Béla Károlyi

Béla Károlyi (born September 13, 1942 in Cluj-Napoca, Romania), is an world-renowned gymnastics coach. Together with his wife, Marta, Károlyi has coached United States and Romania Olympic teams to medal success.

Related Topics:
September 13 - 1942 - Cluj-Napoca - Romania - Gymnastics - United States - Olympic

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Károlyi's debut as a coach was in 1974. His Olympic coaching debut was during the 1976 Olympics in Montreal. He was also a coach for Romania at the 1980 Moscow Olympics. During a Romanian team tour of the United States in 1981, he and his wife, Martha defected, getting political asylum in the US. They settled in Oklahoma.

Related Topics:
1974 - 1976 - Montreal - Romania - 1980 - Moscow - United States - 1981 - Martha - Oklahoma

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Károlyi was asked by a group of businessmen to join in a gym business venture the same year in which he moved to the US. He decided to invest in the business and the Károlyis relocated to Houston, Texas. The gym ran into economical problems, however, and Károlyi ended up buying it.

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At the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles, California, Károlyi attended as an individual coach. The next time he returned to an Olympic competition, at the 1988 Olympics in Seoul, he had been named head coach of the United States team overall. He returned in that position at the 1992 games in Barcelona.

Related Topics:
1984 - Los Angeles, California - 1988 - Seoul - 1992 - Barcelona

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Károlyi only oversaw coaching of the United States women's team at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, but the team won the team competition gold medal, and the image of him carrying an injured Kerri Strug on his arms after she secured the team gold medal became arguably one of the most enduring images in sports history. (See the photo at OlympicsGallery/jul24_sprain.html).

Related Topics:
1996 - Atlanta - Gold - Kerri Strug

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The Károlyis have an Olympic training camp in Houston, and they continue to run the gym they bought in 1982. Among the gymnasts that Béla and Martha Károlyi have trained are Mary Lou Retton, Betty Okino, Kerri Strug, Carly Janiga, Nadia Comaneci and Dominique Moceanu.

Related Topics:
Houston - Mary Lou Retton - Betty Okino - Kerri Strug - Carly Janiga - Nadia Comaneci - Dominique Moceanu

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Károlyi has trained nine Olympic champions, fifteen world champions, sixteen European medalists and six U.S. national champions.

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