A legendary gymnastics coach died Friday, according to USA Gymnastics.
Bela Karolyi, best known for training legends Nadia Comaneci and Mary Lou Retton, died at 82.
No cause of death was given.
Karolyi and wife Martha trained multiple Olympic gold medalists and world champions in the U.S. and Romania, including Comaneci and Retton.
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“A big impact and influence on my life,” Comaneci, just 14 when Karolyi coached her to gold for Romania at the 1976 Montreal Olympics, posted on Instagram.
The Karolyis defected to the United States in 1981 and, over the next 30-plus years, became a guiding force in American gymnastics, though not without controversy. Bela helped guide a 16-year-old Retton to the Olympic all-around title at the 1984 Games in Los Angeles and memorably helped an injured Kerri Strug off the floor at the 1996 Games in Atlanta after Strug’s vault secured the team gold for the Americans.
Karolyi briefly became the national team coordinator for the USA Gymnastics women’s elite program in 1999 and incorporated a semi-centralized system that eventually turned the Americans into the sport’s gold standard. It did not come without a cost. He was pushed out after the 2000 Olympics after several athletes spoke out about his tactics.
It would not be the last time Karolyi was accused of grandstanding and pushing his athletes too far physically and mentally.
During the height of the Larry Nassar scandal in the late 2010s, over a dozen former gymnasts came forward saying the Karolyis were part of a system that created a culture that allowed Nassar’s behavior to run unchecked for years.
Nassar, USA Gymnastics’ disgraced team doctor, was effectively sentenced to life in prison after pleading guilty to sexually assaulting gymnasts and other athletes with his hands under the guise of medical treatment.
The Justice Department agreed in April to pay $138.7 million to settle 139 claims by those who accused the FBI of mishandling sexual assault allegations against Nasar in 2015 and 2016.
Nassar worked at Michigan State University and was the team doctor at USA Gymnastics in Indianapolis. Several current and former athletes, including Simone Biles, McKayla Maroney, Aly Raisman and Maggie Nichols, testified at a 2021 Senate hearing that the FBI failed to act on their complaints against him.
Michigan State University agreed to pay $500 million to more than 300 women who were assaulted. USA Gymnastics and the U.S. Paralympic Committee agreed to a $380 million settlement.
Overall, $1 billion has been set aside by various organizations to compensate Nassar’s victims.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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