Trading West

t's not a very glam-
orous place, this
gymnastics training
facility in Warren,
but in many ways,
it's home for
Grigoriy Astrakhan
and Ada Neverovich.
Astrakhan and
Neverovich, two of
the former Soviet
Union's top youth
gymnastics coaches,
are now happily practicing
their trade in the United
States.
The Jewish immigrants
work with youngsters at
Blake's Gymnastics Centre
in Warren and Bloomfield
Gymnastics in Bloomfield
Hills, home bases of the
successful Blake Acro-
nauts competitive team.
Astrakhan coaches boys
ages 7-18. Neverovich
works with girls ages 5-18.
STEVE STEIN
They teach beginners, and
SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS
they coach state and
national-level gymnasts.
Located in an industrial
complex off Dequindre
between 13 and 14 Mile in
Warren, the cav-
ernous Blake's is
filled with gymnas-
tics equipment and
mats and the dis-
tinctive, musty
smell that's pro-
duced by sweat and
long hours of physi-
cal activity.
If you've spent
much of your life in
a gym, those sights
and odors are com-
forting and familiar
no matter where you
are. •
Astrakhan, 43,
and Neverovich, 50,
are lucky. The cul-
ture shock they ex-
perienced coming
from the turmoil of
the former USSR to
America and all its
freedoms has been
Grigoriy Astrakhan offers pointers on the rings.
eased greatly by
being able . to find
jobs — good jobs
— right
in their field.
"We're like a fish in
water," said Neverovich.
Because Neverovich has

Two of Russia's top
youth coaches have
brought their
gymnastics expertise
to Detroit.

Ada Neverovich works with a young gymnast.

been in this country for
only a year, she doesn't
speak English as well as
Astrakhan, who has lived
here for 2% years. But that
quick quip and engaging
smile were good indica-
tions of how quickly she's
learning the language.
Bruce Blake, owner of
the facilities, says lan-
guage never has been a
problem with his Russian
instructors.
"Gymnastics is an inter-
national language. Gri-
goriy and Ada love coach-
ing and working with kids
so much, they could get
along anywhere," Blake
said. "Sure, there were
some communication prob-
lems with their students
at the beginning, but it
hasn't been difficult at all
for them to fit right in.
"They know the techni-
cal part of gymnastics so

well that r gave them free
rein in that area right
from the start."
Astrakhan has worked
at Blake's for about two
years after first instruct-
ing young gymnasts at the
Jewish Community Center
in Oak Park. He recom-
mended Neverovich to
Blake about a year ago
when he knew she would
be available to coach. She
was hired quickly.
It's obvious after talking
with Astrakhan and
Neverovich for only a few
moments that they are
ecstatic to be in the United
States and away from the
chaotic and uncomfortable
life in their former home-
land.
They both live in Oak
Park, where many other
Russian Jewish immi-
grants have settled, and
they like being able to go

about their daily business
without looking over their
shoulders all the time.
Neverovich is relieved of
the added burden of living
about 140 miles from
Chernobyl, site of the
nuclear disaster, and see-
ing many people become ill
and die because of the inci-
dent.
"Future? What future?
Nobody knows what's
going to happen. Maybe
communism will come
back," Neverovich said
when asked for her predic-
tion on what the next
years could hold for the
former USSR.
"There were many rea-
sons why I left," she
added. "For a Jew, it was a
scary place to live.
"All I want to do here is
have a nice life and work
with children, making sure

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