Romanians sweep all-around amid vault controversy

Published: 21 September 2000 y., Thursday
With bright eyes and a captivating smile reminiscent of another Romanian darling, tiny Andreea Raducan captured the Olympic women's gymnastics all-around gold medal Thursday -- and the fans' hearts, too.
Only 1.48 meters (4-foot-10) tall and nine days shy of her 17th birthday, Raducan easily won with 38.893 points, the first Romanian to take the all-around gold since Nadia Comaneci in 1976. As if that wasn't triumph enough for the Romanian team, which also won the team gold, Simona Amanar and Maria Olaru took the silver and the bronze medals. It's the first time a country has swept the all-around since the former Soviet Union did it in 1960. When Raducan finished her floor exercise, her last routine, the Romanian team began a raucous celebration. Amanar and Olaru exchanged hugs with their coaches, while team coach Octavian Belu grabbed Raducan and put her on his shoulders. She stood tall, waving to the crowd and blowing kisses, a wide smile on her face, as the crowd cheered.
Šaltinis: sportsillustrated.cnn.com
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