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| Birth Name(s) : Dominique Moceanu |
Date of Birth: N/A |
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Single
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Full Dominique Moceanu Biography
Dominique Helena Moceanu (born September 30, 1981 in Hollywood, California) is an American gymnast of Romanian descent who was a member of the Olympic Gold medal winning 1996 U.S. Women's Gymnastics team in Atlanta (the "Magnificent 7").
The hallmarks of Moceanu's gymnastics, in the early stage of her elite career, were daring tricks on balance beam and spunky, inspired presentation on floor exercise. In the latter part of her elite career, under the direction of new coaches, she developed a more elegant, mature style. Although she was never considered to be an overwhelmingly innovative gymnast, she did display a high level of difficulty in her gymnastics, particularly on beam and floor.
Moceanu was born on September 30, 1981 in Hollywood, California to parents Dimitru and Camelia. She has one sister, Christina. Moceanu's parents, who had both been gymnasts in their native Romania, had early aspirations for her gymnastics career: while she was still a toddler, they tested her strength by allowing her to hang from a clothesline.
Under Károlyi's tutelage Moceanu became the U.S. Junior National Champion in 1994. In 1995 she repeated her success as a senior, becoming the youngest gymnast ever to win the U.S. Championships. She was also the youngest member of the American team at the 1995 World Championships in Sabae, Japan. Moceanu did not disappoint, earning the highest American placement in the all-around competition and becoming the only American gymnast to win an individual medal, a silver on the balance beam.
At the Olympics, still struggling with her injury and sporting a heavily bandaged leg, Moceanu contributed heavily to the team gold medal, turning in such strong performances that she qualified for the event finals on balance beam and floor exercise. However, she faltered in the last rotation of team finals, falling on both of her vaults. She only advanced to the all-around finals as a replacement for injured teammate Kerri Strug. Small mistakes cost her a medal, but she still placed a respectable ninth. In the balance beam event final, Moceanu suffered a horrifying fall when she missed a foot on a layout and crashed into the balance beam on her head. She finished the exercise and went on to a strong performance in the floor finals later that day, finishing fourth and just missing a medal.
Following the Atlanta Olympics, Dominique participated in numerous events and professional gymnastics exhibitions, including a 100-city tour, before returning to competition. With the retirement of the Károlyis, she began training with other coaches at Moceanu Gymnastics, a gym constructed and run by her family.
Out of peak form, Moceanu placed ninth at the 1997 US Nationals. She participated in the 1997 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Lausanne, Switzerland, leading a new and mostly inexperienced US team. She was elected team captain, and qualified for the all-around final, but the competition was not a positive experience for her.
By 1998, however, Moceanu returned to top form. Under the tutelage of her new coach, Luminita Miscenco, she adjusted to a significant growth spurt and developed a clean, elegant style. She was selected for the American team at the 1998 Goodwill Games, where she became the first and only American to ever win the all-around title. In doing so, she defeated reigning World all-around champion Svetlana Khorkina, as well as the World silver and bronze medalists, Simona Amanar and Elena Produnova. Many consider this competition to be the highlight of Moceanu's career.
Training with Mary Lee Tracy at the Cincinnati Gymnastics Academy (CGA), Moceanu placed 8th at the 2000 U.S. Nationals. She qualified for the Olympic Trials, but was forced to withdraw with a knee injury.
After a five-year hiatus from elite gymnastics, Moceanu announced a return to competition in 2005. However, injury kept her from competing in the 2005 Nationals. She remained committed to her comeback efforts, training on floor and vault.
In the summer of 2006, Moceanu was invited to attend the USA Gymnastics national training camp. She also competed at the 2006 US Classic, where she performed decently on vault, successfully executing a full twisting Tsukahara vault. On floor she went out of bounds on her tucked full-in pass and fell on her double pike, posting one of the lowest FX scores of the meet.
In a decision that proved to be somewhat controversial, Moceanu was not able to qualify to the 2006 U.S. National Championships. Moceanu stated that she had been informed that she would advance to Nationals by attending the National Training Camp and competing at least two events at the Classic. Despite meeting these requirements, she was not able to qualify to Nationals based on her Classic performances. Moceanu appealed this decision with USA Gymnastics, but the ruling was not overturned.
Moceanu is currently a student at John Carroll University in Cleveland, Ohio. On November 4, 2006, she married long-time boyfriend and former Ohio State gymnast Dr. Michael Canales in Houston, Texas. |
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