Nadia Comăneci

Nadia Comăneci
Comăneci in 2024
Personal information
Full nameNadia Elena Comăneci
Nickname(s)Nana
Born (1961-11-12) November 12, 1961
Onești, Romanian PR
Height5 ft 3.5 in (1.61 m)
Spouse
(m. 1996)
Gymnastics career
DisciplineWomen's artistic gymnastics
Country
represented
 Romania
(1970–1984 (ROU))
College teamPolitehnica University of Bucharest
GymNational Training Center
Former coach(es)Béla Károlyi
Márta Károlyi
ChoreographerGéza Pozsár
Eponymous skillsComăneci salto (uneven bars)
RetiredMay 7, 1984 (official)
Medal record
Representing  Romania
Women's artistic gymnastics
Event 1st 2nd 3rd
Olympic Games 5 3 1
World Championships 2 2 0
World Cup Final 2 1 0
European Championships 9 2 1
Summer Universiade 5 0 0
Total 23 8 2
Olympic Games
1976 MontréalAll-Around
1976 MontréalUneven Bars
1976 MontréalBalance Beam
1980 MoscowBalance Beam
1980 MoscowFloor Exercise
1976 MontréalTeam
1980 MoscowTeam
1980 MoscowAll-Around
1976 MontréalFloor Exercise
World Championships
1978 StrasbourgBalance Beam
1979 Ft. WorthTeam
1978 StrasbourgTeam
1978 StrasbourgVault
World Cup Final
1979 TokyoVault
1979 TokyoFloor Exercise
1979 TokyoBalance Beam
European Championships
1975 SkienAll-Around
1975 SkienUneven Bars
1975 SkienBalance Beam
1975 SkienVault
1977 PragueAll-Around
1977 PragueUneven Bars
1979 CopenhagenAll-Around
1979 CopenhagenVault
1979 CopenhagenFloor Exercise
1975 SkienFloor Exercise
1977 PragueVault
1979 CopenhagenBalance Beam
Summer Universiade
1981 BucharestTeam
1981 BucharestAll-Around
1981 BucharestUneven Bars
1981 BucharestVault
1981 BucharestFloor Exercise

Nadia Elena Comăneci Conner (née Comăneci; born November 12, 1961) is a Romanian retired gymnast. She is a five-time Olympic gold medalist, all in individual events. In 1976, at the age of 14, Comăneci was the first gymnast to be awarded a perfect score of 10.0 at the Olympic Games. At the same Games (1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal), she received six more perfect 10s for events en route to winning three gold medals. At the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow, she won two more gold medals and achieved two more perfect 10s. During her career, she won nine Olympic medals and four World Artistic Gymnastics Championship medals.

One of the world's best-known gymnasts, Comăneci was praised for her artistry and grace, which brought unprecedented global popularity to the sport in the mid-1970s. Called "the most iconic gymnast of the 20th century" by El País, Comăneci was named one of the Athletes of the 20th century by the Laureus World Sports Academy.

Comăneci has lived in the United States since 1989, when she defected from then-Communist Romania, before its revolution in December that year. She later worked with and married American Olympic gold-medal gymnast Bart Conner — a wedding which was held in Bucharest after the fall of the Communist regime and televised live in Romania.