Letters to a Young Gymnast (21 page)

I feel as if I've lived the joy of a thousand lives. The difficulties seem like moments that barely touch the hours, days, and years of good times. I never forget that I need to share my good fortune with others. I'm involved in many charities, such as the Special Olympics, and I host the Jerry Lewis Telethon for the Muscular Dystrophy
Association every year. I'm really proud to be a part of the Laureus World Sports Academy, where elite athletes raise money for great causes all over the world. I also do fund-raising for AIDS-related organizations, especially those involving children. In addition, I help Bart run the Bart Conner Gymnastics Academy in Norman, Oklahoma, and together, we help gymnasts get college athletic scholarships that, in my mind, are so much more valuable for most children than shooting for a handful of Olympic spots and medals.

I could list all of the additional charities I help and the other work I do, but that would take away from the reason I do it all in the first place. It's not for acclaim or for medals; it's because I want to give back. I've discovered that doing for others is much more fulfilling than standing alone on a podium while crowds cheer your individual accomplishments. I'm part of a bigger plan now, and joining hands with people from around the globe who understand that giving and sharing can change the world is exactly where I choose to be.

Friend, you started writing to me because you wanted to know how I came to be Nadia Comaneci. You wanted to find out the secrets that made me tick; understand all of my experiences; figure out the effects of Romania, communism, Ceausescu's rule, defection, and love upon my life. Do you know more about me now than when we began? I think I do . . . but I am a mysterious and complex human being, and like everyone else, I constantly evolve. I've always achieved more in life than I had in mind. But I know that I can be more, do a better job, and contribute a greater amount to society.

I thank you for your letters and for wanting to know about me because as a result of looking back, I have
cleaned house; I have cleared away the cobwebs and old cardboard boxes holding tattered pictures, medals, broken dreams, disappointments, fears, past glories, and childhood wishes. There's more room to breathe now and to open some windows and locked doors and let a clean breeze sweep through closed up spaces. And now there's fresh air and light.

■
About the Author

At the 1976 Olympics in Montreal, Canada, a fourteen-year-old Romanian dynamo captured the hearts and minds of the world with her daring and perfection. We came to know her simply as “Nadia.”

By the time the 1976 Olympics ended, Comaneci had earned seven perfect 10s, three gold medals, one bronze, one silver, and countless fans. She appeared on the covers of
Time
,
Newsweek
, and
Sports Illustrated
, all in the same week, and returned home to Romania to a heroine's welcome.

Four years later, at the 1980 Moscow Olympics, Comaneci earned two more gold medals and two silver to bring her Olympic total to nine medals (five gold, three silver, one bronze). In 1996, she was inducted into the International Gymnastics Hall of Fame.

In April of that same year, Comaneci married American gymnast Bart Conner, himself an Olympic champion, in a Romanian state wedding. Comaneci now divides her time among appearances, commercial endorsements for major companies, speaking engagements, and charity events.

Currently, Nadia and Bart are partners with their manager, Paul Ziert, in the Bart Conner Gymnastics Academy,
International Gymnast
magazine, Perfect 10 Productions, Inc. (a TV production company), and Grips, Etc. (a gymnastics manufacturing company).

In 1999, Comaneci was honored by ABC News and
Ladies Home Journal
as one of the “100 Most Important Women of the 20th Century.” Comaneci, who is also fluent in French and English, continues to travel the world pursuing her various interests. Her charity work includes her positions as vice chair of the Board of Directors of Special Olympics International, vice president of the Muscular Dystrophy Association, and board member of the Laureus Sports for Good Foundation.

She and Bart live in Norman, Oklahoma.

Copyright © 2004 by Nadia Comaneci

 

 

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. For information, address Basic Books, 387 Park Avenue South, New York, NY 10016.

 

The text includes excerpts form
Feel No Fear: The Power, Passion, and Politics of a Life in Gymnastics
, by Bela Karolyi and Nancy Anne Richardson. New York: Hyperion, 1994.

 

Books published by Basic Books are available at special discounts for bulk purchases in the United States by corporations, institutions, and other organizations. For more information, please contact the Special Markets Department at the Perseus Books Group, 2300 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19103, or call (800) 810-4145, ext. 5000, or e-mail [email protected].

 

Comaneci, Nadia, 1961–

Letters to a young gymnast / Nadia Comaneci.

p. cm.

eISBN : 978-0-786-72865-7

1. Comaneci, Nadia, 1961–. 2. Gymnasts—Romania—Biography. 3. Gymnastics. I. Title.

 

GV460.2.C65A3 2003

796.42'092—dc22

 

2003017268