The American Way

Sergei Tereshenko’s trek from the capital of Ukraine to Lake Wylie is one that can be measured by more than miles. It’s a whirlwind of unparalleled experiences, a journey that whisked him from coaching to the army to the circus, and back again.

Born in Kiev, Tereshenko’s passion for gymnastics began when he was a mere child. He started his formal training at an all-sports high school before joining the Ukrainian National Team and obtaining the coveted title of Master of Sport of the USSR. He launched his coaching career while attending the Sport University of Kiev and, after a mandatory stint in the army and a spell as a guitar player and band singer, the 25-year-old was approached by a friend seeking recruits for the Moscow Circus.

“‘I said, ‘I am married, I have a baby, just normal life,’” recalls Tereshenko, speaking in his fractured English. “But after talking to my friend I decide to change a little bit my life. He said, ‘You always can coach; you can come back to coaching. Try.”

Try he did, once his wife agreed to the plan. She joined the circus too, and the couple found themselves traveling in separate directions, as part of different acts, across the Soviet Union, with daughter Irina alternating between her parents. Tereshenko, who created his own act, admits to the occasional bout of nerves, brought on by his dangerous, multi-level high-bar performance.

Nonetheless, he persevered and even took his act beyond Russia’s borders, signing a contract with Michael Angley International Circus in Australia.

“I worked year in Australia,” he explains. “But at that time, the Soviet Union not let me sign a personal contract. I have to sign a government contract. Most money go to government.” Still, he adds, “Every single day was great.”

After 14 years as a circus performer, which included such memorable experiences as eating frogs at the Russian embassy in Tasmania, Tereshenko’s life took a tragic turn. Both his parents and his brother died within a 12-month time period. Then the Ukrainian government tried to seize his apartment. A lengthy legal battle ensued, one that Tereshenko ultimately won.

In 1993, he embarked for the United States as a member of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus. Later, newfound friends in Minneapolis encouraged the then-divorced Tereshenko to remain in the States after his contract with Ringling Brothers ended and to resurrect his career as a gymnastics coach. Tereshenko was initially hesitant, believing that the language barrier would be too much to overcome.

“I was nervous,” he says, recalling an interview for a full-time coaching position. “I cannot say ‘cartwheel’ or ‘front handspring’ [in English]. I have a friend who is gymnastics coach in Virginia. I call him and say, ‘I have problem.’”

The friend coached Tereshenko on the translations and he landed the job. But he remembers that time as a difficult one. There were no Russians in the small Minnesota town in which he resided. Snow lay on the ground everywhere, and it was bitterly cold. “I turn on TV, I don’t understand anything,” he adds. “Wow, [was] I lonely.”

Soon after, things began to click. His language skills improved. He met his second wife. He proved his coaching worth, as his students attended the National Competition within his first year in residence. At the competition, another Russian coach encouraged Tereshenko to migrate to a warmer climate. He soon accepted a job at the now-defunct Charlotte Gymnastics International, and life began anew once again, this time in the Carolinas.

“I got citizenship in 2006,” Tereshenko says with pride. “And I finally started dreaming in English.”

Today, Tereshenko teaches at First in Flight Gym in Gastonia. He and his third wife, Anne, are newlyweds, enjoying life with their two dogs on a spacious lot in a historic home in York. His daughter Irina, a newlywed herself, lives in Wyoming, and his 10-year-old son Dmitry is a gymnast who trains under his father and enjoys boating and fishing with him.

“We go to Lake Wylie to a huge park and fish,” says Tereshenko, who lived at Lake Wylie for years before moving to York. “First thing we think about when I have day off is when we going to go on the lake.”

And finally, after 11 long years, Tereshenko, with Anne by his side, went back to the Ukraine for a visit. “It was shock for me,” he concludes. “Lots of unbelievable changes. And my brain doesn’t understand how people can live there, because now I’m thinking American way.”

Story by Lee Rhodes

Photos by Richard Rudisill