The Ground Floor: Gymnastics center goes for gold and for fun, too

Owners: Alex Kolyvanov, Oksana Kolyvanova and Dmitry Trouch

Company: Synergy Gymnastics

Address: 390 Herky St., Unit 4E, North Liberty

Phone: 319-626-2030

Website: www.synergygymnastics.com

NORTH LIBERTY - Twenty years after his visit to the top tier of the Olympic podium for men's gymnastics, Russian gold medalist Alex Kolyvanov and his wife, Oksana Kolyvanova, have maintained their roots in Iowa.

They moved to Iowa City in 1993 - one year after Alex's gold medal run - for a job on the University of Iowa gymnastics coaching staff. Kolyvanov left his coaching gig after 17 years in 2010, but his next move has kept him connected to the sport and the UI gymnastics squad.

“We'd like to grow in terms of size, build a new facility … and be one of the highest qualified and nicest places in the region,” Kolyvanov said about the area's newest gymnastics facility.

Synergy Gymnastics, 390 Herky St. 4E in North Liberty, opened Sept. 26 for junior gymnasts and their more mature counterparts interested in competitive training, taking beginner classes or simply playing in an open gym setting.

More than 200 young people are signed up at the center, which takes students from 18 months to 18 years, Kolyvanov said. It offers a variety of classes, from tumbling to equipment courses for boys and girls, more serious training for gymnasts wanting to compete at a higher level, and open gym options for families interested in testing their child's interest level.

And, Kolyvanov said, the facility has started hosting birthday parties.

“That has been a huge success,” he said. “We are booked up.”

Kolyvanov's business partners include Oksana, who has 15 years of gymnastics coaching experience, and Dmitry Trouch, who won a gold medal for the Russian squad in the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta.

All three are products of the Voronezh Gymnastics School, one of the most decorated in Russia. But, although they're trained for excellence and used to competing internationally, that's not the sole goal of Synergy Gymnastics.

“Our main goal and concern is that kids enjoy what they're doing and have fun,” he said. “Gold medals are a good result, but they are not the main purpose.”

In a few years, Kolyvanov said, he hopes to build a new facility in town with a reputation as one of the best in the region.

Kolyvanov also would like some Synergy students will land spots on the UI gymnastics squad, and he thinks his team of trainers can help make that happen.

“You have to have quite a bit of insider knowledge before you can run a place like this,” he said.

Know a Corridor business open for less than a year that should be considered for “The Ground Floor”? Contact Vanessa Miller at vanessa.miller@sourcemedia.net.