Today we’d like to introduce you to Christopher Muras.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Where to start. I grew up in a small town in southeast Minnesota, called Winona. I was your normal everyday kid playing and trying every sport and running around the neighborhood parks. I grew up with a brother and a sister and my mom was a single working mom. Life wasn’t easy growing up. I struggled to fit in, make friends, and connect to other classmates. With my father out of the picture, I stepped into the role of helping my mom take care of my siblings while also helping around the house. At a young age, I felt this was maybe why I didn’t resonate well with other kids, because I had to be an adult at such a young age. Sports always came easy to me, but I never felt comfortable in sports. This was a dynamic I never understood until later in life. At around the age of 12, my mom needed to have major back surgery that would leave her bedridden for almost 9 months and then rehab for another 6. I took on most of the responsibility of taking care of my siblings and my mother. During that year, I had to quit all sports, as I had no one to drive me and had to help take care of my mom. There was a nurse that would help take care of her while we were at school, but once we got home they would leave. I was the one that had to help my mom sit up, shift her when she needed, cook dinner for the family, and do laundry. It was a huge undertaking at the age of 12 to have to do so much for my family. I lost my childhood, and I lost sports. Middle school and high school was not a fun time for me. I had a very hard time connecting and making friendships. I felt rejected and unwanted, while also feeling alone. I soon realized I was not normal as well. I was gay, but I was not out and tried so hard to fit in. Bullying and rejection were a normal part of my daily struggles as a student. I dreaded school, even though I loved learning. I wanted to be there for the learning, but never wanted to go for the sake of the trauma I was facing day to day. I immersed myself in school and focused solely on that. Right when I turned 15, I got a job so I could make money. My mother told us if we ever wanted anything in life we had to work for it. If I wanted a cell phone, I had to pay for it. If I wanted a car, I had to pay for the car, gas, and insurance. There was very little that my mother helped financially with us. After all she was a single mother with three kids and trying to make things float. I always looked up to my mom for how hard she worked to support our family. Often times we would stay at grandma and grandpa’s house. They were an integral part of our upbringing. As I navigated high school, I knew I wanted to be the first in my family to go to college and get a bachelor’s degree. I wanted to be an attorney for the longest time. I went to Winona State University on Federal Loans that I am still paying to this day. I graduated with a couple of degrees. I have a bachelors in science – criminal justice, a bachelor of arts – Spanish and a minor in Child Advocacy. I met some of the most amazing friends in college, came out of the closet to be free to be me, I rekindled my love for sports and played on the Men’s Volleyball team at Winona State, and even got to live in Spain for 5 months studying abroad. After I graduated, I did an internship with an attorney and realized that maybe going to law school wasn’t for me. While I was in college, I started coaching gymnastics at a nearby club. After coaching there all four years, I knew I developed a passion and longing to be in the sport of gymnastics. It was challenging, yet exciting and every day was a new opportunity to grow and be better. I moved to Minneapolis in 2013 and started coaching in the cities while trying to figure out what I was going to do for work and a career. Everything I thought about doing, I couldn’t picture myself without coaching gymnastics. So in 2017, I decided to get my Masters in Education and Sports Management. While attaining my master’s, I volunteer to coach for the University of Minnesota Gophers Women’s Gymnastics team. Once I started this journey, this is exactly where I needed to be and exactly what I needed to do. After graduating, I got a job at Illinois State University as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator. I have been here since the fall of 2019. Although I had a very tough upbringing, and lots of trauma to come with it, I know this is where I am supposed to be. I am here to help teach our future athletes and human beings. I get to coach and pursue my passions every day in the gym. My love for sport and coaching is something I never thought I would be doing, but every day I am grateful that this is where my path has led me.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
It has been everything but smooth. Not one path I was on was smooth, in fact, it was mountainous and treacherous, but made me better because of it.
Some struggles included
– Financial – growing up with a single mom and no money
– paying my own way to school and having debts
– being gay and navigating the heteronormativity we are faced with day to day
– growing and advancing in my career while overcoming my childhood traumas
– quitting sport and being bullied as a child has had lasting effects on my relationships today
– having a falling out with my mother and losing that relationship.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I currently coach Division 1 Gymnastics at Illinois State University. I specialize in coaching the uneven bars and vault. I am the current spotter and do all the spotting to ensure the utmost safety of all our athletes.
I am known for my drive, and determination to be better and to make our team better. I am always learning new things to help impact our team and move them forward in the rankings. I have a lot of heart and compassion for my athletes and always coach the human in them.
I am most proud of being named assistant coach of the year by our conference, producing two national qualifiers in the NCAA championships, and having a regional vault champion in 2021.
I think what sets me apart from others is that I am always seeking opportunities to better myself as a coach and human. I understand that it is my job to grow and become a better coach for our university, but most importantly for my athletes.
What do you like and dislike about the city?
What I miss most about Minneapolis is the diversity and opportunity the city brought. I think that is what was best about the city. You could always meet so many people from all walks of life on any given day. I think what I liked least was the traffic commuting from one job to the next.
Contact Info:
- Website: goredbirds.com
- Instagram: cjgymcoach
- Twitter: cjmuras
Image Credits
Labat Photography
