This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Sports

Niles North Mourns Loss Of 21-Year-Old Coach As Season Begins

Tragedy brings Vikings' girls' gymnastics team 'closer than ever.'

Sports teams rarely begin their seasons with news as tragic as that endured by the girls gymnastics team last week.

On Tuesday, Head Coach Charlie Freidman broke the news of the unexpected death of 21-year-old assistant coach Johnathan Rus to her 25 gymnasts, who were rocked by the loss. Athletic Director Karl Costello said an autopsy is being  performed to determine Rus’s cause of death.

Rus’s fiancée, Tricia Foertsch, is due to give birth in April. Rus’s Twitter account announced that he was a father-to-be. On Oct. 31, he tweeted, “I love my girlfriend with all my heart and I’m glad she is having my kid.”

Memorial services took place Friday at Linhart Funeral Home in Berwyn. His obituary was published Wednesday in the Chicago Tribune.

Rus’s death came as a shock to the entire team, which devoted part of its practice Wednesday night to creating a book of memories for Rus’s family. Teammates embraced one another with hugs and offered words of support as they shed tears at practice.

Earlier:

“We’re like a family, we’re there to support one another and we have each other’s backs,” said senior co-captain Kaitie Karlin.

This year would have been his first as assistant coach for the Vikings. Rus began working at Viking Gymnastics Club this past summer under Freidman, and had already gotten to know many of the girls on the team quite well.

“It’s amazing what an impact he had and how quickly he bonded with the girls,” said Freidman.

“We had developed a rhythm that most coaches don’t get into,” said Freidman. “It’s going to be a big adjustment for me.”

Despite the pain of loss, Freidman said, “I’m impressed with the way the girls have handled themselves so far. They seem to be closer than ever.“

The team is coming off the in school history. Last year it took the Central Suburban League North Conference and IHSA Regional Championships titles.

“We have already overcome so much and are closer than we have ever been,” said Karlin. “As a team, we have the potential to be awesome, we just have to realize that.”

The Vikings will kick off their season on Nov. 29 against New Trier at home.

Get more news. Like your local Patch on Facebook.

Find out what's happening in Niles-Morton Grovewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?