In real estate the saying is Location, Location, Location. In gymnastics it’s Coaches, Coaches, Coaches and in particular experienced coaches! OGC is very fortunate to have some of the best, highly-trained and award-winning coaches in the country.

OGC only employs coaches with National Coaching Certifications (NCCP) from Gymnastics Canada (this is an important distinction when considering a facility for your children). Our philosophy is “We Teach Children Not Skills”. We are very proud of our coaches and their accomplishments, which are listed below. We hope you take a few minutes to read about our coaches.

Tobie Gorman
Women’s Head Coach and Program Director

Tobie started coaching in 1971 and the Ottawa Gymnastics Centre has been her home since 1976. Tobie is fully certified in Level 3 Women’s Artistic, Level 3 Choreography, a fully certified Level 2 Trampoline Coach and is working towards her Level 4 certification.

Tobie has coached at all levels of gymnastics including Kindergym, Recreational, Developmental, Pre-Competitive, Provincial, National and High Performance.  Tobie says she’s had the privilege to work with many talented athletes over the years and holds close to her heart our philosophy of “We teach children not skills”!

Tobie has had the honour to represent OGC, the City of Ottawa, Gymnastics Ontario and Gymnastics Canada on numerous occasions throughout her coaching career.  Career highlights include; Coach of the 2003 Canadian Pan American Team (Santa Domingo, Dominican Republic); the 2003 World Championship Team (Anaheim, California) and the 2004 Canadian Olympic Team (Athens, Greece).

Past awards include; 2001 Gymnastics Canada National Coach of the year, 2003 Ottawa Female Coach of the year, 2003 Ontario Female Coach of the Year, 2004 Gymnastics Canada High Performance Coach of the Year. In 2008 Tobie was awarded a Lifetime Membership to Gymnastics Canada!

Tobie can be contacted at tob_ogc@hotmail.com or 613-722-8698, ext. 300.

Lori Ierullo
Kindergym Program Director

Lori has been a member of the Ottawa Gymnastics Centre since 1971, first as a competitive gymnast, and then continued her love for the sport through coaching.  She was a competitive coach for 31 years, training many Provincial and National Champions culminating in the Olympic Games in Athens in 2004 where she, along with Women’s Head Coach Tobie Gorman coached Olympians Melanie Banville and Heather Purnell, before retiring from coaching in the competitive program in 2005.

Lori has been the Program Director for our highly-regarded Kindergym Program since its inception in 1980.  In 2006, Lori received the Ontario Coaching Excellence Award for program development at the Grassroots Level.  OGC’s Kindergym Program provides gymnastics to children ages 8 months to 6 yrs and offers classes 7 days a week to an average of 700 children per week.  She brings to the program her technical expertise in gymnastics as well as her love for children and along with her experienced staff, has developed the Kindergym Program into one of the largest and most respected in Canada (OGC was named Club of the Year by Gymnastics Canada in 2004)!

Some of Lori’s accomplishments are; Bachelor of Physical Education (Honours), Ottawa University, 1980; fully certified NCCP Level 3 Artistic, Level 2 Trampoline; 2003-2004 Senior Women’s International Coach of the Year (Gymnastics Canada); 2005 National Coach of the Year (Gymnastics Canada); 2006 Ontario Coaching Excellence Award (Sport Ontario) and coach of 2004 Olympians Melanie Banville and Heather Purnell.  She was also a Torch Bearer for the Vancouver Olympic Torch Relay where her selection was based on her committment to promoting physical activity in a positive environment through the Kindergym Program.

Lori can be contacted at lierullo_ogc@rogers.com or 613-722-8698, ext. 301.

Colin Richardson
Men's Head Coach and Program Director

Colin has been with the Ottawa Gymnastics Centre since the fall of 1997 when he moved from Kingston to attend high school and train in Ottawa as a High Performance National athlete.  Colin has earned a Bachelor of Social Science with honours and is currently enrolled in a one-year intensive Bachelor of Education program.

Colin is a veteran of eight Canadian National Gymnastics Championships; six as an athlete; one as a personal coach and one as the Open National Provincial Team Coach.  He is a fully certified National Coaching Certification Program (NCCP) Level 3 Men's Gymnastics Coach, Level 2 Women’s Gymnastics Coach and a Level 2 Trampoline Coach.  Colin also has completed both the Gymnastics Canada and Gymnastics Ontario Risk Management Courses and has Emergency Level First Aid training. He has been our Men’s Head Coach and Program Director since 2006.

Colin can be contacted at crichardson_ogc@rogers.com or 613-722-8698, ext. 303.

Robert McKay
Recreation Program Director

Robert joins the Ottawa Gymnastics Centre with a strong coaching and administrative background. Robert earned a Bachelor’s degree in Kinesiology specializing in coaching and has certificates in computer programming and sports administration.

Robert has worked in the sporting industry for 15 years, both as a coach and administrator in gymnastics and tennis. He was head coach of a gymnastics club for 6 years and coached many levels of gymnastics including Recreational, Developmental, Pre-Competitive, Provincial and National. Robert is certified in Level 3 Women’s and Men's Gymnastics and is a Level 1 Trampoline Coach.

Robert can be contacted at rec_ogc@rogers.com or 613-722-8698, ext. 302.