55 Facts About Nadia Comaneci

Nadia Elena Comaneci Conner was born on November 12,1961 and is a Romanian retired gymnast and a five-time Olympic gold medalist, all in individual events.

In 1976, at the age of 14, Comaneci was the first gymnast to be awarded a perfect score of 10.

At the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow Nadia Comaneci won two more gold medals and achieved two more perfect 10s.

Nadia Comaneci is one of the world's best-known gymnasts and is credited with popularizing the sport around the globe.

Nadia Comaneci has lived in the United States since 1989, when she defected from then-Communist Romania before its revolution in December that year.

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Nadia Comaneci later worked with and married American Olympic gold-medal gymnast Bart Conner, who set up his own school.

Nadia Elena Comaneci was born on November 12,1961, in Onesti, a small town in the Carpathian Mountains, in Bacau County, Romania, in the historical region of Western Moldavia.

Nadia Comaneci was born to Gheorghe and Stefania Comaneci, and has a younger brother.

Nadia Comaneci's parents separated in the 1970s and her father later moved to Bucharest, the capital.

Nadia Comaneci began gymnastics in kindergarten with a local team called Flacara, with coaches Duncan and Munteanu.

Nadia Comaneci was one of the first students at the gymnastics school established in Onesti by Bela and his wife, Marta.

In 1970 Nadia Comaneci began competing as a member of her home town team and, at age nine, became the youngest gymnast ever to win the Romanian Nationals.

Nadia Comaneci won the all-around and gold medals in every event but the floor exercise, in which she was placed second.

Nadia Comaneci continued to enjoy success that year, winning the all-around at the 'Champions All' competition and coming first in the all-around, vault, beam and bars at the Romanian National Championships.

In March 1976, Nadia Comaneci competed in the inaugural edition of the American Cup at Madison Square Garden in Manhattan.

Nadia Comaneci received rare scores of 10, which signified a perfect routine without any deductions, for her vault in the preliminary stage and for her floor exercise routine in the final of the all-around competition, which she won.

Nadia Comaneci was 14 and Conner was celebrating his 18th birthday.

Nadia Comaneci won gold medals for the individual all-around, the balance beam and uneven bars.

Nadia Comaneci won a bronze for the floor exercise and a silver as part of the team all-around.

Nadia Comaneci took over the media spotlight from gymnast Olga Korbut, who had been the darling of the 1972 Munich Games.

Nadia Comaneci's achievements are pictured in the entrance area of Madison Square Garden in Manhattan, where she is shown presenting her perfect beam exercise.

Nadia Comaneci was the first Romanian gymnast to win the Olympic all-around title.

Nadia Comaneci holds the record as the youngest ever Olympic gymnastics all-around champion [14].

When Nadia Comaneci competed in 1976, gymnasts had only to be 14 by the first day of the competition.

Nadia Comaneci was ranked as the BBC Overseas Sports Personality of the Year for 1976 and the Associated Press's 1976 "Female Athlete of the Year".

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Back home in Romania, Nadia Comaneci was awarded the Sickle and Hammer Gold Medal for her success, and she was named a Hero of Socialist Labor.

Nadia Comaneci was the youngest Romanian to receive such recognition during the administration of Nicolae Ceausescu.

Nadia Comaneci's floor exercise music was a medley of the songs "Yes Sir, That's My Baby" and "Jump in the Line, " arranged for piano.

Nadia Comaneci successfully defended her European all-around title at the championship competition in 1977.

Nadia Comaneci did not find this change positive and was struggling with bodily changes as she grew older.

Nadia Comaneci did win the world title on beam, and a silver on vault.

In 1979, Nadia Comaneci won her third consecutive European all-around title, becoming the first gymnast, male or female, to achieve this feat.

Nadia Comaneci was hospitalized before the optional portion of the team competition for blood poisoning, which had resulted from a cut in her wrist from her metal grip buckle.

Nadia Comaneci's performance helped give the Romanians their first team gold medal.

Nadia Comaneci had to undergo a minor surgical procedure for the infected hand, which had developed an abscess.

Nadia Comaneci was chosen to participate in the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow.

Nadia Comaneci won two silver medals, one for the team all-around and one for individual all-around.

In 1981, the Gymnastics Federation contacted Comaneci and informed her that she would be part of an official tour of the United States named "Nadia '81" and her coaches Bela and Marta Karolyi would lead the group.

Nadia Comaneci bounced around the bus talking to everyone—he was incredibly friendly and fun.

Government did allow Nadia Comaneci to participate in the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles as part of the Romanian delegation.

Nadia Comaneci later wrote in her memoir that many believed Romania went to the Olympics because an agreement had been made with the United States not to accept defectors.

Nadia Comaneci was able to see Karolyi's new protege, American gymnast Mary Lou Retton, who dominated the Olympics.

Romanian government continued to restrict Nadia Comaneci from leaving Romania, aside from a few select trips to Moscow and Cuba.

Nadia Comaneci had started thinking about retiring a few years earlier, but her official retirement ceremony took place in Bucharest in 1984.

Nadia Comaneci moved to Oklahoma in 1991 to help her friend Bart Conner, another Olympic gold medalist, with his gymnastics school.

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Nadia Comaneci lived with the family of Paul Ziert and eventually hired him as her manager.

Nadia Comaneci returned to Romania for their 1996 wedding, which was held in Bucharest.

Nadia Comaneci became a naturalized US citizen in 2001, while retaining her Romanian citizenship.

Nadia Comaneci was the featured speaker at the 50th annual Independence Day Naturalization Ceremony on July 4,2012, at Monticello, the first athlete invited to speak in the history of the ceremony.

Nadia Comaneci is a well-known figure in the world of gymnastics; she serves as the honorary president of the Romanian Gymnastics Federation, the honorary president of the Romanian Olympic Committee, the sports ambassador of Romania, and as a member of the International Gymnastics Federation Foundation.

Nadia Comaneci offered daily analysis of the 2016 games, for the late-night show E Campeao, broadcast on Brazil's SporTV.

Nadia Comaneci personally funded the construction and operation of the Nadia Comaneci Children's Clinic in Bucharest that provides low-cost and free medical and social support to Romanian children.

Nadia Comaneci was a member of "The Empresario" team, which lost to "The Hydra" team in the second episode.

Nadia Comaneci was known for her clean technique, innovative and difficult original skills, and her stoic, cool demeanor in competition.

Nadia Comaneci is credited as being the first gymnast to perform a double-twist dismount.