Andreea Răducan facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Andreea Răducan |
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Răducan in 2006
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| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Full name | Andreea Mădălina Răducan | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Country represented |  Romania |
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| Born | 30 September 1983 Bârlad, Romania |
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| Hometown | Bucharest, Romania | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 149 cm (4 ft 11 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Discipline | Women's artistic gymnastics | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Level | Senior International | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years on national team | 1998–2002 (ROM) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Club | Club Sportiv Cetate Deva, Farul Constanța | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Gym | Deva National Training Center | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Head coach(es) | Octavian Bellu | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Assistant coach(es) | Mariana Bitang, Lucian Sandu | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Music | 1998–2001: Las Carretas del Rocio 2000: Reel Around the Sun 2001: Éclipse 2002: Meet Her at the Love Parade and Right in the Night |
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| Retired | January 6, 2003 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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Andreea Mădălina Răducan (born September 30, 1983) is a former gymnast from Bârlad, Romania. She is now a sports announcer and journalist.
Andreea started gymnastics when she was very young. By age 12, she was training with Romania's junior national team. She was known for her difficult moves and beautiful dance routines. During her four years as a senior gymnast, she won many medals. These included three individual World Championships titles. She won on the floor exercise in 1999 and 2001, and on the balance beam in 2001.
At the 2000 Sydney Olympics, Andreea helped her team win a gold medal. She also won a silver medal on the vault. She was first in the all-around competition. But she was later disqualified and lost her gold medal. This happened because she tested positive for a banned substance. She and her coaches said she was given cold medicine by the team doctor. They said it did not help her performance.
Her case got a lot of attention. Many people supported her. The Court of Arbitration for Sport looked into it. Andreea herself was cleared of any wrongdoing. But her medal was not given back. The team doctor was banned for two Olympic cycles. After the Olympics, Andreea won five more World Championships medals. She retired from gymnastics in 2002.
Contents
Early Gymnastics Career
Andreea Răducan began gymnastics at four and a half years old. She trained in her hometown of Bârlad. By 1996, she had won over twenty medals. She was then invited to train at the junior team facility in Onești. Two years later, she moved to the national training center in Deva.
Her first big international event was the 1998 Junior European Championships. There, she won a silver medal on the balance beam. She also tied for bronze on the floor exercise. The next year, she joined the senior team. At the World Championships in Tianjin, China, she won the floor exercise. She also placed fifth in the all-around.
Andreea was known for her expressive routines. She showed a wide range of complex skills. This made her stand out from other gymnasts.
Sydney Olympics Experience
Andreea competed well at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney. She helped the Romanian women's team win their first Olympic team gold medal since 1984. She also made it to the finals for floor and vault. Along with her teammates Simona Amânar and Maria Olaru, she reached the all-around final.
The all-around final had a big problem. The vault was set too low. This made it dangerous for gymnasts. Many gymnasts had falls or injuries. When the mistake was found, officials fixed the vault. They allowed gymnasts to try again.
Andreea had vaulted on the wrong height. But she did not fall. She continued to perform well. She won the all-around gold medal. Her teammates, Amânar and Olaru, won silver and bronze. This was the first time since 1960 that gymnasts from one country won all three all-around medals. It was also the last time this could happen. A new rule now limits each country to two gymnasts in the all-around final. Andreea later won a silver medal in the vault final.
Losing the All-Around Gold Medal
Days after the competition, the International Olympic Committee announced a problem. Andreea Răducan had tested positive for a banned substance. It was called pseudoephedrine.
Andreea and her coaches said she was innocent. She was a minor at the time. They said she just followed the team doctor's advice. In her book, Andreea explained she took cold medicine for a fever and cough. This medicine contained the banned substance. She said it made her feel dizzy.
Despite many appeals, she lost her gold medal. The gold was given to Amânar. Olaru moved up to silver. Liu Xuan from China got the bronze. Andreea's other medals from the team and vault finals were not affected. She kept those.
At first, Olaru and Amânar did not want the new medals. But they decided to accept them for Romania. Amânar said the gold medal truly belonged to Andreea. Andreea later said that the medal belongs to Amânar now, and they are fine with it.
What Happened Next
Andreea's case went to the Court of Arbitration for Sport. This happened in September 2000.
Andreea was cleared of any personal wrongdoing. She did not get a ban from sports. The International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) also agreed. They said losing her medal was punishment enough. The FIG, IOC, and Romanian Olympic Committee all agreed to punish the team doctor. He was banned.
Andreea was still seen as a positive figure. She received a lot of support in Romania. Even famous gymnast Nadia Comăneci supported her. The Romanian President greeted her when she returned home. She received a replacement gold medal from a jeweler. She also got sponsorships and prize money. The Romanian government gave her a special passport.
After the Sydney Olympics
Andreea continued to train in Deva after the Olympics. Many of her teammates retired. This made her one of the most experienced gymnasts. At the 2001 World Championships in Ghent, Belgium, she helped Romania win team gold. She also won four individual medals. These included gold on floor exercise and balance beam. She also won bronze in the all-around and vault.
Injuries affected her training in 2002. After a difficult performance at the World Championships in Hungary, she retired.
After retiring, Andreea became a sports announcer in Romania. She worked for EuroSport at the 2004 Olympics. She also has her own TV show. She does modeling and promotional work. Andreea also has a master's degree in journalism.
In 2010, Andreea wrote her autobiography. It is called The Other Side of the Medal. It shares more about her disqualification at the 2000 Olympics. A 2020 film called Golden Girl also covers her story.
Leading Romanian Gymnastics
On August 4, 2017, Andreea Răducan was chosen as president of the Romanian Gymnastics Federation. She took over from Adrian Stoica. It was a big challenge for Andreea. The Romanian team did not qualify a full team for the 2016 Olympic Games. This was the first time since 1968.
Romania hosted the European Gymnastics Championships in April 2017. They hoped to do well at the 2017 World Gymnastics Championships. But their best all-around gymnast, Larisa Iordache, got injured. Another medal hope, Cătălina Ponor, did not qualify for her events.
Andreea stepped down from her role. This happened after neither the women's nor men's teams qualified for the 2020 Summer Olympics.
Gymnastics Skills
Andreea Răducan was known for her impressive skills:
- Vault: Round-off half twist on, front layout off.
- Balance beam: Full twisting back salto, double pike back dismount, tucked Korbut.
- Floor exercise: Double laid-out salto, Whip salto (immediate connection) Back-double pike salto, 2.5 twisting back layout (immediate connection) punch-layout-front, Triple-twisting back layout.
Competitive History Summary
Andreea Răducan competed in many events. Here are some of her top results:
- 1998 Junior European Championships: Silver on Balance Beam, Bronze on Floor Exercise.
- 1999 World Championships: Gold with Team, Gold on Floor Exercise.
- 2000 European Championships: Silver on Floor Exercise, Bronze with Team.
- 2000 Olympic Games: Gold with Team, Silver on Vault, Disqualified from All-Around.
- 2001 World Championships: Gold with Team, Gold on Balance Beam, Gold on Floor Exercise, Bronze in All-Around, Bronze on Vault.
Images for kids
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Răducan in 2006
See also
In Spanish: Andreea Răducan para niños
- List of Olympic female artistic gymnasts for Romania
- List of top female medalists at major artistic gymnastics events
