Long before representing Australia at the Olympics, Emma Nedov was a young gymnast discovering her love of the sport at the Y Epping. Read how a childhood gymnastics class became the foundation for an extraordinary career.
Emma Nedov on Finding Confidence One Step at a Time
Before she became an Olympian, before she was known as Australia's "Beam Queen", Emma Nedov was a six-year-old standing nervously at her first gymnastics class at the Y Epping.
In fact, she didn't want to be there at all.
Emma recalls arriving in tears, protesting as her mum brought her to gymnastics. But everything changed the moment she walked through the doors.
The tears stopped.
She looked around, saw the other gymnasts training, and something sparked. What began as a reluctant first lesson quickly became the start of a lifelong journey. [ymca.org.au], [ymca.org.au]
At the time, nobody could have known that the little girl who almost didn't walk into class would one day represent Australia on the world's biggest sporting stage.
But every journey has to start somewhere
For many children, sport begins with learning physical skills.
For Emma, it also became a place where she found confidence, friendships and a sense of belonging.
She trained at Epping YMCA for 10 years, often alongside her younger sister Madeleine. The gym became a second home, where coaches, teammates and mentors helped shape her not only as an athlete, but as a person. [ymca.org.au], [ymca.org.au]
Like every young gymnast, Emma started with the basics.
Learning how to balance.
Learning how to listen.
Learning how to fall over and get back up again.
Learning that improvement comes through practice.
Those lessons would become the foundation for everything that followed.
The Power of Persistence
As Emma progressed through the sport, her talent became clear.
She joined Australia's national program as a teenager and began competing internationally. Along the way she collected national titles, represented Australia at World Championships and earned a reputation as one of the country's strongest balance beam performers.
But Emma's story is about far more than talent.
It's a story about persistence.
Throughout her career, she faced challenges that would have ended the dreams of many athletes. Injuries interrupted her progress, including a ruptured Achilles tendon in 2017. On more than one occasion, she stepped away from the sport entirely. [gymnastics.sport], [olympics.com.au]
Yet each time, she found a way forward.
Rather than allowing setbacks to define her, Emma continued to focus on what she could control: her effort, her attitude and her willingness to keep learning.
That's one of the most powerful lessons sport can teach young people.
Success isn't determined by how many times things go perfectly.
It's determined by what happens when things don't.
After retiring from gymnastics, Emma explored life beyond competition, building businesses, coaching others and pursuing new opportunities. But one feeling remained.
A sense that there was still unfinished business. [olympics.com.au], [gymnastics.org.au]
Trusting herself and the years of experience she had built, Emma returned to training in late 2023.
Just months later, she achieved a dream she had pursued for most of her life.
At 28 years old, Emma represented Australia at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. [ymca.org.au], [olympics.com.au]
It was the result of decades of learning, persistence and belief.
But the most important part of the story wasn't the Olympic arena.
It was everything that happened before it.
Emma's journey reminds us that sport isn't only about medals or results.
It's about discovering what you're capable of.
It's about building confidence, learning resilience and developing the courage to keep trying when things get tough.
It's about finding people who believe in you and learning to believe in yourself.
At the Y, we see those moments every day.
A child trying a new skill for the first time.
A young person finding their confidence.
A team celebrating progress together.
Those experiences can shape a lifetime.
Looking back now, Emma's Olympic story can be traced all the way to one important moment.
A six-year-old girl walking through the doors of the Y Epping.
She didn't know where the journey would lead.
She simply took the first step.
Because every sporting journey starts the same way.
One class.
One coach.
One new skill.
One opportunity to try.
And sometimes, that's all it takes to change a life.
Ready to help a young person start their story? Explore Y NSW Learn to Play programs today.
This article is part of Y NSW's Start Your Journey Here campaign, celebrating how community sport helps children build confidence, skills, resilience and a lifelong love of being active.
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