Moscow to Beijing via life in Dallas

When Nastia Liukin arrives for competition at the National Indoor Stadium in Beijing, she will remove her warm-up suit...

When Nastia Liukin arrives for competition at the National Indoor Stadium in Beijing, she will remove her warm-up suit, emblazoned emphatically with the letters 8220;USA8221;, and compete in a red, white and blue leotard.

But as Liukin leaps to grab the bars in Beijing, she will do so with a sense of history and pride that differs vastly from that of her team mates.

Anastasia Valeryevna Liukin was born in Moscow in the fall of 1989, just as the Soviet Union faced collapse. Her mother wasn8217;t just another pretty Russian face, but a world champion rhythmic gymnast, a product of the Soviet athletic empire. Her father, Valeri, is a Kazakh who is the owner of four medals 8212; two gold, two silver 8212; from artistic gymnastics Seoul, 1988.

Typical American kid? Nastia Liukin speaks fluent Russian and relishes her trips to visit her grandparents and great-grandparents in Moscow. She learned to write in English before her parents, occasionally teaching them their ABC8217;s through her homework.

8220;I would never trade being Russian, deep down, for anything,8221; Liukin said. 8220;But I do feel, I guess, American, because I compete for the US, and I would never trade that. It8217;s kind of like, I8217;m happy and I8217;m proud of who I am. I8217;m proud of being Russian, but I8217;m proud to compete for the US.8221;

When the Liukins moved to the United States in early 1992, Nastia was just 2 1/2. After 18 months in New Orleans, they moved to the Dallas area. Valeri saved some money, then founded the World Olympic Gymnastics Academy in Texas. They toted Nastia to the gym because they could not afford child care.

8220;We were very busy when we were gymnasts, and we just jumped into gymnastics again,8221; Valerie says. 8220;We kept moving ahead, but we didn8217;t think that8217;s what we wanted for our daughter.8221;

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Though Nastia mimicked the routines her parents were teaching older children, Anna and Valeri said they not only hesitated to push Nastia into gymnastics, they pushed her away. First came piano lessons. 8220;I didn8217;t like it,8221; Nastia said.

So the Liukins gave in. Both coach and athlete say Valeri pushes his daughter in the gym just as he would any of his pupils. But there is, too, the parental part. During competitions, Anna often becomes so nervous she departs the gym when Nastia performs.

Should Liukin perform her bar routine flawlessly, there will be no need for jitters. At the national championships, she twice scored 17s, unprecedented for an American.

At the trials, Liukin heard the screams from the crowd as she warmed up. 8220;Nastia! Nastia!8221; came the shrieks from tweens, and she would occasionally smile and wave.

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Forget that they might not know her full name or from where she came. The daughter of Soviet legends will compete for them, for the United States. She wouldn8217;t dream of it another way. 8220;I8217;m proud of my name,8221; she said. 8220;I8217;m proud of who I am. I would never change or wish for anything different than who I am.8221;