Nadia Comaneci: The Gymnast and the Dictator

Montreal Olympic Games, July 18th, 1976: an angel-faced young gymnast storms into the sports legend. In front of more than 5 million astounded TV viewers, a barely 14-year-old Nadia Comaneci becomes the first athlete in her discipline to obtain the never-before-seen perfect score, 10, achieving one of the greatest feats in Olympics history. The entire world is dazzled by her grace, her self-control, and her masterly style.

On both sides of the Iron Curtain, audiences are overwhelmed. Everyone can recall the little Romanian pixie with red ribbons in her hair. In a few jaw-dropping routines, Nadia Comaneci rose to the rank of a universal idol. She became a role model for millions of young girls and reached the heights of popular Western culture in the pure Hollywood tradition. But behind the scenes, she was forced to maintain a relationship with a strange dictator.