[ Reporter = red ]
The former Olympic star talks about legal separation from her parents and why she's after more than just another gold.
How much of your childhood was consumed by gymnastics?
I started at the age of 3, so that's 15 years now. I was probably O.K. until I was 14, and then my friends started not to be in the sport anymore. I really wasn't into anything else. My whole life was gymnastics. There was good and bad at times, but I've definitely gotten more out of life than I ever would have not doing a sport.
You were the youngest member of the gymnastics team that won the gold in the 1996 Olympics. And you seemed so calm. Were you? Did that change when you got older?
I thought it was the coolest thing. All these people were screaming and writing fan letters. At the same time, I was being kept in the dark. I didn't know you made money. I didn't know what was expected of me. I just did it because I loved the sport. But I started realizing that something was being kept away from me.
You're referring to your conflict with your parents — over the money you earned, which they had invested in a gymnastics center in Harris County, Texas. What happened?
Basically, I was making a fairly good amount of money at a young age. Maybe my parents meant for me not to have any troubles when I was so young, which was reasonable, but when I hit about 17, I decided I wanted to put away my own money. They said the gym was going to be my future. And I was like: "I don't want to depend on you guys. I've worked hard and I want to have my own money." I tried talking. It just wasn't working. Me growing up in America and them growing up in Romania, we just had different outlooks.
So you got a judge to declare you an independent adult. What was that like?
I started from scratch. I left everything behind for something I believed in. And it wasn't only about the money. Nobody knew what I was going through. I went a lot of days crying.
What's the situation with your parents like now?
It's O.K. I talk to my dad and stuff. I think he's learned a little bit. He's a lot calmer when he talks to me. But my mother is like: "Anything you need, I'm going to be here for you. I just want to see you out there one more time."
You've had to act grown up, but you've also grown physically. What has that transition been like?
I've grown about eight inches since the Olympics. My body's been through a lot: I've had knee surgery, and I've had a back problem. A year from now it'll be the Olympics and that's my goal. This time around it means so much more to me because I know these rumors about me. Sometimes you just want to prove people wrong.
Prove them wrong how? What is it that people are saying about you?
"She was talented when she was younger, but she can't do it anymore." And snickering comments about the way I look or am. I just think: Who are these people anyway, writing stuff on the Internet? Are they anybody worthwhile? Probably not. But I wish it didn't bother me as much as it did.
But in the end, gymnastics is a young person's sport. What future do you envision for yourself?
In the next couple days? Being a legal adult. My birthday's coming up. And you know, just a normal person, doing the bills, cleaning the room. I feel like I'm finally in control of my life. I really want to get into television and modeling — be out there in front of cameras, what I've done all my life. Look at Nadia and Mary Lou — they've kept their names going forever. And I want to be able to help my parents. Even though things didn't go the way they wanted them to go, they're still my parents.
I heard you recently went to your first prom.
Yeah, the owner of the gym's son invited me, just as friends. It was pretty neat. I had a good time.
Did it make you wish you had gone to a regular high school and been a regular kid?
Sometimes. But one prom can't take away my gold medal.
After all you've been through, would you encourage kids of your own to get involved in gymnastics?
I guess I would in the beginning because it teaches you coordination, and then I'll let her stay if she likes it. And I won't do the things that were tough on me growing up. I'll just say: "If you want to do this, this is your decision, but you know how hard it's going to be. So if you stick with this, you're going to have to stick with it until the end. And you won't regret it."
© NY Times
