Izbaşa and Druncea Leave for Oklahoma; Grigore to Stay at Home Due to Weight Issues

This just in from ProSport:


Sandra Izbaşa (photo: ProSport)

Izbaşa, off to Nadia's show

Olympic floor champion Sandra Izbaşa and teammate Dana Druncea are leaving for the United States today to compete in the Nadia Comăneci International Invitational. The competition, organized by Nadia, will take place in Oklahoma on February 20 [note: as far as we know, the elite portion of the competition is held on the 21st] and will unite over 600 gymnasts from America and another 25 athletes from the rest of the world.

"It's a club competition, and our national team members also have obligations to the clubs where they were raised and which continue to support them. For us, the competition in America will be to verify everything we have learned and rehearsed so far under the new code," we were told by the national head coach, Nicolae Forminte.


Andreea Grigore (photo: Bernhard Schwall/Gymfan)

Although a third representative of Steaua Bucharest, Andreea Grigore, had also been announced as a competitor, the coaches decided not to send her to the United States.

"Grigore is having great weight problems and may jeopardize her health [if she competes]. We have decided that it's better for her to stay in Deva and try to get rid of the excess weight she has gained," said the head coach.

Sounds like a lot of gymnasts are having weight issues at the moment. Recent reports from Italy, Brazil and China indicate that Vanessa Ferrari, Lais Souza and Zhou Zhuoru have all put on significant amounts of weight and are having some trouble shedding it. We'll spare you the details; suffice it to say Grigore is not the only one who has her work cut out for her.

Meanwhile, doesn't Sandra look great in that picture?

Druncea, Grigore, and Izbaşa Scheduled to Compete in Oklahoma Next Month

ProSport just posted another update on the Deva girls, this time with news about competition assignments (at the bottom of the article). Here you are!

Girls Training Normally

Having finished a ten-day training camp in the mountains during the holiday period, the members of the national gymnastics team have re-entered their regular training program, with two workouts a day.

"We can already see the effects of the conditioning work done in the mountains. The girls, especially the juniors, are better able to withstand exertion and constant training now. So far everything is going well. Things are back to normal now. Sandra has returned to the team as well, after we let her spend a few days at home. We're not having any particular problems," coach Nicolae Forminte said.

The technical staff and Federation officials will soon determine in which competitions the girls will compete this year. "We'll have a meeting to establish our competitive calendar and to commit to paper the training plan we have thought up for this year," explained coach Nicolae Forminte.

The competitive schedule has not been finalized yet, but the head coach did say the first competition of the year would take place in Oklahoma next month, at an international competition organized by Nadia Comăneci.

"It's a club competition, and the Steaua girls have been invited. Dana Druncea, Andreea Grigore, and Sandra Izbaşa will be going. After that, on February 21, we hope to send Ana Tămîrjan to the American Cup, also in the United States. Those will be our competitions in the near future. In addition, we'd like to send some juniors to test competitions. One such competition will be held in March, in either England or Italy. The exact place is still to be determined," the coach said.


Dana Druncea, scheduled to compete in Oklahoma in February
(photo: Jasmin Schneebeli-Wochner/Gymbox)

Could this be a junior ROM-ITA-GBR tri-meet in March? Cool. We look forward to that! Also, the Nadia meet should be fun, what with Dana Druncea, Andreea Grigore, and Sandra Izbaşa attending.

External link: Nadia Comăneci International Invitational