For Olympic bronze medalist Frederick Richard, everything began in a small Massachusetts gym — the place where he took thousands of turns, learned discipline, and discovered the sport that would shape his life.
“That was it,” he said. “I knew there was nothing else I wanted to do.”
Growing up, he didn’t see many boys in the gym — and even fewer who looked like him.
In the 2023-24 season, about 12,000 boys competed in gymnastics in the United States, compared with 138,000 girls. Richard isn’t waiting for representation to catch up; he’s helping create it. Now, at just 21, he’s using his platform to make gymnastics feel exciting, accessible, and cool for kids everywhere.
Online, he’s built a space full of energy and personality, posting flips, challenges, and collaborations with top athletes. His videos have racked up millions of views.
“Now I can show the world because they weren’t seeing this before,” he said.
Richard’s mission isn’t limited to social media. He’s meeting fans at his pop-up ‘Frederick Flips Fair’, an event that brings gymnastics directly to communities across the country.
“The first thing I noticed when I was watching people filter in,” he said. “There’s every age group, there’s every gender, there’s every ethnicity…this sport and this community, this thing I built, satisfies and fits everybody in their own way.”
Parents often tell him how much that visibility matters to their kids.
“They’re saying, ‘I watched you at the Olympics. I put my son into gymnastics because my son’s the only Black boy in his gym too — but he looks up to you.’ I’m hearing this all day, and I’m like, wow, it’s real.”
Watch the video above to see how Frederick is helping reshape the future of the sport.
