Zuzana Sekerova

When did Zuzana start to take gymnastic classes?

I started gymnastics in the age of 4.

Why did Zuzana become a gymnast?

My mom was going to the gym for some aerobic classes. She was taking me with her but I was very hyperactive child and I was disturbing the class so at one point she started "storing" me in gymnastics class while she had her own class and that's how everything started :).

How did Zuzana become a National Team member?

When I was old enough I switched coaches and started training with Ukrainian coach Ludmila Stepanovna Puskareva. It was not easy. First I had to learn Russian language because Ludmila spoke to us in her home language. Although she could understand us when we spoke Slovak to her she never really learned to speak it. Ludmila thought me most of the skills I know now...like the

"double Arabian" on the floor ex. or "Jeger salto" on uneven bars. Because Ludmila was pretty good technical coach and I learned these hard elements in quite young age I had no troubles to become National Team member with few another gymnast from gym in Trnava that trained under the same coach as I did.

Did Zuzana go through any crisis in her gymnastics career?

YES. I think every athlete goes through hard times in her/his sports career. But from my experience I have to say that it is really important to realize when the crises come and to learn how to get through it. Sometimes I was afraid to do some skill that was new for me and it was very hard and dangerous so I wanted to quit because I thought I'll never get over it. Or I fell badly and I was afraid to do any gymnastic skills at all. Also I broke my left elbow in 1996 and I had to have surgery because it was bad break. I didn't believe I could get over fear of breaking my elbow again or could not imagine putting full weight onto that left arm during practices.
So yes, there are times when I wanted to quit from all of it but I only needed some encouragement or little break from gymnastics and I was back again and stronger than before.
I think one of my biggest crisis was in 2001 when I injured my ankle severely and could not do gymnastics even if I wanted to. It seemed like it wasn't going to get much better. I dropped gymnastics in Slovakia and left to the US try to find power tumbling club. Coach Wayne, now my husband, sponsored me to the US. With him I started teaching tumbling mostly to cheerleaders and started tumbling myself. Once my ankle was getting better I started getting onto the beam and tumbling there. Than I started doing all four events and I was back in gymnastics. Now I'm competing on international level again and holding off of power tumbling career for now. Maybe I will get back to that idea in some years when I'll be too old for artistic gymnastic.

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2005

2004

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