Fuga pe vârfuri

Marta Moreno tells Iulia Moldovan’s life story. Moldovan was a Romanian rhythmic gymnast. She was born in Bistrita in 1983. She became her country’s top athlete in her sport. She won medals at home and abroad. She also reached European finals. This sports life story shows her success and its cost to her.

The book has four parts. They trace her training as a child, her exit from Romania’s team, and what came next. Nadia Comaneci inspired her to take up artistic gymnastics. But at seven, she began rhythmic gymnastics instead. A coach had picked her at school. At first, she had doubts. Then she made close friends and did well in contests. At nine, she joined the national team and left home.

She tells of hard training and strict limits on food. She also missed home. She moved between Bucharest and Timisoara and changed coaches. She hid a health problem to keep her place. In her teens, she took part in team events. She also took part in solo contests and world championships. Friends and play gave her breaks from the sport’s demands.

At eighteen, she went to Madrid for the world championships. Her boyfriend urged her to stay with him in Spain. She chose to leave the team, which caused a public scandal. The book tells of false press reports. It also covers demands that her parents repay her training costs. She had no passport, so Spanish law barred her from work. She later coached at Deportivo Ontinyent, near Valencia.

This was Moreno’s first book. She was born in Valencia in 1989. She studied journalism at CEU Cardenal Herrera University. Her work has focused on press and public messages for political groups and institutions. Bianca Stanescu translated the book from Spanish. Its original title is Fuga con punteras. Irina Deleanu wrote the foreword. A former coach, she heads Romania’s rhythmic gymnastics federation.