Brody Malone practices his routine on the horizontal bar during practice. Photo by Wes Roberts.

Just off the grounds of SRQ Airport is a nondescript office park, filled with identical, metal barn-style buildings. There is nothing on the outside to signify that this place is special, aside from a sign on one of the buildings: EVO Gymnastics. For it is inside this cavernous space that some of the best gymnasts in the world train, from Olympic darlings such as Brody Malone and Stephen Nedoroscik—better known as the “Pommel Horse Guy”—to former U.S. National champions such as Donnell Whittenburg to up and coming Junior National team members like 17-year-old Hunter Simpson and 16-year-old Jackson Kurecki.

“What’s unique about EVO is that we have athletes from elementary, middle and high school in the junior level through 17 years old, then we have the senior guys or 18-plus and then there are the high profile athletes, Olympians and medalists,” says Syque Caesar, the Men’s Senior Elite head coach at EVO. “These younger guys get to see what the best in the world are doing on a day-to-day basis, their highs and their lows. If they crash and burn they can see that these “high profile” athletes are still human.”

From August 7-10, 11 male gymnasts from EVO—five members of the Junior Elite team and six members from the Senior Elite team, including Malone, Nedoroscik and Whittenburg—will compete in the Xfinity U.S. Championships in New Orleans. On August 9, EVO will be hosting a viewing party to cheer on the team, free and open to the public. The U.S. Championships, the final domestic elite event of the artistic season, are critical for a number of reasons. Not only is there a chance to win a national championship—Malone is a three-time U.S. all-around champion, Nedoroscik is a four-time national champion on pommel horse—but selection to the Junior and Senior National teams is also up for grabs, which in turn could lead to the opportunity to make the 2025 World Championship rosters.

Although artistic gymnastics is one of the most physically demanding sports, much of Caesar’s work with his athletes revolves around their mental state. “Our entire team culture is based off of three tenants: humility, gratitude and 100% responsibility. We try to push that on everyone here and then the gymnastics part is secondary. I’m constantly talking to these guys more about the approach to the sport than the actual flips and maneuvers they're attempting."

US Championships Gymnastics View Part, August 9, 6:30pm, 7188 15th St East, Unit 2, Sarasota, 34243

Brody Malone practices his routine on the horizontal bar during practice. Photo by Wes Roberts.

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