Nadia Comaneci Nadia Comaneci, born in 1961, Romanian-born gymnast, a favorite of fans and the media at the 1976 Olympic Games in Montréal, Québec, Canada, where she won three gold medals and a bronze medal in individual competition, and a silver medal for the Romanian team's second-place finish.

Nadia Comaneci Nadia Comaneci, born in 1961, Romanian-born gymnast, a favorite of fans and the media at the 1976 Olympic Games in Montréal, Québec, Canada, where she won three gold medals and a bronze medal in individual competition, and a silver medal for the Romanian team's second-place finish. Born in One?ti, Comaneci was noticed by renowned Romanian gymnastics coach Bela Karolyi (who later emigrated to the United States) when she was six years old. Karolyi recruited her for the Romanian junior gymnastics team, and in 1970 she won the national junior championship. Comaneci continued winning in her age group and collected other junior titles until she began senior competition in 1975, when she entered the European championships, winning the all-around title and three individual events. In 1976 Comaneci came to North America for the first time and won several pre-Olympic titles, often earning perfect scores for her routines. At the Olympics she became the first gymnast to receive a perfect score from the judges, earning a 10.00 in the uneven-bars event. She led Romania to the silver medal in the team competition, finishing behind the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), and then took the individual gold medals in the uneven-bars and the balance-beam events, while also winning the all-around competition. Comaneci went on to compete at the 1980 Olympics in Moscow, winning individual gold medals in the floor-exercise and balance-beam events. In 1989 she defected from Romania to the United States. In 1996 she married American gymnast Bart Conner, who won two gold medals at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles. Microsoft ® Encarta ® 2009. © 1993-2008 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.