I grew up in Communist Russia and started doing gymnastics when I was three, so I was owned by the government. The coach who trained me was government-subsidized. I did rhythmic gymnastics, but it was never about presentation — it was about discipline. That was the value that was instilled in me.

You just train, train, train, train until you become perfect. And in gymnastics, there is no such thing as perfect. There’s a 10. And then there’s a 9.9, which is good, but it’s not as good as 10. Let’s say you’re doing a jump into a split. Are your legs parallel to the ground? That’s good. But if your leg is a little bit higher, that gets extra points.

At five years old, I started going to practice by myself. My mom gave me a ruble, put me on the bus, and said, “Take the bus to this train station. Take the train to another station, and walk from there. I’m going to take you through it once, and then you’re gonna do it on your own.” It’s unthinkable in America, but in Russia, things were different.