Valery Lyukin took up gymnastics when he was seven years old and made the Soviet national team in 1985. During his career, Lyukin competed at the 1988 Olympics, winning two golds (horizontal bar and team event) and two silvers (individual all-around, parallel bars), at three World Championships, winning team golds in 1987 and 1991 and an individual all-around bronze in 1991. But probably the best tournament for Lyukin was the 1987 European Championships, where he won four golds (individual all-around, parallel bars, horizontal bar and floor exercise), rings silver and vault bronze. After the fall of the Soviet Union, Lyukin continued to compete for a couple more seasons, representing his native Kazakhstan, but did not medal in major tournaments and decided to retire. After retirement, Lyukin and his wife Anna Kochneva, the 1987 World champion in rhythmic gymnastics, moved to America, first living in New Orleans and later settling in Plano, Texas. Together with Yevgeny Marchenko, Lyukin owns and runs three World Olympic Gymnastics Academy locations. He coached the 2004 Olympic individual all-around champion Carly Patterson and his own daughter, the 2008 Olympic individual all-around champion Nastia Liukin. Lyukin was the International Coach of the Year in 2000 and 2004 and was inducted into the International Gymnastics Hall of Fame in 2005.