Born in Turkey and raised in Ontario, Canada, where his family moved when he was a toddler, this shining talent began gymnastics at the young age of five and quickly accumulated an impressive total of 31 gold, 26 silver, and 16 bronze medals by the age of fourteen. At age 14, he competed for Canada at the 32nd Artistic Gymnastics Men’s European Championship in Bern, Switzerland. But even with all his early promises, his gymnastics career was about to end at one point. But what was the reason?

He did not get any proposals from the NCAA until the Oklahoma coach found him. While talking to Inside Gymnastics on March 26, Oklahoma’s Emre Dodnali revealed some harsh truths about his gymnastics career. “No one responded to me…I was in terrible shape. I wasn’t even doing gymnastics. No one was interested, but then Mark (Williams) took a chance on me,” he said. The NCAA gymnast star’s way to Oklahoma was as unlikely as it was heartwarming. Fast forward to 2025, and Dodanli is a team captain, a five-time All-American, a 4.0 student, and an Olympian—poised to cap his college career as one of the most decorated athletes in NCAA gymnastics. It was a faith-based decision made by a coach, Mark Williams, who could see potential in him when probably everyone else failed to see. 

But even once he’d gotten there, the battle wasn’t over yet! “It was rough…I didn’t know if I was going to make it, and I think my coaches wondered that, too. I came in unable to do most of my skills because I’d been out of the gym so long. I basically had to relearn everything, and it was a long process.” The last recorded competition that Emre participated in before joining the Sooners in 2022 was the US Gymnastics Championships and the FIG Junior World Championships, both in 2019. In the former meet, he placed 3rd on the pommel horse, fifth on parallel bars, and eighth in all-around. In the later meet, his highest placement came in the floor routine with 20th rank, and the rest were all below 30.

According to Emre, he kept gymnastics aside in favor of joining college in Canada—until he was approached by Oklahoma in 2022. While being a part of Oklahoma, he started participating in the meets and was named CGA Rookie of the Week for his 14.000 scores on the floor against Nebraska, and later, he was named the CGA 2022 All-American Scholar-Athlete First Team.

Dodanli’s journey isn’t just a personal triumph! It’s a testament to the power of second chances. As the Sooners prepare for another shot at glory, his story resonates beyond the gym. All eyes are on Dodnali as this year will be his third year participating in the NCAA Championships.

Oklahoma Gymnastics Captain Emre Dodnali ready for his third NCAA Championships

As the 2025 NCAA season progresses, Dodanli will be competing in his third

NCAA championship with the Sooners. Though the team’s last NCAA Championship title was won in 2018, the 2025 season has high hopes once again of taking back the crown. During his freshman NCAA season in 2022, he was announced as an All-American for his performance on floor (14.466) and vault (14.733).  Well, next year, in 2023, he competed for Oklahoma in all 11 meets and again earned the AA American title for floor. He was also given the title of CGA regular season all-American on floor and vault, MPSF All-Conference (floor and high bar), MPSF All-Academic Team, and MPSF Gymnast of the Week thrice. Also, Emre secured 14.438 on NQS on the floor, which was the second-highest score nationally in 2023.

Talking about his two NCAA titles. The first he earned was in 2022, with two individual event titles in the season. Next titles came in the 2024 season, when he recorded his season highs on high bars (14.150) and parallel bars (14.333). He brings that experience—tested on both surfaces—to a team eager for glory.

The stakes are higher. A third NCAA championship for Dodanli would be a personal victory, linking him to Oklahoma’s rich tradition while shining a light on his incredible turnaround. The Sooners’ dominance of the past few years, though temporarily interrupted by Stanford and Michigan’s recent dominance, hangs over the program’s DNA. “

I never knew what a team was until I began competing for this team,” Dodanli has explained. As the NCAA Championships loom in April 2025, his abilities—reconstructed from ground zero—and his presence could prove to be the difference.