Meet The Team

Nat

Head Coach

PHILOSOPHY:  

I believe each individual is a human first, with family, friends and lives outside gymnastics, and an athlete second. My role as a coach in any athlete's life, while coaching their gymnastics, is to help develop young women to thrive in life beyond the gym. The perseverance and stick-to-it attitude, ability to handle failure, time management skills, and ability to lead oneself are just a few of the skills that I believe we get the privilege to develop in the lives of those we coach.

Beyond that, I believe that having a strong foundation will allow any athlete to thrive in sport and life. I am a firm believer in quality over quantity and working hard at injury prevention/conditioning. I aim to build up athletes who seek to compete against themselves to be a better version of who they are, aiming to be 1% better each day. Creating an environment of open, honest communication with realistic goals is what I strive to do.

BACKGROUND:  

I am a born-and-bred Kiwi having moved to Canada in 2022. Moving here was motivated by my strong faith journey to pursue a dream placed on my heart. I have been involved with gymnastics for 25 years, starting out my journey as a little seven year old, competing at a local fun competition, through to now being a current high-performance trampoline athlete at Club Aviva, representing New Zealand on the international stage. I have been coaching gymnastics for the past 15 years, seeing a small handful of my ex-athletes chase their own dreams of representing NZ at world cups.

Throughout my sporting career, I have had the privilege of winning medals for NZ, competing in various countries, and getting to watch a generation grow up in the sport.

I have also walked a journey of major injuries and experienced what is commonly known as the twisties, three times. Through my experiences, I have worked with high-performance sport and rehab specialists and a strength and conditioning coach, a mental skills performance coach, and numerous other professionals in the sports world that has allowed me to learn valuable knowledge. I hope to bring my knowledge and first-hand experience to the well established program at Balance Gymnastics.

Maya

Coach

PHILOSOPHY: I believe in making gymnastics a fun, safe, and welcoming environment where gymnasts are encouraged to be proud of themselves and their teammates. My goal is for gymnasts to feel like they have accomplished something by the end of each practice or competition, whether they have mastered a new drill or skill, tried something new, or worked through a mental block. I am very excited to work with your gymnast this season and hope to give them positive experiences and memories to look back on for the rest of their life. 

BACKGROUND: I trained as a competitive gymnast for multiple years before deciding to switch over to dance. I danced at a high level for several years throughout late elementary and high school.  Switching back to coaching gymnastics has been a very positive experience - I have created so many memories and met so many amazing people. Outside the gym, I enjoy hiking with my family and two dogs: Molly and Pepper. 

Clare

Coach

PHILOSOPHY: Gymnastics is such an important sport for childhood development, and creates the most well rounded athletes. I believe in creating a safe, positive and fun environment for the children to thrive in while developing their skills. By creating a safe space and allowing the children to have fun as well as learn high level skills, you can provide longevity in the sport. At Balance Gymnastics I was immediately taken by the overwhelming positive atmosphere within the gym - gymnastics is often classed as an individual sport, but at Balance we all work as a team to ensure everyone's success.

BACKGROUND: I have always loved working with children and being able to see them grow and succeed. I grew up doing many sports competitively, as well as gymnastics. I originally started coaching soccer, but switched to gymnastics in 2017 and fell in love with coaching and have been doing it ever since.  Coaching is truly my passion and I love seeing the gymnasts grow and succeed in all areas of their life.

Mona

Coach

PHILOSOPHY: I believe gymnastics is not just a sport, but a powerful way of shaping the whole person, physically, mentally, and emotionally. From my earliest memories, movement has been my language for exploring the world and expressing who I am.
As a coach, my goal goes beyond teaching skills; I aim to help every child discover their strength, confidence, and sense of self.
To me, every gymnast is more than just an athlete, they are a growing human being with dreams, emotions, and unlimited potential. While I care deeply about technique and discipline, I care even more about nurturing qualities that last a lifetime: resilience, self belief, joy, and creativity.
I believe that strong foundations can shape a child’s entire journey and pave the way for growth, both in gymnastics and in life. Even the smallest progress is worth celebrating, as it builds character and self-trust. The combination of a strong foundation and these small
steps of progress can ultimately build an elite athlete capable of reaching the highest levels.

BACKGROUND: I started gymnastics as a young child in Iran and followed the sport through the competitive
path to higher levels. Over time, it became much more than a sport, it became a core part of who I am. I moved into coaching and have been working professionally as a coach for over 20 years, training athletes from childhood through university age, helping them prepare for national competitions while learning how to believe in themselves and their potential.
During this time, I was able to achieve championship titles at the national level both as a gymnast and as a coach.
As I coached, I found myself drawn more and more to the expressive side of movement.
Choreography became a passion, a space where I could blend technique with feeling and tell stories through form and rhythm. I have also created and staged several artistic performances that combined elements of contemporary dance.
Since 2024, I have been in Canada, I am continuing this journey at the highest level, grow as a coach and choreographer, and share everything I’ve learned so far. Gymnastics has been my life’s work, and I feel lucky to still be on this path.

Melika

Coach

PHILOSOPHY: While gymnastics can be viewed as solely a sport, it can, on the contrary, build numerous advantageous skills for gymnasts both inside and outside the gym. It can allow gymnasts to develop their confidence while working through their fears. Creating a team-building environment in the gym can allow them to connect, build confidence, and work on challenges. Therefore, I strongly believe in having an engaging and fun atmosphere in the gym, allowing my gymnasts to persevere and thrive. I look forward to being there for my team to connect and see my gymnast's goals this season.

BACKGROUND: I started ballet at the young age of three and continued into my pre-teens. Later, I decided to do recreational advanced gymnastics by going on the monkey bars and practicing my flexibility countless days on the playground. I trained for seven years at West Vancouver Rec Center and was able to advance to level nine. Over my gymnastics career, it allowed me to not only fall more in love with the sport but also fall in love with teaching. I have had more than five years of  gymnastics coaching experience, and I'm enthusiastic to start this new season with my gymnasts!

Barbara

Administrative Support

PHILOSOPHY: As a Mum of 3 boys, keeping my kids active and busy has always been a priority! Our family have been involved in many different sports on the North Shore over the years, in fact all three of my boys participated in recreational gymnastics at one time or another. 

BACKGROUND: Moving to the North Shore almost 11 years ago with 3 young children, building community here became important. Volunteering within our children’s sports teams and schools was where we started. I am now passionate about living and working here on the North Shore as my children grow up. In my free time I enjoy keeping active exploring our local trails with daily dog walks in the forest and staying creative (I always have lots of projects on the go!) I’ve been working at Balance for over a year now in admin support and getting us ready for this upcoming season. It’s been a pleasure getting to know the team and I can’t wait to see what the year brings for our gymnasts and coaches!