Letters to a Young Gymnast

Author: Nadia Comaneci
Publisher: Basic Books
ISBN: 0786728655
Category : Sports & Recreation
Languages : en
Pages : 204

Book Description
If there were such a thing as an "elder" stateswoman in women's gymnastics today, Nadia Comaneci would win that title as readily as she once won gold medals. Olga Korbut came before her, and many other medalists would follow, but none has ever been as dominant in winning the hearts of millions around the world. With grit and determination, Nadia Comaneci ushered in a new era for women's sports, one where young girls could vault into the arena of superstardom. Even today, almost thirty years after her greatest triumphs, you need only mention the name "Nadia" and gymnastics fans know instantly whom you are talking about. In Letters to a Young Gymnast, Nadia shows what it takes to achieve athletic perfection and become the best. With inspiring and dramatic stories from her own experience, she tells us how the young girl that Bela Karolyi discovered in a Romanian elementary school found the inner strength to become a world-class athlete at such a young age. This collection of Nadia's memories, anecdotes, and advice grants unique insights into the mind of a top competitor. From how to live after you've realized your dream, to the necessity of "a spirit forged with mettle," Nadia's thoughts on athleticism and sacrifice are eye-opening and surprisingly challenging.

Letters to a Young Contrarian

Author: Christopher Hitchens
Publisher: Basic Books
ISBN: 078673907X
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 159

Book Description
From bestselling author and provocateur Christopher Hitchens, the classic guide to the art of principled dissent and disagreement In Letters to a Young Contrarian, bestselling author and world-class provocateur Christopher Hitchens inspires the radicals, gadflies, mavericks, rebels, and angry young (wo)men of tomorrow. Exploring the entire range of "contrary positions"—from noble dissident to gratuitous nag—Hitchens introduces the next generation to the minds and the misfits who influenced him, invoking such mentors as Emile Zola, Rosa Parks, and George Orwell. As is his trademark, Hitchens pointedly pitches himself in contrast to stagnant attitudes across the ideological spectrum. No other writer has matched Hitchens's understanding of the importance of disagreement—to personal integrity, to informed discussion, to true progress, to democracy itself.

Nadia

Author: Nadia Comaneci
Publisher: Proteus Publishing Company
ISBN: 9780862761004
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 144

Book Description
One of the world's greatest gymnasts describes her childhood and training, her quest to become a world class athlete, her stunning victory at the Montreal Olympics, and her private life

Little Girls in Pretty Boxes

Author: Joan Ryan
Publisher: Doubleday
ISBN: 0307828557
Category : Sports & Recreation
Languages : en
Pages : 292

Book Description
A sports reporter investigates the training of girls as professional gymnasts and figure skaters, arguing that the pressure to succeed and to look beautiful results in mental and physical harm, from eating disorders to psychological trauma.

Fierce

Author: Aly Raisman
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
ISBN: 0316472670
Category : Young Adult Nonfiction
Languages : en
Pages : 287

Book Description
Discover Aly Raisman's inspiring story of dedication, perseverance, and learning to think positive even in the toughest times on her path to gold medal success in two Olympic Games--and beyond. Aly Raisman first stepped onto a gymnastics mat as a toddler in a "mommy & me" gymnastics class. No one could have predicted then that sixteen years later, she'd be standing on an Olympic podium, having achieved her dreams. Aly's road to success was full of hard work, perseverance, and victories, but not without its hardships. Aly faced many obstacles, from naysayers who said she'd never make it in gymnastics to classmates who shamed her for her athletic body to a devastating betrayal of trust. Through it all, Aly surrounded herself with supportive family, friends, and teammates and found the inner strength to remain positive and believe in herself. Now, in her own words, Aly shows what it takes to be a champion on and off the floor, and takes readers on a behind-the-scenes journey before, during, and after her remarkable achievements in two Olympic Games--through her highest highs, lowest lows, and all the moments in between. Honest and heartfelt, frank and funny, Aly's story is enhanced with never-before-published photos, excerpts from the personal journals she's kept since childhood that chronicle memorable moments with her teammates, and hard-won advice for readers striving to rise above challenges, learn to love themselves, and make their own dreams come true.

Heart of a Champion

Author: Kim Washburn
Publisher: Zonderkidz
ISBN: 0310413524
Category : Juvenile Nonfiction
Languages : en
Pages : 114

Book Description
Dominique Dawes made history as the first African American woman to win an individual Olympic medal, and her trailblazing story is presented in Heart of a Champion, a biography perfect for readers eight and up, and anyone interested in learning about one of the greatest gymnasts in American history. Long before Gabby Douglas and Simone Biles entered a gym, Dominique Dawes was a young African American girl focused on her dream—and nothing would stop her from reaching it. Although the odds were against her, by the time she was nineteen years old she stood on an Olympic podium to receive a historic gold medal in women’s gymnastics, as well as numerous other impressive accolades—including medals in a record three Olympics—over her long career. Discover how her faith in God and hard work led her to become one of the top gymnasts in the world. Let her story and her motto of “determination, dedication, and desire” encourage you to become all you can be, in competition and in life. Heart of a Champion: includes a special note from Dominique Dawes contains quotes from and photos of Dominique that follow her life from childhood to her work with President Obama and Michelle Obama on physical fitness is perfect for school reports and assignments is an inspiring story for gymnastics fans as well as anyone with a dream

Nadia Comăneci

Author: Gloria D. Miklowitz
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780448129730
Category : Gymnasts
Languages : en
Pages : 100

Book Description
A brief biography emphasizing the training and gymnastic achievements of the fourteen-year-old Romanian who earned a perfect score seven times in the 1976 Olympic Games.

Chalked Up

Author: Jennifer Sey
Publisher: Harper Collins
ISBN: 0061351466
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 308

Book Description
The true story of the 1986 U.S. National Gymnastics champion whose lifelong dream was to compete in the Olympics, until anorexia, injuries, and coaching abuses nearly destroyed her Fanciful dreams of gold medals and Nadia Comaneci led Jennifer Sey to become a gymnast at the age of six. She was a natural at the sport, and her early success propelled her family to sacrifice everything to help her become, by age eleven, one of America’s elite,competing at prestigious events worldwide alongside such future gymnastics’ luminaries as Mary Lou Retton. But as she set her sights higher and higher—the senior national team, the World Championships, the 1988 Olympics—Sey began to change, putting her needs, her health, and her well-being aside in the name of winning. And the adults in her life refused to notice her downward spiral. In Chalked Up Sey reveals the tarnish behind her gold medals. A powerful portrait of intensity and drive, eating disorders and stage parents, abusive coaches and manipulative businessmen, denial and the seduction of success, it is the story of a young girl whose dreams would become eclipsed by the adults around her. As she recounts her experiences, Sey sheds light on the destructiveness of our winning-is-everything culture where underage and underweight girls are celebrated and on the need for balance in children’s lives.

Shawn Johnson: Gymnastics' Golden Girl

Author: Christine Dzidrums
Publisher: Creative Media Publishing
ISBN: 0983539332
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 192

Book Description
Shawn Johnson, the young woman from Des Moines, Iowa, captivated the world at the 2008 Beijing Olympics when she snagged a gold medal on the balance beam. Shawn Johnson: Gymnastics' Golden Girl chronicles the life and career of one of sport's most beloved athletes.

Letters to Nowhere

Author: Julie Cross
Publisher: Julie Cross
ISBN: 149293528X
Category : Juvenile Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 292

Book Description
From NYT and USA Today bestselling author, Julie Cross, a Mature YA contemporary set in the tough world of Elite Gymnastics. Her family may be shattered, but her dreams aren't... Seventeen year old Karen Campbell has just lost both her parents in a tragic car accident. Grief stricken and alone, her gymnastics coach opens his home to Karen, providing her a place to live while she continues to train, working toward a spot on the world championship team. Coach Bentley’s only child, seventeen year old Jordan is good-looking and charming enough to scare away a girl like Karen—someone who has spent ten times more hours on balance beams and uneven bars than talking or even thinking about boys. But the two teens share a special connection almost immediately. It turns out Jordan has a tragic past of his own, grief buried for years. As Karen’s gymnastics career soars, her nightmares and visions of the horrible accident grow in strength. She can only avoid facing her grief for so long before it begins to surface and ultimately spin out of control in a very dangerous way. Can discovering love and lust (simultaneously) help with the grieving process or will it only provide a temporary distraction while waiting for reality to hit full force?