[April 25] Romanian International Championships: surprising edition

[April 23] Vox Populi: President Bush has to award a medal to Hero Liviu Librescu!

[April 19] Liviu Librescu, The Hero. Everybody's Hero
romanian-gymnastics.com
NEW YORK / America was the first to name him The Hero; Israel, his adoption country, named him "Our Hero"; Romania, his native country, named him Hero also and gave him the highest distinction; the Romania's Parliament honoured him today with a minute of silence. Liviu Librescu has become Everybody's Hero, the greatest Honor somebody can get, above any medal or State Funerals.
     Photo:
National order The Star of Romania, awarded to Liviu Librescu
    Despite the strongest political turmoil taking place these days, (actual President may be suspended today by Parliament), in his darkest moments, President Basescu has found the time to award, at once, to Liviu Librescu Romania's highest distinction. We are all grateful for that to him and his team. 

[April 18] President Bush spoke about Romanian born Hero Liviu Librescu
romanian-gymnastics.com
WASHINGTON /   President George W.Bush has visited today the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington. During his speech he mentioned the Romanian born Hero Liviu Librescu:
  "Our flags fly at half-mast in memory of 32 souls whose lives were taken at Virginia Tech on Monday morning. That day we saw horror, but we also saw acts of quiet courage. We saw this courage in a teacher named Liviu Librescu. With the gunman set to enter his class, this brave professor blocked the door with his body while his students fled to safety. On the Day of Remembrance, this Holocaust survivor gave his own life so that others might live. And this morning we honor his memory, and we take strength from his example."   
  
[April 18] Romanian born Hero Liviu Librescu received Highest Award

[April 17] Romanian born and Holocaust survivor saved Students' Lives
romanian-gymnastics.com
BUCHAREST, Romania/ Liviu Librescu, a Romanian born who survived the Nazi killings and later escaped from Communist Romania, was one of several foreign victims of Monday's shootings, which coincided with Israel's Holocaust remembrance day.
   Photo: Liviu Librescu
    The e-mails from grateful students arrived soon after Liviu Librescu was shot to death, telling how the Holocaust survivor barricaded the doorway of his Virginia Tech classroom and saved their lives at the cost of his own.
    "My father blocked the doorway with his body and asked the students to flee," Librescu's son, Joe Librescu, said Tuesday in a telephone interview from his home outside Tel Aviv. "Students started opening windows and jumping out." Joe Librescu, who studied at Virginia Tech from 1989 to 1994, said his mother received e-mails from students shortly after learning of her husband's death. The gunman, identified as Cho Seung-Hui - a 23-year-old English major and native of South Korea - killed 32 people, then committed suicide.
    The academic community in Romania also was mourning Librescu's death. "It is a great loss," said Ecaterina Andronescu, rector of the Polytechnic University in Bucharest, where Librescu graduated with a degree in mechanics and aviation construction in 1953. "We have immense consideration for the way he reacted and defended his students with his life."     At the Bucharest university, people placed flowers on a table holding his picture and a lit candle.
    President of Romania Traian Basescu, Prime Minister Calin Popescu-Tariceanu and Minister of Foreign Affairs Adrian Cioroianu sent today messages of condolences to their US counterparts expressing sincere regrets for the tragic deaths of 33 students and professors in the incidents at Virginia Tech University on April 16 th , 2007 . Romanian authorities expressed solidarity with the American people in these tragic moments of profound distress. The romanian authorities also addressed heartfelt condolences to the family of Professor Liviu Librescu...  
To honor and remember the victims, a website has been created by Virginia Tech so those within the university community and around the world may share condolences, thoughts, and prayers.
     Share your condolences - Click Here

[April 16] Romanian Gymnastics International Championships Results
romanian-gymnastics.com
PLOIESTI, Romania/ The 50th edition of Romanian International Championships ended Sunday at Ploiesti under the Romanian gymnastics team expected dominance. Here are the full results of the competitions; for detailed results, check the PDf files.

[April 13] Despite political turmoil, Octavian Belu remains ANS President
romanian-gymnastics.com
BUCHAREST/ Romania's Prime Minister Tariceanu has visited the National Sport Agency (ANS) headed by Octavian Belu, to express his full support -at least that's was the official excuse for a no-use, no-consequences but rather grab-some-points-in-polls meeting at the ANS headquarters yesterday.
  Photo:
Romania's Prime Minister Tariceanu and Octavian Belu, ANS President
    Octavian Belu, former main coach of the Romanian gymnastics team, has been named as ANS President by the democratic Party, which resigned from the Government last week. Octavian Belu was the only leader (are you surprised? guess not!) named by the Democratic party, to keep his job after this political turmoil. 

[April 12] Ploiesti Internationals, last test for Romanian gymnastics
romanian-gymnastics.com                                        
PLOIESTI / Romanian International Championships, the last test of Romanian gymnastics team before European Championships, will start tomorrow at Ploiesti, a refinerys city 40 miles North Bucharest.TVRi will broadcast on web.
       Nicolae Forminte, the main coach of women team, will put on test Sandra Izbasa, Steliana Nistor, Aluissa Lacusteanu and Andreea Grigore (they look for a place in the team for Euros) and juniors Gabriela Dragoi, Cerasela Patrascu, Madalina Gutu, Andreea Acatrinei, Adriana Tamarjan and Ana Maria Tamarjan .
  Photos:
Nicolae Forminte, the main coach of Romanian gymnastics team and Aluissa Lacusteanu at Ploiesti International Championships 2006
      Nicolae Forminte has complained once more about the girls health; past months he seems to always complaining about something, starting with referees at Worlds last year and again at World Cup this year. Bad attitude.

[April 6] Olympic champions donated clothes for charity auction
romanian-gymnastics.com
BUCHAREST/   Olympic champions and Romanian gymnastics stars Andreea Raducan and Monica Rosu   donated some of their  clothes at a Charity auction for the benefit of Romanian athletes in need. The auction was organized by the Romanian National Sport Agency, headed by Octavian Belu, the former coach of the Romanian gymnastics team.
  Photo:
Romanian gymnastics Star Andreea Raducan
  Andreea Raducan, the Romanian gymnastics star which has attracted a huge sympathy during Sydney Games after being asked to return her Olympic medal (found positive at drug test) , offered her gymnastics costume from Sydney Games; it was sold with 35mil. Lei, which is around $1500.

[April 4]Catalina Ponor returned training; her scarlet fever arrived faster
romanian-gymnastics.com
BUCHAREST/ Catalina Ponor, the Romanian gymnastics Star, has returned Monday to training at National training Center in Bucharest, after a two weeks pause caused by scarlet fever. Catalina Ponor was supposed to stay in quarantine, but her flashing red convertible car couldn't get unnoticed by her local fans, during late evenings, nearby Constanta's main disco, a Ceausescu's former communist propaganda and brainwash-alike center named "The House of Culture".
   Photo: Catalina Ponor cries after Romania won the gold during the women's gymnastics team final at the 2004 Summer Olympic Games in Athens, Tuesday, Aug. 17, 2004. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)
  Robert Stanescu, Catalina's boyfriend and member of the Romanian gymnastics male team, was emergency hospitalized last Saturday due to scarlet fever. The scarlet fever has a 21 days incubation period, which mean he got it three weeks ago.

[April 3] Federer wins Sportsman of Year Award; Nadia Comaneci glowed
romanian-gymnastics.com
   BARCELONA/ Tennis star Roger Federer won his straight Laureus sportsman of the Year award for the third year in a row in Barcelona overnight.
   Romanian gymnastics star Nadia Comaneci glowed once more as a member of Laureus World Sports Academy: her appearance in a blue dress was sensational.

   Photo: Laureus World Sports Academy member Nadia Comaneci and dancer Joaquin Cortes;
Photo by Ian Walton/Getty Images for Laureus

    A 42-member panel of the Laureus World Sports Academy picked Federer for the top honour over a group of finalists that included golfer Tiger Woods and former Formula One champion Michael Schumacher.  
Nadia Comaneci at Laureus Sports Awards Photo Gallery

[April 2] Nadia Comaneci as Foreign Minister-succesful Foul's Day Story
romanian-gymnastics.com
BUCHAREST/ Former Romanian gymnast Nadia Comaneci, being named as the new Romania's Foreign Ministry was a successful April 1st Fool's Day story. We received hundreds of e-mail asking for details or congratulating Nadia Comaneci for being named in such a honorable position (which she may deserve, anyway). Romanian gymnastics fans have to wait longer for this to happen...or maybe just until next April 1st?....

[April 2] Andreea Raducan in TVRi documentary
romanian-gymnastics.com
  Bucharest/ Romanian gymnastics Star Andreea Raducan will be featured in a documentary about her live, made by Romanian TVR1 and replayed today on TVRi (available live on web for free, click here) today at 21,30 local time (14,30 NY).
  The recorded first part of the documentary about Andreea Raducan can be found here.



[April 2] Nadia Comaneci arrived at Laureus Sports Awards
 romanian-gymnastics.com
Barcelona/ Romanian gymnastics and World Sports Legend Nadia Comaneci arrived yesterday in Barcelona to attend the the eighth annual Laureus Awards Ceremony.
   Yesterday's program of Laureus Academy members included a visit to the Barcelona Olympic Museum, a photo session at Miramar Hotel and a Laureus Welcome Party at Shoko.
    Barcelona will be the focus of the sporting world as the eighth Laureus Awards Ceremony, attended by global figures from sport, entertainment and fashion, is staged in the city.
    FC Barcelona President Joan Laporta and players Puyol, Ronaldinho and Xavi are to attend the 2007 Laureus World Sports Awards.

[April 1] Nadia Comaneci named Foreign Ministry; Karolyi is back!


Romanian Gymnastics News Archive.