From being a child adopted from South Korea to represent America at the highest stage, Yul Moldauer’s journey has been unbelievable. While the 27-year-old is the 2017 US all-around champion, his goals surpass national championships. To achieve his biggest goal to date, he is in Minnesota for the US Olympic Trials. Before the battle for the road to Paris began, the dynamic gymnast wrote in an Instagram post, “It’s hard to find the right words, but I just want to thank you to all of my family—The Moldauers, 5280, OU, all my coaches, fans, teammates, friends, sponsors, Colorado, and many more.” 

While Yul Moldauer is surely a talented individual, he still requires some guidance. He started gymnastics at a local gym and by the age of nine; he was on the Junior National Team. His career improved when he joined the 5280 Gymnastics just a year later and under coach Vladimir Artemev and his family, he channeled his boundless energy to gymnastics and various sinews! So, before the 27-year-old fights to earn a ticket to the Paris Games, let’s delve deeper into the relationship between the gymnast and his coach!

All about Yul Moldauer’s coach, Vladimir Artemev

Having failed to live his Olympic dream, Vladimir Artemev was born in Belarusian SSR, the Soviet Union. Before moving to the United States of America in 1994, he represented the Soviet National team from 1977 to 1987. While it is noteworthy that he was 2x Soviet national all-around champion, his only chance at the Olympics could have come in the 1984 edition. However, his country opted to boycott the event.

Vladimir became a father for the first time in 1985. After moving to America in 1994, he and his wife became US citizens in 2002. It was in 2003 when alongside his partners, Jim and Beth Trammell, he started 5280 Gymnastics. His son and student, “Sasha” Alexander Artemev, represented the USA in the 2008 Beijing Olympics and won a bronze medal in the Men’s artistic team all-around.

Over the last two decades, Vladimir Artemev has coached some of the best talents in American gymnastics and Yul Moldauer could be considered his recent success. However, he wasn’t the one who spotted the raw talent in the adopted child from Korea!

It was coach Gene Koehnke who discovered the hidden talent in Moldauer

“I knew then this kid was great… He didn’t have any fear,” said Gene Koehnke, according to The Coloradoan, who was the owner and coach of the GK Gymnastics. His words came in praise of Yul Moldauer after he became a contender in Team USA for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. He recalled the dynamic gymnast leading a double-leg circle, a skill that takes typically a year to master, merely in a few days at the age of 10!

The 27-year-old gymnast is all set to contend for the Paris Games at the US Olympic gymnastics trials. While he has the best coaches on his side, it will be interesting to see if he can face the fierce competition from Brody Malone, Fred Richard, and others at Minnesota this weekend. Will he qualify for his second Olympics? What do you think? Let us know in the comments!