MLADEN STEFANOV

Program Coordinator/Owner; Coach: Girl's Artistic; Class Instructor

Mladen’s impressive gymnastics resume begins when he left home at age 8 to become a student-athlete at the National Sports Academy in his native Bulgaria, and culminates at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia, where he helped the Bulgarian national team to a 12th place finish. Along the way, he racked up individual medals in many international competitions, including the prestigious European and World Championships. Still, Mladen is just as comfortable teaching seat drops to preschoolers as he is coaching complex technique to our national competitors. Since 2002, boys and girls of all skill levels at our gym have benefitted from his extensive experience and playful instruction, a combination that keeps his students constantly learning… while having great fun

KARI BARNES

Coach: Girls Artistic

Kari has been involved in gymnastics since she was 9, which makes her, politely said, “seasoned.” She finished her competitive years in West Virginia, where she continually placed a very distant third behind Mary Lou Retton and her talented sister, both of whom were on Kari’s team. She is a Bethany College (WV) graduate, and worked for several years in the toy industry before having four wonderful sons. She has never gone very long without teaching in the gym, and now enjoys coaching United’s Girls' team, facilitating Parent-And-Tot classes, and choreographing floor routines.

VADIM BINDLER

Team Coach: Power Tumbling and Trampoline & Class Instructor

Vadim’s love of this sport is evident in his gentle enthusiasm with our youngest students. As a competitor in Belarus, he won multiple World, European, and Soviet tumbling championships, and was the first person ever to perform a triple back flip on the tumbling floor! He has been passing along this expertise to the award-winning Tumble-And-Tramp Team at United since 1995. Vadim enjoys traveling, and has visited 42 states in the U.S., six Canadian provinces, as well as nations in Europe and the Middle East. His most memorable trip is one he took with the Soviet National Acro Team to Australia and New Zealand, where he got to hold a live koala in his arms.

VALENTIN VASILEV

Coach: Girls Artistic; Class Instructor

A highly respected athlete and coach originally from Bulgaria, Val comes to us with a plethora of awards and accolades --- Master of Sports, author and lecturer on physical development in young children, international judge, member of the Bulgarian Gymnastics Federation Technical Committee, and many competitive national rankings… plus he was also United owner and Olympian Mladen Stefanov’s coach! Val first love is coaching the competitive track, but also firmly believes in the fun and fitness that recreational classes provide for both boys and girls. He enjoys his time teaching preschoolers and beginners just as much as training team kids!

Oleg Bezrodniy

Coach: Boys Artistic Head Coach

Oleg’s life has been centered in gymnastics since the age of 10, when he became a student at the National Sport Academy in Kiev. Selected as a member of the Ukrainian National Team, he won several international titles and competed in the 1996 Olympic Trials. He graduated from the Institute of Physical Education and Sport and then performed with the circus, wowing audiences with acts on the triple high bars and 30-foot high Cloud Swing! A certified national judge and accomplished men’s coach in the USA for almost two decades, United welcomed Oleg to head up its boys’ program in August 2016.

TONI TAYLOR

Class Instructor; Office

You can find Ms. Toni in the office almost as often as out on the gym floor… she is often the friendly voice that answers the phone, as well as a much-loved teacher for the younger students in United’s recreational classes. Her sports experience as a diver converts naturally to gymnastics, and she was also a competitive swimmer and soccer player. She continues to be athletic; enjoying snow skiing, mountain biking, golfing and riding horses. Toni graduated from Auburn with a degree in marketing, and has had three children in United’s team programs. She practically lives at the gym!

Kimmy Kagen

Team Coach: Power Tumbling and Trampoline

Kimmy has been in United’s gymnastics family since she was 8, when she joined our Tumbling and Trampoline team. After working her way up to Level 10 and competing in three National Championships, she taught many classes at the gym before heading to Indiana University of Pennsylvania where she majored in fashion merchandising and marketing. We are glad that she has returned to United and can use her extensive knowledge and experience in the role of coach for our Tumble & Tramp teams.

Lindsay Dingman

Girls Coach

Lindsay fell in love with gymnastics at the ripe old age of three, and eventually worked her way up to Level 9. She notes that she would throw any trick on the beam, because “…it was my favorite event.” (That is highly unusual!) She still holds many gymnastics records in the Virginia high school system. She earned a BA in Kineseology from George Mason, where she was also a member of the university’s nationally-ranked cheer squad. She has been coaching cheerleading and gymnastics since her teens, but now also has a grown-up job as an insurance agent. Her husband is a phys ed teacher/tennis coach, and they have two dogs --- one good, one mischievous.

Kaycee Wright

Class instructor

Kaycee competed for several years before transitioning to cheer-leading She was selected as an All American cheerleader in 1999 and traveled internationally conducting cheer-leading clinics in 2000. She taught recreational gymnastics for three years in North Carolina before becoming a mother to four children and moving to Maryland. She is now back in the gym as an instructor.

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Peighton Perrone

Class Instructor

Peighton Perrone hails from Syracuse, New York, where she was an active participant in gymnastics and competitive cheerleading for over a decade. She is on the competitive cheer squad at Stevenson University, and you’ll also find her on the sidelines on Saturday afternoons, cheering on the mighty Mustang football team. Her pep and exuberance are perfectly suited for teaching gymnastics --- she is imaginative with her lesson plans, compassionate with her students, and most of all, fun!