVERSE, Texas — While the Olympics continue in Tokyo, young gymnasts from the San Antonio area and beyond are learning from past Olympians with hopes of one day reaching the pinnacle of their sport.
The San Antonio Gymnastics Academy held its clinic at the River City Gymnastics center in Converse, TX.
Kids who started gymnastics at ages as young as 6 years old like Austin Valencia attended the weekend clinic in its seventh year.
“It just helps us get better and work harder,” Valencia said.
Valencia’s mother Victoria says she is grateful for the experience her son’s coaches bring to the table.
“Watching how far the boys have come, it’s just amazing the different skills they’ve attained,” she said.
Coaches say they are teaching the fundamentals to the kids so they can go on to become champions. Coaches included Sean Townsend, a 2001 World Champion who represented the US at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney.
Others who made an appearance included Vladimir Artemov, a six-time world champion and 4-time Olympic champion who competed at the 1988 games in Seoul. Ivan Ivankov represented Belarus twice and was a two-time world all-around champion. Maxim Buryaks, a Ukrainian national team member was also present.
Bruce Kowal, originally from Chicago, was a gymnast in high school. His head coach, Mike Harris, was the assistant head coach of Team USA at the time. Townsend, from Dallas, was on that team.
“I feel like it’s full circle coming around,” Townsend said.
“I had a lot of people in my life that helped me do gymnastics when I was a little boy. And I want to give back all of my experiences to the future to hopefully produce the best gymnasts in the country,” Townsend said.
Kowal, who owns San Antonio Gymnastics Academy says having the greats of his sport teach young kids is the best experience.
“It’s like getting to hang out with Michael Jordan, David Robinson, Tim Duncan. They get to rub elbows and hold medals, they get to ask questions and say hey how did you do this? And these guys are so open and free with their information because they want to give back,” Kowal says.
“When you come and see these kids working hard from the progression, from the very basic skill and the exhilaration, the excitement that they get when they just do a handstand, a cartwheel, and then you watch it go all the way to the stuff we see on TV, it’s just powerful,” Kowal says.
Valencia says she notices the difference over time in her son’s growth.
“I know he’s still determined to get to where the older boys are getting to. He keeps watching the older boys and wants to do what they do,” she says.
Austin says he is thankful for the skills he’s learned.