Octavian Belu
Encyclopedia
Octavian Ioan Atanase Bellu (oktaviˈan ˈbelu; b. February 17, 1951 in Ploieşti
) is the current head of the Romania
n national women's artistic gymnastics
team. He was the main coach with interruptions, between 1990 and 2005 and returned as head of the national team in 2010. Highly successful, Bellu led the team to five world and two Olympic titles, as well as coaching numerous individual gold medalists - since the 1991 break-up
of the Soviet Union
, Romania has been the most successful women's gymnastics power. He also coached such accomplished gymnasts as Lavinia Miloşovici
, Andreea Răducan
, Simona Amânar
, Gina Gogean
, and Cătălina Ponor
. During his time as head coach, his teams combined to win 82 World (59) and Olympic (23) medals. Octavian Bellu was inducted into the International Gymnastics Hall of Fame, May 2009.
where he studied the technical aspects of the sport, methodology and training. After graduation he worked for five years as a teacher of Physical Education at Valea Cǎlugǎreascǎ. At the same time he worked as a part time coach for young girls at the club where he was previously enrolled as a gymnast. In 1978-1979 he gave up his teaching position to become a full time coach at Petrolul Ploieşti and then at a club in Bacǎu
.
and Bela Károlyi
in USA. In 1990 Bellu took over as head women’s coach, succeeding Adrian Goreac. While serving as national coach in Deva, from 1990-2005, the national team won five consecutive world titles, from 1994-2001, and two Olympic team gold medals, in 2000 and 2004. Bellu’s gymnasts were absolutely dominant in the 2004 Olympic Games, winning four of the six available gold medals. During his time as head coach, his teams combined to win 82 World (59) and Olympic (23) medals.
. Bellu was also the president of the National Sports Committee and a state secretary in the Ministery of Sports.
Ploiesti
Ploiești is the county seat of Prahova County and lies in the historical region of Wallachia in Romania. The city is located north of Bucharest....
) is the current head of the Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
n national women's artistic gymnastics
Artistic gymnastics
Artistic gymnastics is a discipline of gymnastics where gymnasts perform short routines on different apparatus, with less time for vaulting . The sport is governed by the Federation Internationale de Gymnastique , which designs the Code of Points and regulates all aspects of international elite...
team. He was the main coach with interruptions, between 1990 and 2005 and returned as head of the national team in 2010. Highly successful, Bellu led the team to five world and two Olympic titles, as well as coaching numerous individual gold medalists - since the 1991 break-up
History of the Soviet Union (1985-1991)
The history of the Soviet Union from 1982 through 1991, spans the period from Leonid Brezhnev's death and funeral until the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Due to the years of Soviet military buildup at the expense of domestic development, economic growth stagnated...
of the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
, Romania has been the most successful women's gymnastics power. He also coached such accomplished gymnasts as Lavinia Miloşovici
Lavinia Milosovici
Lavinia Corina Miloşovici is a Romanian Olympic gymnast. An exceptionally successful athlete on the international competition circuit, Miloşovici, also known as "Milo" in the gymnastics community, is considered to be one of Romania's top gymnasts of the 1990s and one of the most prolific female...
, Andreea Răducan
Andreea Raducan
Andreea Mădălina Răducan is a retired gymnast from Bârlad, Romania.Răducan began competing in gymnastics at a young age and was training at the Romanian junior national facility by the age of 12½. As one of the standout gymnasts of the Romanian team in the late 1990s, Răducan was known for both...
, Simona Amânar
Simona Amânar
Simona Amânar is a Romanian gymnast. She is a seven-time Olympic medalist and a ten-time world medalist. Amânar helped Romania to win four consecutive world team titles as well as the 2000 Olympic team title. She has a vault named after her, the Amanar...
, Gina Gogean
Gina Gogean
Gina Gogean is a retired gymnast from Romania who competed internationally in the late 1980s and throughout the 1990s. During her career she won an impressive number of 30 medals at Olympic Games, world championships or continental championships...
, and Cătălina Ponor
Catalina Ponor
Cătălina Ponor is a gymnast from Constanţa, Romania. After beginning training with the national team in 2002, Ponor won several medals with the Romanian team, along with individual balance beam and floor exercise medals. Almost unknown until late 2003, Ponor has made several important...
. During his time as head coach, his teams combined to win 82 World (59) and Olympic (23) medals. Octavian Bellu was inducted into the International Gymnastics Hall of Fame, May 2009.
Early life and career
Bellu started out in gymnastics as a gymnast at Petrolul Ploieşti Sport Club and dedicated 13 years to this sport. Admittedly, he was an average gymnast and had troubles in this sport due to his height. He also played volleyball and basketball and took up diving. In 1974, he graduated from the Faculty of Physical Education and Sports Institute in BucharestBucharest
Bucharest is the capital municipality, cultural, industrial, and financial centre of Romania. It is the largest city in Romania, located in the southeast of the country, at , and lies on the banks of the Dâmbovița River....
where he studied the technical aspects of the sport, methodology and training. After graduation he worked for five years as a teacher of Physical Education at Valea Cǎlugǎreascǎ. At the same time he worked as a part time coach for young girls at the club where he was previously enrolled as a gymnast. In 1978-1979 he gave up his teaching position to become a full time coach at Petrolul Ploieşti and then at a club in Bacǎu
Bacau
Bacău is the main city in Bacău County, Romania. It covers a land surface of 43 km², and, as of January 1, 2009, has an estimated population of 177,087. The city is situated in the historical region of Moldavia, at the foothills of the Carpathian Mountains, and on the Bistriţa River...
.
National team 1981-2005
He became a coach of the national team in 1981 after the defection of MártaMarta Károlyi
Márta Károlyi , is an American gymnastics coach and the National Team Coordinator for USA Gymnastics. Károlyi is originally from Romania, she and her husband, Béla, are ethnic Hungarians, and trained athletes there as well, but defected to the United States in 1981...
and Bela Károlyi
Béla Károlyi
Béla Károlyi is a Romanian gymnastics coach. He was born in what was then Kolozsvár, Hungary, a region restored to Romanian administration after 1944. Károlyi and his wife, Márta, also of Hungarian origin, emigrated to the United States in 1981 and both have dual citizenships for Romania and the...
in USA. In 1990 Bellu took over as head women’s coach, succeeding Adrian Goreac. While serving as national coach in Deva, from 1990-2005, the national team won five consecutive world titles, from 1994-2001, and two Olympic team gold medals, in 2000 and 2004. Bellu’s gymnasts were absolutely dominant in the 2004 Olympic Games, winning four of the six available gold medals. During his time as head coach, his teams combined to win 82 World (59) and Olympic (23) medals.
Resignation and political career
Early 2005, Bellu and his coaching partner Mariana Bitang resigned their positions at the national team due to a media scandal. In 2006 Bellu and Mariana Bitang were hired as advisors on the staff of Romanian President Traian BăsescuTraian Basescu
Traian Băsescu is the current President of Romania. After serving as the mayor of Bucharest from June 2000 until December 2004, he was elected president in the Romanian Presidential Elections of 2004 and inaugurated on December 20, 2004...
. Bellu was also the president of the National Sports Committee and a state secretary in the Ministery of Sports.