As a six-year-old, Perla Denéchère began training at Avoine Beaumont Gymnastique under coaches Marc and Gina Chirilcenco, dreaming of representing France on the international stage. That dream became reality as she helped France win team gold at the 2024 European Junior Championships and the 2025 Junior World Championships. But now, just a year later, the 16-year-old has decided to leave her homeland and continue her career with Qatar.

The decision surfaced just a day after Marc and Gina Chirilcenco confirmed they would leave France to take up coaching positions in Qatar. According to Patricia Denéchère, Perla’s mother, the family will be making the move along with them. “We’re going together and following our coaches to Qatar,” Patricia said in an interview with ICI Touraine on July 2. “Perla has always supported her coaches. Apart from Marc and Gina, I don’t see anyone.”

For Patricia, the move is about more than loyalty to the coaches who have been part of her daughter’s life since childhood. She believes Perla’s future within the French system became increasingly uncertain amid the tensions surrounding the Chirilcencos and the French Gymnastics Federation. “No. She will no longer represent France. She will represent Qatar, of course,” she confirmed.

The coaching duo faced two administrative investigations over allegations linked to their coaching methods. Both investigations ultimately cleared them of wrongdoing, although a separate judicial investigation remains ongoing. Patricia argues that Perla felt the effects of the controversy despite never being the subject of any investigation herself.

She pointed to the European Championships preparation camp as an example, claiming her daughter, “Wasn’t called up for the European Championship training camp. She was invited. And when you’re invited, everything is at your own expense. When you’re called up, the Federation pays for everything. So, Perla isn’t at the training camp. The Federation made this decision. And at some point, we can’t continue like this, living like this.”

However, reports from French outlet L’Équipe present a more complicated picture. According to the newspaper, the French Gymnastics Federation had established an individualized performance plan for Denéchère that included technical, educational, medical, and financial support. The report also stated that Denéchère had declined three consecutive national team call-ups during the dispute surrounding her coaches, to support them.

Following those refusals, the federation reportedly suspended certain logistical and financial support. Nonetheless, Denéchère was not ruled out of any consideration for the national team and was still called up to the European Championships selection camp on July 3.

However, the news that she is to represent Qatar unearthed another big issue: how can a French gymnast represent Qatar if she doesn’t seem to have Qatari citizenship?

Why Qatar could become Perla Denéchère’s next home in gymnastics

There is no public evidence that Perla Denéchère already holds Qatari citizenship. Her family is French, and her mother, Patricia Denéchère, is from Avoine in France’s Indre-et-Loire department. Under International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) rules, athletes must hold the nationality of the country they represent in international competition.

That means Denéchère would likely need to obtain Qatari nationality, or another legal status recognized under FIG regulations, before she could officially compete under Qatar’s flag. She would also need approval through FIG’s nationality transfer process.  But her mother believes, “Qatar… for Perla, it was something that was available to her, because the French Gymnastics Federation doesn’t offer her much. It’s not a decision taken lightly.” But why Qatar?

Also, the move is tied to an ambitious project being developed by the Qatar Gymnastics Federation. As the country prepares for the 2030 Asian Games in Doha, officials are reportedly investing heavily in women’s artistic gymnastics and have recruited longtime French coaches Marc and Gina Chirilcenco to help lead that effort.

According to French media reports, including L’Équipe, the coaches have already brought several gymnasts from their Avoine-Beaumont club to the training courses, including Perla Denéchère, Rose Marchand, Emeline Le Rouzic, and Spanish gymnast Sophia Martin. Three additional foreign gymnasts have also reportedly joined training camps connected to the initiative. French gymnast Léa Franceries, 21, is currently the only athlete publicly known to have formally informed the French federation of her decision to join the project.

For now, Denéchère’s planned switch remains a work in progress, but her future appears increasingly likely to unfold far from the country she once helped lead to junior European and world titles.