Lakeland teen tumbler to represent America in World Championships
LAKELAND, Fla. - Years of training in the gym are paying off for a Lakeland teenager who is the only teen from Florida going to the World Championship.
Nastia Kutchalova,16, said it's taken her years to pull off lightning-fast, high-flying moves that have many people doing a double-take.
She's headed to the World Championship in Baku, Azerbaijan in November.
"I am very nervous about that competition," she said. "It is a world competition."
Kutchalova has been tumbling since she was just two years old.
"I grew up in the gym," she shared.
Her upbringing isn’t surprising. Kutchalova’s family owns a gym.
Her mom and dad are former Cirque de Soleil performers and her grandparents, who came to Florida from Russia to perform at Cypress Gardens and in circuses, now run Elite World Gymnastics in Lakeland.
Even though all the members of her family are accustomed to being in the spotlight, her mom still gets nervous when Nastia competes.
"It is the most nerve-racking thing I have ever done in my life," her mom, Kristina Muzzarelli said.
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