The Olympic Games without the Romanian gymnastics

For the first time in the last 48 years, the Romanian womens artistic gymnastics team have failed to qualify to the Olympic Games.

România Internațional, 18.04.2016, 13:10

40 years ago, Romanian Nadia Comaneci got the first perfect 10 in the history of modern gymnastics, after her performance in the uneven bars final at the Montreal Olympics. The scoreboard recorded her prefect 10 as 1, since the hardware was not capable of displaying 10. Since then, along the years, the Romanian women gymnasts have stepped onto the Olympic podium bringing Romania the most medals at the Olympic Games: 25 gold, 20 silver and 26 bronze.

The Romanian women’s gymnastics team was strong and feared, always competing for top rankings. Unfortunately, they missed qualification to the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro this summer, which has not happened since the Olympic Games in Mexico in 1968. Romania has failed to qualify to the Rio Olympics, ranking 7th in the pre-Olympic tournament. After many failures and with some injured gymnasts, Romania was outrun even by Australia, which a while ago, did not even count in the world standings. Instead, Brazil, Germany, Belgium and France qualified to the Rio Olympics. Coached by Lucian Sandu, Adela Popa and Maria Furnea, Romania lined up Diana Bulimar, Maria Hobura, Anamaria Ocolisan, Catalina Ponor, Dora Vulcan and Silvia Zarzu in the pre-Olympic tournament. Although Catalina Ponor, multiple World and European champion and Olympic medallist, got the highest mark of the Romanian gymnasts in the beam event, she failed in the vault competition.

Diana Bulimar, Anamaria Ocolisan and Dora Vulcan performed poorly in the uneven bars event, experts considering that apparatus the most difficult one. Vulcan and Zarzu put up a modest show in the floor event as well. The disappointment comes after the men’s team, bronze medallist at the Athens Olympic Games in 2004, also failed to qualify to the Rio Olympics.

However, Romania will be represented by three gymnasts at the Rio Olympics. Marian Dragulescu, who qualified due to the silver medal he had got in the vault event at the World Championships in Glasgow in 2015 and another gymnast, to be subsequently designated, will participate in the men’s competition. The teams that missed qualification are given a place by the International Federation. Since no Romanian women’s gymnasts managed to reap a silver medal at the World Championships and the women’s teams failed to qualify, Romania will get an invitation from the International Federation for another gymnast.

(Translated by A.M. Palcu)