Editing Nadia Comăneci (section)

===1976===
====American Cup====
In March 1976, Comăneci competed in the inaugural edition of the [[American Cup (Gymnastics)|American Cup]] at [[Madison Square Garden]] in Manhattan. She received rare scores of 10, which signified a perfect routine without any deductions, for her vault in the preliminary stage and for her floor exercise routine in the final of the all-around competition, which she won.<ref>[http://www.gymn-forum.net/Articles/NYT-1976_AmCup2.html "Gymnast Posts Perfect Mark"] Robin Herman, ''[[New York Times]],'' March 28, 1976.</ref> During this competition, Comăneci met American gymnast [[Bart Conner]] for the first time. While he remembered this meeting, Comăneci noted in her memoirs that she had to be reminded of it later in life. She was 14 and Conner was celebrating his 18th birthday.<ref>Comăneci, p. 53.</ref> They both won a silver cup and were photographed together. A few months later, they participated in the [[1976 Summer Olympics]] that Comăneci dominated, while Conner was a marginal figure. Conner later said, "Nobody knew me, and [Comăneci] certainly didn't pay attention to me."<ref name=first>{{cite web |url=http://www.wherearetheynow.buzz/adorable-way-olympic-couple-first-met |title=The Adorable Way This Olympic Couple First Met |access-date=August 19, 2016 |date=2016 |publisher=[[Oprah: Where Are They Now?]]}}</ref>

====1976 Summer Olympics====
[[File:Nadia Comăneci Montreal1976f.jpg|thumb|left|Comăneci at the 1976 Olympics]]
{{blockquote|At Montreal [Comăneci] received four of her seven 10s on the uneven bars. The apparatus demands such a spectacular burst of energy in such a short time—only 23 seconds—that it attracts the most fanfare. But it is on the beam that her work seems more representative of her considerable skill. She scored three of her seven 10s on the beam. Her hands speak there as much as her body. Her pace magnifies her balance. Her command and distance hush the crowd. |source=''[[Sports Illustrated]]'', 1976<ref name=si/>}}

[[File:Nadia Comăneci Montreal1976c.jpg|thumb|right|Comăneci at the 1976 Olympics]]
On July 18, 1976, Comăneci made history at the Montreal Olympics. During the team compulsory portion of the competition, she was awarded the first [[Perfect 10 (gymnastics)|perfect 10 in Olympic gymnastics]] for her routine on the [[Gymnastics at the 1976 Summer Olympics – Women's uneven bars|uneven bars]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eBrwQ7-I6t8 |title=Nadia Comaneci's perfect 10 &#124; Epic Olympic Moments |date=December 10, 2015 |via=YouTube}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.usghof.org/files/bio/n_comaneci/n_comaneci.html |title=Biography: COMANECI, Nadia |publisher=U.S. Gymnastics Hall of Fame |access-date=July 17, 2011}}</ref><ref name=Cousineau>{{cite book |last1=Cousineau |first1=Phil |year=2003 |title=The Olympic Odyssey: Rekindling the True Spirit of the Great Games |pages=[https://archive.org/details/olympicodysseyre0000cous/page/160 160–161] |publisher=Quest Books |isbn=0835608336 |url=https://archive.org/details/olympicodysseyre0000cous/page/160}}</ref> [[Omega SA]], the official Olympics scoreboard manufacturer, had been led to believe that competitors could not receive a perfect ten, and had not programmed the scoreboard to display this score.<ref name=guardian20111214>{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/sport/london-2012-olympics-blog/2011/dec/14/50-olympic-moments-nadia-comaneci |title=50 stunning Olympic moments No5: Nadia Comaneci scores a perfect 10 |work=The Guardian |date=December 14, 2011 |access-date=July 31, 2012}}</ref> Comăneci's perfect 10 thus appeared as "1.00," the only means by which the judges could indicate that she had received a 10.<ref name=Cousineau /><ref name="Still A Perfect 10">{{cite web |first=Paul |last=Ziert |title=Still A Perfect 10 |url=http://www.olympic.org/upload/news/olympic_review/review_2005628172259_UK.pdf |year=2005 |publisher=Olympic Review |access-date=June 13, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080627102550/http://www.olympic.org/upload/news/olympic_review/review_2005628172259_UK.pdf |archive-date=June 27, 2008 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

During the remainder of the Montreal Games, Comăneci earned six additional "10s". She won gold medals for [[Gymnastics at the 1976 Summer Olympics – Women's artistic individual all-around|the individual all-around]], [[Gymnastics at the 1976 Summer Olympics – Women's balance beam|the balance beam]] and [[Gymnastics at the 1976 Summer Olympics – Women's uneven bars|uneven bars]]. She also won a bronze for the [[Gymnastics at the 1976 Summer Olympics – Women's floor|floor exercise]] and a silver as part of the [[Gymnastics at the 1976 Summer Olympics – Women's artistic team all-around|team all-around]].<ref name="InterGym">[https://web.archive.org/web/20011006172435/http://www.intlgymnast.com/legends/comaneci.html Legends: Nadia Comăneci] ''International Gymnast'' magazine</ref> [[Soviet people|Soviet]] gymnast [[Nellie Kim]] was [[Nellie Kim#Olympics and World Championships|her main rival during the Montreal Olympics]]; Kim became the second gymnast to receive a perfect ten, in her case for her performance on the vault.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.gymn.ca/gymnasticgreats/wag/kim_nelli.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110227005926/http://www.gymn.ca/gymnasticgreats/wag/kim_nelli.htm |url-status=dead |title=Nellie Kim (URS) |archive-date=February 27, 2011}}</ref> Comăneci took over the media spotlight from gymnast [[Olga Korbut]], who had been the darling of the 1972 Munich Games.<ref>{{cite news |title=Nadia Comaneci Takes Gymnast Title on 4th, 5th Perfect Scores |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1976/07/22/archives/nadia-comaneci-takes-gymnast-title-on-4th-5th-perfect-scores-shes.html |access-date=January 8, 2022 |work=The New York Times |date=July 22, 1976}}</ref>

Comăneci was the first Romanian gymnast to win the Olympic all-around title. She also holds the record as the youngest ever Olympic gymnastics all-around champion at age 14. The sport has since raised its age-eligibility requirements so that gymnasts must be at least 16 in the same calendar year of the Olympics in order to compete. When Comăneci competed in 1976, gymnasts had only to be 14 by the first day of the competition.<ref>{{cite web |title=Within the International Federations |url=http://www.la84foundation.org/OlympicInformationCenter/OlympicReview/1980/ore155/ORE155p.pdf |year=1980 |publisher=Olympic Review |access-date=June 13, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100808171711/http://www.la84foundation.org/OlympicInformationCenter/OlympicReview/1980/ore155/ORE155p.pdf |archive-date=August 8, 2010 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Unless the age of eligibility is lowered, Comăneci's record cannot be broken.

She was ranked as the [[BBC Sports Personality World Sport Star of the Year|BBC Overseas Sports Personality of the Year]] for 1976<ref name="Dodd">{{cite web |url=http://www.metro.co.uk/sport/olympics/article.html?in_article_id=244046 |title=Top Five: Teenage Sensations |first=Marc |last=Dodd |work=[[Metro (Associated Metro Limited)|Metro]] |date=August 1, 2008 |access-date=January 11, 2009 |archive-date=September 20, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120920003808/http://www.metro.co.uk/sport/extra/244046-top-five-teenage-sensations |url-status=dead}}</ref> and the [[Associated Press]]' 1976 "[[Associated Press Athlete of the Year|Female Athlete of the Year]]".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://encarta.msn.com/media_701500051_761551983_-1_1/Associated_Press_Athletes_of_the_Year.html |title=Associated Press Athletes of the Year |publisher=MSN.com |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090407220626/http://encarta.msn.com/media_701500051_761551983_-1_1/Associated_Press_Athletes_of_the_Year.html |archive-date=April 7, 2009}}</ref> Back home in Romania, Comăneci was awarded the [[Hammer and sickle|Sickle and Hammer]] Gold Medal for her success,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://lege5.ro/Gratuit/he2timjx/decretul-nr-250-1976-privind-conferirea-de-distinctii-ale-republicii-socialiste-romania-unor-sportivi-antrenori-si-activisti-din-domeniul-educatiei-fizice-si-sportului |title=Decretul nr. 250/1976 privind conferirea de distinctii ale Republicii Socialiste Romania unor sportivi, antrenori si activisti din domeniul educatiei fizice si sportului |language=ro |access-date=April 6, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190411103930/https://lege5.ro/Gratuit/he2timjx/decretul-nr-250-1976-privind-conferirea-de-distinctii-ale-republicii-socialiste-romania-unor-sportivi-antrenori-si-activisti-din-domeniul-educatiei-fizice-si-sportului |archive-date=April 11, 2019 |url-status=dead}}</ref> and she was named a [[Hero of Socialist Labor]]. She was the youngest Romanian to receive such recognition during the administration of [[Nicolae Ceaușescu]].<ref name=Fischer/>

====="Nadia's Theme"=====
"[[Nadia's Theme]]" refers to an instrumental piece that became linked to Comăneci shortly after the 1976 Olympics. It was part of the musical score of the 1971 film ''[[Bless the Beasts and Children (film)|Bless the Beasts and Children]]'' and originally titled "Cotton's Dream". It was also used as the title theme music for the American soap opera ''[[The Young and the Restless]]''.

[[Robert Riger]] used it in association with slow-motion montages of Comăneci on the television program ''[[Wide World of Sports (U.S. TV series)|ABC's Wide World Of Sports]]''. The song became a top-10 single in the fall of 1976, and composers [[Barry De Vorzon]] and [[Perry Botkin Jr.]] renamed it as "Nadia's Theme" in Comăneci's honor.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20080131081004/http://www.olympic.org/uk/athletes/profiles/bio_uk.asp?PAR_I_ID=44503 "Nadia Comăneci: The Perfect 10"] International Olympic Committee (IOC) website</ref> Comăneci never performed to "Nadia's Theme", however. Her floor exercise music was a medley of the songs "[[Yes Sir, That's My Baby (song)|Yes Sir, That's My Baby]]" and "[[Jump in the Line]]", arranged for piano.<ref name=si />