How Gymnastics
Became
MY LIFE
By Yeifri Ramirez
WHEN I was 6, my parents asked what I wanted to be when I grew up. “Gym- nastics coach,” I replied.
When asked why, I didn’t have an explanation.
Sometimes I said “because it’s a happy job” or
“it’s fun to teach to flips.” The only connection
I had with the sport was my favorite videotape
of the Barcelona Olympics.
A gymnastics coach is also a rare choice of a
dream job when you live in a Latin and
I was born in the Dominican Republic, a
country which saw gymnastics only when the
2003 Pan American Games were held in Santo
Domingo. And until this day I have never heard
of a popular Dominican gymnast.
My mother, older brother Johnny and I
moved to the U.S. when I was 5. My mother
wanted us to have a better education. Little did
we know that we had moved into one of the
most dangerous neighborhoods in Brooklyn.
My mother knew that sports and a healthy
lifestyle would keep my brother and me out of
trouble. Nothing really interested me, but my
brother got involved in martial arts. With no
specific interests, I watched a lot of television in
my spare time. One day, while flipping chan-
nels, I came across the most bizarre and excit-
ing sporting event I’ve ever seen: gymnastics. I
believe it was the 1992 Olympic trials.
At school I was making
up routines on every
event and writing them
on the backs of my
school books.
Ramirez with Wendy Hilliard
For almost nine years now, I have been
around gyms looking for my perfect fit, but the
foundation is the only one I never left. The
combination of coaching and introducing a new
sport to the community and recognizing talent
was awesome. To have that feeling of accomplishment is amazing, and I was grateful and
lucky enough to be given a chance in a sport
that is only offered to those who can’t afford it.
I knew I was destined to coach when a co-
worker sent me a text message for Father’s
Day. I am a 25-year-old single man with no
children, so I didn’t think that message was
meant for me. It read, “You are more of a
father to all of our girls. Happy Father’s Day!”
Immediately, I thought of those coaches I
idolized as a child and why I was so drawn to
them. They were not just coaches, they were
parents.
Today, I still coach artistic gymnastics and
choreograph routines in gyms around the city.
Gymnastics has really become my life, and
hopefully, as a coach and through the sport, I
can lead kids in a great direction the way gymnastics did for me. IG
For more about the Wendy Hilliard Foundation, visit
www.whfny.org.
“My Story” is how readers can share their personal gymnastics stories. Email your story (500-
1,000 words), along with high resolution JPEGs,
to ig@intlgymnast.com. Subject line: My Story.
