“As a kid, I had bigger goals than the Olympics. So the way I see it, I reached for the stars and then I landed on the moon, which is like the Olympic level,” Fred Richard reflected in a recent interview with the Times. Richard started gymnastics at the age of four, fueled by boundless ambition and unwavering dedication. At fourteen, he fractured one side of the L4 vertebra, requiring six months off, including three months in a brace. A month after being cleared to return to training, he fractured the other side and was out for another six months.
Despite these setbacks, Richard’s resolve never wavered. Upon his recovery, he was referred to Levon Karakhanyan, a former Armenian gymnast who now runs the Massachusetts Elite Gymnastics Academy (MEGA). Karakhanyan has coached some of the country’s top young gymnasts and played a pivotal role in Richard’s meteoric rise.
All about Fred Richard’s coach, Levon Karakhanyan
Levon Karakhanyan, who coaches Olympic gymnast Fred Richard, is originally from Armenia and has been training gymnasts in the USA since 2000. He was a top-level gymnast himself, having won four Armenian National Championships and been the USSR champion twice. He had boundless energy as a child which led his parents to enroll him in gymnastics. He would often climb trees or furniture.
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Additionally, he has founded MEGA (Massachusetts Elite Gym Academy) in Millis. The facility opened its doors in 2022 and provided a space for Levon’s students the previous elite gym in Westwood closed. Karakhanyan serves as the Director of the Boy’s Gymnastics Program and Head Coach for the New England Sports Academy (NESA). On the personal front, he is married to his wife Juliana, and they have a young son named Edward. The family currently resides in Medfield, Massachusetts, where Edward is training to become a young gymnast himself.
Karakhanyan received USA Gymnastics Junior Coach of the Year Award
In 2016, he was awarded the USA Gymnastics Junior Coach of the Year for his contribution to Region 6. That same year, he attended the 2016 Rio De Janeiro Olympics as a coach to Houry Geneshian, who competed due to his dual citizenship. Though they did not qualify for the all-around finals, it was a highlight of Karakhanyan’s career.
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He has also won the Roberto Pumpido Award, a testament to his contributions to junior gymnastics. This year, if Richard excels in the trials, he will have another chance to attend the Olympics as a coach. Levon has been coaching Fred Richard since he was fourteen and joined MEGA.
Fred Richard was referred to Levon by his previous coach, Tom Fontecchio, at his first gym. Richard said, “When I outgrew the [first] gym, he was able to connect me to the right coach to continue my journey,”. The move paid off as Richard soon rose to rank two in his recruitment class and earned an eventual place on the Michigan men’s gymnastics team. Since then, Levon Karakhanyan has been a constant support for Fred Richard. Hopefully, this will continue in the Olympic trials and beyond.
