CHENNAI: India has the potential to win Olympic medals in gymnastics, said Ilan Korchak, Israeli junior men’s head coach. The former gymnast was back in the city for a special six-day camp for young gymnasts, “Rise and Refine”, held at the GymnoRa Gymnastics Centre in the last week of December 2025.
As many as 21 gymnasts from the centre, in the age group of 7 to 17 years, were part of the camp. Seven of them will be competing in the SGFI (School Games Federation of India) championships later this month.
“The Indian body type suits gymnastics. A proper system needs to be in place to tap the abundant talent. Recreational gymnastics can start even as early as 3 years old. But the journey towards serious gymnastics, a potential Olympic medal, has to be undertaken when the child is 5 to 6 years old,” Korchak told DT Next.
The Israeli also stressed the importance of continuous education and upgradation for gymnastics coaches in the country, apart from world-class apparatus. P Prabu, former president of the Tamil Nadu Gymnastics Association and founder of GymnoRa, said that it is the long-term goal of the centre to work towards the 2036 Olympic Games and that it has to start from the grassroots, rather than at the national-team or elite level.
“What truly shapes a gymnast is the coaching methodology, the standards set, and the expectations created early in their journey. Traditionally, exposure to foreign training systems is available only to national team gymnasts. As a club, we felt this exposure should reach children much earlier. If young gymnasts are expected to reach the Olympic level one day, they must understand what that level demands while they are still learning their basics,” Prabu said.
Not just the young gymnasts, Ilan also helped coaches to refine their skills along with P Ragul, Technical Director at GymnoRa. There were times when the Israeli was blunt in his assessments of the coaches. “Every correction pointed out by a foreign coach is an opportunity to improve ourselves. That mindset is something we consciously want to build within our system, to learn from the best and apply it in our work,” Prabu said.