Post by Helen on Mar 13, 2008 15:30:43 GMT 4
Profile from: www.gymnasticgreats.com/
Born in 1979, three year's after Nadia Comaneci became a household name in Romania, young Nadia Hatagan actually spent the first bit of her life nameless. Her mother wanted to name her Silvia, but her father objected. At the suggestion of their eldest daughter, the new baby was named Nadia. "We thought, who knows? Maybe she will be a really good gymnast in the future," explained her father to a Romanian newspaper.
Nadia was interested in sports from a young age, often tagging along after her father to the local soccer games. One day, after hearing about the next selection at Deva, Nadia convinced her parents to let her try out for the team. Nadia was one of seven accepted that year - more than 180 had 'auditioned.'
Nadia excelled at Deva and in 1992, she joined the senior national team. In competition, she shined brightest on the uneven bars - an event she won at the 1993 Junior European Championships, 1993 International Japan Junior Invitational and 1993 Birmingham Classic. Unfortunately, injuries started hampering her career soon after. The day before the start of the 1994 World Team Championships, she severly sprained her ankle doing a "timer" vault. One year later, a sore left tendon kept her from competiting in all but one event, appropriately the uneven bars, at the 1995 World Championships. She eventually required two surgeries on the tendon.
Disheartened by her injuries, Nadia left Deva after the 1995 World Championships. She signed a contract with the Italian club Halma Juventus Fano. Competing in the Italian Nationals, she led the team to a silver.
Nadia then joined Bart and Nadia's post-Olympic tour, performing alongside Svetlana Boginskaya and Vitaly Scherbo. Following the tour, she retired and returned to Romania to persue an education. A student at the Sports University in Timisoara, Nadia hopes to one day become a gymnastics coach.
[glow=red,2,300]Results[/glow]
1992 Junior European Team Championships: 1st T
1993 Balkan Championships: 3rd AA
1993 European Team Championships: 3rd Team
1993 Junior International: 1st AA, 1st V, 1st UB, 1st BB, 4th FX
1993 Junior European Championships:
1993 Birmingham Classics: 4th AA, 1st UB
1994 Nikon International: 3rd AA, 2nd V, 4th UB, 1st BB, 7th FX
1994 World Championships: 8th AA, 7th UB, 8th BB
1994 USA vs ROM: 11th AA
1994 Birmingham Classic: 3rd AA
1994 World Team Championships: 1st T
1995 Romanian Nationals: 1st T, 4th AA
1995 World Championships: 1st T
1995 Italian National Championships: 2st T
Born in 1979, three year's after Nadia Comaneci became a household name in Romania, young Nadia Hatagan actually spent the first bit of her life nameless. Her mother wanted to name her Silvia, but her father objected. At the suggestion of their eldest daughter, the new baby was named Nadia. "We thought, who knows? Maybe she will be a really good gymnast in the future," explained her father to a Romanian newspaper.
Nadia was interested in sports from a young age, often tagging along after her father to the local soccer games. One day, after hearing about the next selection at Deva, Nadia convinced her parents to let her try out for the team. Nadia was one of seven accepted that year - more than 180 had 'auditioned.'
Nadia excelled at Deva and in 1992, she joined the senior national team. In competition, she shined brightest on the uneven bars - an event she won at the 1993 Junior European Championships, 1993 International Japan Junior Invitational and 1993 Birmingham Classic. Unfortunately, injuries started hampering her career soon after. The day before the start of the 1994 World Team Championships, she severly sprained her ankle doing a "timer" vault. One year later, a sore left tendon kept her from competiting in all but one event, appropriately the uneven bars, at the 1995 World Championships. She eventually required two surgeries on the tendon.
Disheartened by her injuries, Nadia left Deva after the 1995 World Championships. She signed a contract with the Italian club Halma Juventus Fano. Competing in the Italian Nationals, she led the team to a silver.
Nadia then joined Bart and Nadia's post-Olympic tour, performing alongside Svetlana Boginskaya and Vitaly Scherbo. Following the tour, she retired and returned to Romania to persue an education. A student at the Sports University in Timisoara, Nadia hopes to one day become a gymnastics coach.
[glow=red,2,300]Results[/glow]
1992 Junior European Team Championships: 1st T
1993 Balkan Championships: 3rd AA
1993 European Team Championships: 3rd Team
1993 Junior International: 1st AA, 1st V, 1st UB, 1st BB, 4th FX
1993 Junior European Championships:
1993 Birmingham Classics: 4th AA, 1st UB
1994 Nikon International: 3rd AA, 2nd V, 4th UB, 1st BB, 7th FX
1994 World Championships: 8th AA, 7th UB, 8th BB
1994 USA vs ROM: 11th AA
1994 Birmingham Classic: 3rd AA
1994 World Team Championships: 1st T
1995 Romanian Nationals: 1st T, 4th AA
1995 World Championships: 1st T
1995 Italian National Championships: 2st T