OUR STAFF
At Diana's Rhythmic Club, our staff come from a diverse training backgrounds in rhythmic gymnastics, artistic gymnastics and dance. Our team has strong professional qualifications, and brings decades of experience in domestic, international, and Olympic competition to our gym.
Diana Shaqir
Owner and Head Coach
CES, AS in Sports Medicine
Master of Sports in Rhythmic Gymnastics
Diana brings over 20 years of coaching experience to the gym. Since opening Diana's Rhythmic Club in 2004, Diana has coached multiple national champions. She has received many awards for her coaching, including being selected as the Region 1 Coach of the Year multiple times (a high achievement in such a competitive region). She is also a certified judge for Levels 3-5 and Xcel. Diana coaches Levels 6-8 and our FIG Juniors and Seniors!
Mari Lira
AGG NorCal Owner
Xcel, Recreational & Flexibility Coach
B.S. Kinesiology Sport Management
Mari has over 8 years of coaching experience in California and Finland. She has worked with rhythmic gymnastics and also taught acrobatics, flexibility and technique for various dance, gymnastics, ice skating, and artistic swimming studios and individuals around the Bay Area. Mari is also the owner and director of AGG NorCal, the first Aesthetic Group Gymnastics club in Northern California.
Aliona Osadchaya
Team Coach, L3-5
Aliona has been working as a rhythmic gymnastics coach for X years. Growing up competing in Kazakhstan, she did XYZ. She currently coaches Levels 3-5. Her daughter Eva has been a member of the Development Program Team since XXXX, and currently competes at the FIG Level.
Hazal Gurcan
Team Coach, Xcel Director & Coach,
Recreational Coach, Dance Teacher
B.A. Dance, B.A. Psychological Science
Hazal has been coaching rhythmic gymnastics for over 10 years (and artistic gymnastics for 7 years). When she was younger, she trained extensively in dance, artistic gymnastics and rhythmic gymnastics. She has danced around the world (United States, Australia, Turkey), and been featured in choreography videos with award-winning choreographers. She has coached State Team Members and multiple state champions at multiple levels. She is a certified Xcel judge for both rhythmic and artistic gymnastics. She graduated with degrees in Dance and Psychology from UC Irvine in 2022, and is currently pursuing Masters degrees from Johns Hopkins and Dartmouth College.
Charlsie Green
Team Coach, L6-8 & FIG
Charlsie began training in artistic gymnastics at age 2 and rhythmic gymnastics at age 5, alongside formal dance training at age 3. As a rhythmic gymnast, she has competed at the state, regional, national, and international levels. She has trained at elite camps and National training camps with national level coaches and team members. She became a USA Gymnastics certified coach in 2020, and has trained and choreographed routines for a multitude of levels.
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Outside of gymnastics, she has studied ballet, tap, jazz, contemporary, modern, hip-hop, and musical theater. She was also performed with the Oakland Ballet Company and Peninsula Ballet Company.
Alisa Filonova
Recreational Coach
Alisa competed in rhythmic gymnastics at Diana's Rhythmic Club until 2025. She competed up until the FIG level, where she ended her final season as the Hoop, Ball, Ribbon and All Around Bronze State Champion. She started coaching at an early age, having a younger sister who is also a rhythmic gymnast. She now works as a coach in our recreational program, working with our Level 1 Beginners.
Noel Nam
Junior Coach
Noel began training in rhythmic gymnastics in 2017, and competed for 6 years until 2023, when she retired as an FIG Junior. During her time in the sport, she qualified for and competed at USA Nationals as part of an FIG Group Routine. After leaving the sport, Noel transitioned from rhythmic gymnastics to competitive dance, where she is now in her third year of training. She has been coaching with Diana's Rhythmic Club for 3 years.
Emiliya Ileeva
Xcel Coach
Emiliya has been involved with rhythmic gymnastics for most of her life. As a high level competitive gymnast, she developed strong technique, discipline and a deep appreciation for the sport. She has coached many gymnast across Northern and Southern California. Through coaching, she has gained experience in teaching routines, improving flexibility and coordination, and helping gymnasts grow both mentally and physically. She believes in creating a positive and supportive training environment where athletes feel confident, motivated, and proud of their progress.
Mariam Zazunishvili
Recreational Coach
Mariam has been working at Diana's Rhythmic Club as a recreational coach for multiple years. She excels in working with young gymnasts and challenging them to achieve their potential.
Olga Sibiriyov
Team Coach
Olga is a former member of the Israeli National Rhythmic Gymnastics Team. She brings decades of experience to her coaching. She currently works with Development Program Levels 6 & 7.
Kennedy Barnes
Recreational Coach
Kennedy has been coaching gymnastics for 5 years in the recreational, pre-competitive, and competitive tracks. She has coached multiple state champions across the Development Program and the Xcel Program. With her background as a pre-competitive program director at an artistic gym, Kennedy has become skilled in identifying and training talented young gymnasts into competitive athletes.
Isabelle Connor
Team Coach
Tokyo 2021 Olympic Team Member,
Group Rhythmic Gymnastics (USA)
Isabelle Connor is a 2021 Tokyo Olympian, Multiple National Champion, and Pan-American Silver Medalist. She is currently studying astrophysics at UC Santa Cruz.