Chinese gymnast uses Olympic experience to instruct others
By Jimmy Durkin Staff Writer
A lot of personalities come about when Jinjing Zhang is coaching a group of young gymnasts.
In a matter of moments Zhang can go from a stern lector to a grinning supporter.
For the former Chinese Olympic gymnast, it’s all just part of coaching a diverse group of kids.
“With different ages, you have to deal with different personalities,” Zhang said while instructing a group of gymnasts ranging from age 5 to 12.
Zhang, who along with his wife Jenny Liu, opened Champions Academy in Morgan Hill in mid-July, won a silver medal in the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games and also has five world championships to his name. That gives him plenty of experience to share with his students.
“He knows what it takes to be No. 1,” said San Jose’s Josh Dixon, who took second last week at the U.S. National Championships in St. Paul, Minn., and has trained with Zhang for the past four years.
Dixon’s goal is to be an Olympic gymnast – he said he has an outside hope for making the 2008 Games but is focused on the 2012 Games – and he is banking on Zhang’s knowledge base to help him get there.
“He’s competed at that level,” Dixon said. “He knows how to get there.”
Zhang has taught gymnastics since moving from China to the United States seven years ago, having spent time teaching in Berkeley, Santa Cruz and San Jose.
But for Zhang and Liu, who live in Gilroy, it was nice to have a gym closer to home and they liked the type of community they found in Morgan Hill.
“We just wanted to stay in this area … Morgan Hill is family-oriented. Gymnastics is one of the most popular sports because it’s a very family-oriented sport,” said Liu, adding that most who come to the gym have multiple family members involved in gymnastics.
The facility, located off Cochrane Road at 18855 Adams Court, is impressive. Comparing it to the previous gym he worked out at, Dixon said: “It’s like comparing the HP Pavilion to a McDonald’s.”
Liu said it cost “a couple hundred thousand” dollars to open the gym, which is in a building that is roughly half-filled. They still plan to add more equipment and are hoping to have everything completed within the next two years. While it was a big and expensive undertaking, Liu said seeing the kids enjoy themselves makes it all worth it.
“When you see them have fun, it gives you the most satisfaction,” she said. “It’s a very rewarding process. That’s why we do this. It’s not about making money, it’s more of the intangible rewards.”
Zhang particularly enjoys watching his students grow up and develop.
“I most like when you watch them grow up every day and they learn something from you,” Zhang said.
With more than 20 years of being around the sport, Zhang has plenty of ability to evaluate talent and thus he wasn’t surprised with Dixon’s effort at the national championships.
“For me, I’m really happy for him because he’s trying so hard,” Zhang said. “There’s not much surprise because he’s really talented.”
Champions Academy targets gymnasts of all ages and abilities – ranging from pre-school to adult and with both recreational and competitive divisions. Other features include open gym on Saturdays, camps, birthday parties and eventually the gym will offer gymnastic-themed fitness workouts.
Zhang hopes for it to become “the home of champions.”
If all the work surrounding running the gym isn’t enough, Zhang and Liu are expecting their first child later this week.
So will their new son get involved in gymnastics?
“Probably,” Liu said. “We can’t get away from it. If you do gymnastics you can do any other sport.”
Zhang said they might try him out in golf, but conceded that he’s “most likely going to do gymnastics because gymnastics gives you so much.”
Jimmy Durkin covers sports for South Valley Newspapers. Reach him at (408) 779-4106 ext. 203 or jd*****@**********rs.com.
