Palade and Guţu Removed from Romanian National Team

The time for snowball fights appears to be over for the Romanian gymnasts. The girls and their coaches have returned to Deva, and Nicolae Forminte and his fellow coaches have dropped their first bombshell of the new year. Andreea Palade and Mădălina Guţu have been sent home due to a lack of motivation. As far as we know, Palade had been at Deva for two years, and Guţu for a bit longer than that.


Andreea Palade (photo: ProSport)

Here's what ProSport had to say on the matter:

Palade and Guţu Left Off Team

Gymnasts Andreea Palade and Mădălina Guţu have been expelled from the national senior team in Deva. The decision taken by the coaching staff has been approved by the Executive Committee of the Romanian Gymnastics Federation.

"We have taken this step because until now, these two gymnasts have not lived up to expectations. We have given them many occasions to prove that they are long-term prospects, but to no avail. What is required of us is performances, not a nice and high number of gymnasts on the national team. The two gymnasts have returned to their club, but the door to the national team will always be open for them. If their attitude and motivation improve, we look forward to seeing them again," coach Nicolae Forminte told ProSport.

Mădălina Guţu and Andreea Palade hail from LPS Oneşti.

(Watch Guţu's floor routine at the 2007 Romanian Nationals here, and her beam routine at the 2008 GER-FRA-ROM meet here. A few quick glimpses of Andreea Palade can be seen here.)


Mădălina Guţu (photo: Stefan Wurzer/Gymnasticsunited)