Anastasiia Kulyk’s Journey in Rhythmic Gymnastics
- Selah - The Rhythmic Report
- Apr 23
- 5 min read
Updated: 5 days ago
Anastasiia Kulyk is a 22-year-old gymnast, born in Kharkiv, Ukraine. She began participating in sports from a young age. At 9, while she was doing Taekwondo lessons (a Korean martial art), her coach noticed that her sister, who went with Anastasiia to her training sessions, was very flexible. He advised her to try rhythmic gymnastics, and she went to a trial session. It was not long before Anastasiia was invited to train, too.
In the beginning, she only did it because her sister did, and she continued training in Taekwondo. However, about a year later, when she was 10, Anastasiia had to make a choice: rhythmic gymnastics or Taekwondo, as it became impossible to continue both. She chose gymnastics. However, it was still just a hobby. Starting at 10 was already considered late, and she trained with the beginners, aged 6-7.
Her real journey in rhythmic gymnastics started about 3 years later, when she was 13. In 2016, Anastasiia was selected for the senior group in group rhythmic gymnastics. She was not chosen for her results in the sport, but rather because there were not enough girls in her age group. In this case, Anastasiia was lucky; she now had a clear path to a serious and professional career in rhythmic gymnastics. For the next 5 years, she traveled to many competitions and improved a lot, and in 2021, she achieved the title “Master of Sport of Ukraine in rhythmic gymnastics.” During this time, she also took a 6-month break from training to pursue work as a model, but in the end, she returned to rhythmic gymnastics.
However, her path would not continue uninterrupted. In February of 2022, the Russian invasion of Ukraine began, and the city she called home, Kharkiv, became unsafe for her to remain in. Kharkiv is the second largest city of Ukraine and is just 40 km from the Russian border. It has suffered extremely in the past years as a result of the war. There was no food or electricity, and whether she was able to continue rhythmic gymnastics was not even a question. She had to pause her gymnastics career again, and as the danger increased, she was forced to leave Ukraine.
That is how Anastasiia ended up in Italy, where her second chance at gymnastics began. From 2022 to 2024, her training was inconsistent. She traveled back to Ukraine to volunteer and worked in Milan as a model to support herself. Whenever she could find the time or opportunity, she would train, but it was no longer something she could dedicate her life to. But in May 2024, she decided to make a comeback. She realized that she could not live without rhythmic gymnastics. She chose her love for her sport over modeling and began training consistently again.
Almost 2 years later, she is now working as a coach, having passed the required exams and received the qualification. Now Anastasiia is looking towards the future with renewed hope and support from the people around her, especially her coach. In her own words,
“I have been very lucky with my coaches and my team. I have never experienced so much support, belief, and love before. This is truly another miracle in my life.
My coach, Jonida Xhani, is the best thing that has ever happened to me in my entire gymnastics journey.”
QUESTIONS:
On motivation, goals, and what drives her to keep going.
What made you want to start RG again and what motivates you to keep going?
My love for gymnastics. It has never been my desire to quit, give up, or stop training.
I have always tried to combine everything as much as possible.
What motivates me are the results I see when things work out, my goals, my desire to improve, and the drive to give my all to this sport.
Do you think it is possible to be successful after starting late?
Everything is possible if you believe in it and work hard.
What advice do you have for people coming back to the sport and starting later?
Don’t listen to anyone and believe in yourself!
After starting over, was there ever a time you wanted to give up, and what made you keep going?
I continue this journey thanks to my coach, Jonida. She always supports me and believes in me. Thanks to her, I also started to believe in myself. As I’ve already said, I truly appreciate and respect her.
What is your goal with rhythmic gymnastics? Do you have a competition you want to compete in?
I would like to compete in some Italian national Gold championships.
On the war in her home country.
You have done some activism regarding the current war. Why is this important, and what does this mean to you?
There is a war in my country. Every day, people are dying. I cannot stay silent.
The same applies to other countries where war is ongoing, and children and innocent people are being killed. It is horrifying, and the world needs to see what is happening.
On moving from Ukraine to Italy.
I’m from Kharkiv, which is a frontline city, and it’s dangerous to live there. Every day, Russia shells civilians. So I had to take a backpack and leave my home. I still haven’t been back, and I don’t know if I will ever have the chance to return. My whole life is still in that apartment.
I left with just one backpack .But here I found my gymnastics team, SSV Bozen Rhythmic Art, and I’m very happy about it.
On pressure and expectations.
Were your friends and family supportive of your decision to return to rhythmic gymnastics?
To be honest, I don’t have a lot of support. All my peers and friends from the sport have already finished their careers, so my main support comes from my coach and, of course, my family (although even from my family, I often hear that it’s already enough).
Do you feel you put a lot of pressure on yourself, or are you able to let go and enjoy it?
Yes, this is my issue. Since childhood, I’ve gotten used to thinking that if I’m not the best, not the slimmest, and don’t perform without mistakes, I won’t be noticed and no one will want to work with me. That’s why Jonida has also spent a lot of time talking with me about this, helping me not to put so much pressure on myself.
I still feel it during competitions, but I’m trying to work on it and learn to simply enjoy performing. Also, when I started blogging, and now that people recognize me at competitions and follow me, it also adds a sense of responsibility.
Life, routines, and other questions.
How does a regular day in your life look?
I wake up and work on our organizational tasks. Then I go to the gym and coach the kids. After that, I have my own training until the evening. When I get home, I finish up any remaining organizational work and go to sleep. Lately, that’s been my routine.
How do you think your style in RG has changed over the years?
I think the older I get, the more expressive I can be, to convey the music and truly feel it.
I believe I’m gradually reaching the level where I can show this mature, beautiful kind of gymnastics.
Do you have a favourite gymnast that you look up to?
Anna Bessonova
Do you have a favourite apparatus?
Clubs, I love working on new things with them. Also, I love my exercise.
Clubs and hoop. I like to perform risks with the hoop.
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