Comaneci hails Halep for uniting Romanians
LONDON — When Romania’s Simona Halep clambered up into the stands on Philippe Chatrier Court moments after winning her first Grand Slam title at the French Open last month, compatriot Nadia Comaneci was waiting to greet her with a big smile and outstretched arms.
While the hug shared between two of Romania’s most famous sporting icons was witnessed by a global audience of millions who rejoiced in Halep’s victory, Comaneci was among the minority who knew the feelings buzzing through the champion’s head.
After three previous Grand Slam final failures, Halep seemed more relieved than elated in her moment of triumph and covered her face with both hands as she tried to make sense of it all.
“It needs time to sink in. You have this euphoria of winning and you are thinking ‘I can’t believe this is for real’,” said Comaneci, who sent the sporting world into a spin in 1976 when she became the first gymnast to score a perfect 10 at the Olympics.
“Then you are questioning yourself — ‘Is it really for real?’. Then you sleep on it and you wake up in the morning and you realize, ‘Oh it wasn’t a dream, the trophy is here in my room. It really happened’,” she added with a laugh.
“In my case, even the next day I did not realize the enormity of what I had achieved. It was only when I arrived back in Romania and there were 10,000 people at the airport and I thought, ‘Wow, this is a big deal’.”
Halep’s return to her homeland last month was also a big deal. More than 20,000 people turned up to hail their new hero at Bucharest’s National Arena and Comaneci said the Roland Garros triumph allowed Romanians from all corners to unite.
“Sport always brings people together so it was nice to see people of all ages in Romania had this moment of happiness,” Comaneci said by telephone before hosting a threeday camp with 140 children at the Bart Conner Gymnastics Academy in Oklahoma.
A snapshot of Halep, soccer great Gheorghe Hagi and Comaneci partying together during the post-match celebrations in Paris provided a reminder of the world-class athletes Romania has produced in the past four decades.
But in the run-up to Halep’s triumph on June 9, it seemed as if Romanians would have to delve into the history books or dust off their old VHS tapes if they wanted to enjoy sporting glory.
Since Hagi’s retirement, the country has failed to qualify for the past five soccer World Cups, and while Comaneci and her fellow gymnasts won 25 Olympic golds from 1976 to 2012 — 2016 marked their nadir as Romania failed to win a single medal in the sport in the Rio Games. The whole Olympic team won just four medals in Rio — its lowest tally since 1952.
After so much doom and gloom, Comaneci hopes Halep’s win will act as a catalyst for a new generation of champions.
“It will be a boost for sport for the generation to come. It shows everybody that with hard work and dedication, you can be at the top,” said the 56-year-old.