Australia's gymnasts have world-class facilities and support but will continue to under-perform without hard work and greater development of junior talent.
That's the blunt verdict from newly-appointed women's national team coach Mihai Brestyan ahead of this week's national championships in Melbourne.
Brestyan was appointed in March to replace the long-serving Peggy Liddick after Australia's women failed to qualify for the team event at the Rio Olympics.
A decorated coach in the United States, Brestyan believes Australia's gymnasts have the potential to deliver much better results.
"It's one of the countries I think should be on top of the world, based on the facilities you have, based on the conditions, on the support from the government," he told AAP.
"Something is wrong maybe in the concept of the preparation, and the idea of working hard is not enough compared to what we have in the United States.
"It's a huge difference - the efficiency of the practice, the intensity during the practice.
"The problem is how I can implement the knowledge from the books, from the TV, the clinics, in my gym, and what I do in there.
"This is, in my mind, a good challenge and I believe I can help."
With spots in the national team up for grabs, Romanian-born Brestyan is keen to see who can perform under pressure at this week's championships.
For the likes of Perth's Emily Little - the world's top-ranked vault, beam and floor gymnast - there is the chance to earn a spot in October's world championships in Montreal ahead of next year's Gold Coast Commonwealth Games.
While keen to stress that success won't happen overnight, Brestyan points to the United States as an example of how a strong performance on the world stage could help to grow the talent pool in Australia.
The success of the gold medal-winning 'Fierce Five' at the London Olympics led to the sport exploding in popularity in the United States, with team members appearing on talk-shows and Dancing with the Stars.
Brestyan oversaw the rise of superstar Aly Raisman, who won six Olympic medals - including three gold - across the London and Rio Games, and says her fierce commitment to training set her apart from her rivals.
"She is an amazing, hard-working girl - not necessarily the most talented but an amazing desire to succeed," he said.
"She likes to be there, she likes to be special, she likes to win and she put everything in.
"Her desire to be better tomorrow was putting her apart from any other."
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