You might wonder why Holmes chose Comaneci as the subject of her film. Maybe it has something to do with the parallels between their two stories. Both women became famous as teens and have that same sort of naive brunette beauty. It would even seem likely that Holmes, as a teenager, would play Comaneci in a movie about her. The similarities don’t stop at their looks and the age at which they both became famous.
Beyond those superficial qualities, there are some deeper similarities. Most obvious, both have complicated histories with controlling men. Despite the film not being a big success, both of these young women are Eternal Princesses… And now, Nadia was finally able to share her side of the story to the world, difficult as it may have been.
Learn Gymnastics From The Best
Since they first reconnected, Bart and Nadia have been running the Bart Conner Gymnastics Academy which was initially opened by Bart and Paul Ziert. Because it has two former Olympians as its head, the gym receives thousands of applications every year.
Bart and Nadia spent a lot of time promoting products and making commercial appearances all over the world. It’s safe to say that Nadia has resumed her position as the darling of the gymnastics world.
Similar History Sparks Friendship
In 2015, Nadia Comăneci walked onto the red carpet of the TriBeCa Film Festival with an unlikely friend by her side – actress Katie Holmes. The pair dressed almost identical to one another, both wore slim-fitting black pants, high heels, and black tops with their shiny brown hair down, showcasing their waves. They stood side-by-side, with quite the noticeable height difference and answered questions together about Katie’s first foray into directing Eternal Sunshine, a short which documents the Romanian expat's groundbreaking Olympic triumph in 1976 when she became the first gymnast to score a Perfect 10.
While many were surprised by the two being friends, if you look close enough, you’ll see they actually have quite a lot in common.
Her One And Only
Nadia Comăneci has two men in her life. Her husband of course, and her son Dylan. Dylan was born in 2006 and Comăneci’s adores him. She spends a lot of time with her son and the hundreds of pictures of him on her phone can vouch for her fondness of him. She often shares pictures of him with reporters.
Comăneci had her son at a very late age, and for that reason, he’s an only child.
Oblivious To Her Huge Accomplishment
During the Montreal Olympics in 1976, one billion people were watching the young Nadia. Nadia had surpassed her main competitor, the Belarussian Olga Korbut, and was standing humbly on the winner’s podium. When reporters asked her how it felt to get gold and perfect 10’s, she replied that it was okay, as she had already received about 19 of them in other competitions.
Nadia later commented in an interview on what it was like to be such a young competitor at the Olympics "Actually, it was easy being young because you don't know. What you understand at 14 is different than what you understand at 20 years old. I had basically no pressure when I competed in '76, because I was 14 and a half, I only went to do my routines and I was just hoping to not mess up on beam or on bars. I came back from the Olympics, and when I got out of the plane, there were 10,000 people at the airport, and I didn't know why they came because I didn't think I had done anything different than I had done in the gym. So I didn't realize that, then."