Sport In Romania
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Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...
are an important part of the country's culture. Romania has risen to prominence in a number of sporting areas in recent decades.
Association football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...
is the most popular sport in Romania, a nation of 20 million. The most successful club is Steaua Bucharest, who were the first Eastern European side to win the
European Cup The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competit ...
and the
European Supercup The UEFA Super Cup is an annual super cup football match organised by UEFA and contested by the winners of the two main European club competitions; the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League. The competition's official name was original ...
in 1986. Romania is one of only four national teams from Europe that took part in the first
World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the concept i ...
in 1930. The
Romania national football team The Romania national football team ( ro, Echipa națională de fotbal a României) represents Romania in international men's football competition and is administered by the Romanian Football Federation ( ro, Federația Română de Fotbal), al ...
has taken part in seven
FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the ' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The tournament ha ...
s and had its most successful run during the 1990s, when they reached the quarterfinals of the
1994 FIFA World Cup The 1994 FIFA World Cup was the 15th FIFA World Cup, the world championship for men's national soccer teams. It was hosted by the United States and took place from June 17 to July 17, 1994, at nine venues across the country. The United States ...
, losing to Sweden in the
penalty shootout The penalty shootout is a method of determining a winner in sports matches that would have otherwise been drawn or tied. The rules for penalty shootouts vary between sports and even different competitions; however, the usual form is similar to pen ...
. Romania was ranked third by
FIFA FIFA (; stands for ''Fédération Internationale de Football Association'' ( French), meaning International Association Football Federation ) is the international governing body of association football, beach football and futsal. It was found ...
in 1997. Other popular sports include
handball Handball (also known as team handball, European handball or Olympic handball) is a team sport in which two teams of seven players each (six outcourt players and a goalkeeper) pass a ball using their hands with the aim of throwing it into the g ...
,
volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...
,
basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
,
rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...
,
tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...
, and
gymnastics Gymnastics is a type of sport that includes physical exercises requiring balance, strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, dedication and endurance. The movements involved in gymnastics contribute to the development of the arms, legs, shou ...
. Many Romanian athletes have achieved significant success and have won World and European championships in numerous sports during the years. Romania participated in the
Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a var ...
for the first time in 1900 and has taken part in 21 of the 28 summer games. It has been one of the more successful countries at the
Summer Olympic Games The Summer Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'été), also known as the Games of the Olympiad, and often referred to as the Summer Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inau ...
, with a total of 307 medals won throughout the years, of which 89 gold ones, ranking 15th overall. Almost a quarter of all the medals and 25 of the gold ones were won in
gymnastics Gymnastics is a type of sport that includes physical exercises requiring balance, strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, dedication and endurance. The movements involved in gymnastics contribute to the development of the arms, legs, shou ...
. Romanian athletes have also won gold medals in other Olympic sports, such as
rowing Rowing is the act of propelling a human-powered watercraft using the sweeping motions of oars to displace water and generate reactional propulsion. Rowing is functionally similar to paddling, but rowing requires oars to be mechanically atta ...
,
athletics Athletics may refer to: Sports * Sport of athletics, a collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking ** Track and field, a sub-category of the above sport * Athletics (physical culture), competiti ...
,
canoeing Canoeing is an activity which involves paddling a canoe with a single-bladed paddle. Common meanings of the term are limited to when the canoeing is the central purpose of the activity. Broader meanings include when it is combined with other acti ...
,
wrestling Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat ...
,
shooting Shooting is the act or process of discharging a projectile from a ranged weapon (such as a gun, bow, crossbow, slingshot, or blowpipe). Even the acts of launching flame, artillery, darts, harpoons, grenades, rockets, and guided missiles can ...
,
fencing Fencing is a group of three related combat sports. The three disciplines in modern fencing are the foil, the épée, and the sabre (also ''saber''); winning points are made through the weapon's contact with an opponent. A fourth discipline, s ...
,
swimming Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, or other liquid, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Locomotion is achieved through coordinated movement of the limbs and the body to achieve hydrodynamic thrust that r ...
,
discus throw The discus throw (), also known as disc throw, is a track and field event in which an athlete throws a heavy disk (mathematics), disc—called a discus—in an attempt to mark a farther distance than their competitors. It is an classical antiqui ...
,
weightlifting Weightlifting generally refers to activities in which people lift Weight training#Equipment, weights, often in the form of dumbbells or barbells. People lift various kinds of weights for a variety of different reasons. These may include various t ...
,
boxing Boxing (also known as "Western boxing" or "pugilism") is a combat sport in which two people, usually wearing protective gloves and other protective equipment such as hand wraps and mouthguards, throw punches at each other for a predetermined ...
, and
judo is an unarmed gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyclopedia Nipponi ...
.


Team sports


Football

Football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
is the most popular sport in Romania. The most internationally known Romanian player is
Gheorghe Hagi Gheorghe "Gică" Hagi (; born 5 February 1965) is a Romanian professional football manager and former player, who is currently the owner and manager of Liga I club Farul Constanța. Deployed as an attacking midfielder, Hagi was considered one of ...
, who played for Steaua București (Romania),
Real Madrid Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (, meaning ''Royal Madrid Football Club''), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid. Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, the club has traditionally wor ...
,
FC Barcelona Futbol Club Barcelona (), commonly referred to as Barcelona and colloquially known as Barça (), is a professional football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of Spanish football. Founded ...
(Spain), and
Galatasaray Galatasaray Spor Kulübü (, ''Galatasaray Sports Club'') is a Turkish sports club based on the European side of the city of Istanbul in Turkey. Most notable for its association football department, the club also consists of various other de ...
(Turkey), among others. Other famous Romanian players include:
Nicolae Dobrin Nicolae Dobrin (; 26 August 1947 – 26 October 2007) was a Romanian footballer who played as an attacking midfielder and a manager. Nicknamed ''Gâscanul'' ("The Gander") or ''Prințul din Trivale'' ("The Prince of Trivale"), he is considered o ...
,
Ilie Balaci Ilie Balaci (; 13 September 1956 – 21 October 2018) was a Romanian Association football, football midfielder and Manager (association football), manager. He spent 12 of his 15 years as a professional with CS Universitatea Craiova, Universitate ...
,
Dudu Georgescu Dudu Georgescu (born 1 September 1950) is a retired Romanian footballer who played as a forward and a former coach. Club career Dudu Georgescu was born in Bucharest on 1 September 1950. He started his career at Progresul București, making h ...
,
Florea Dumitrache Florea Dumitrache (22 May 1948 – 26 April 2007) was a Romanian professional footballer who played as a striker. Dumitrache spent most of his senior career at Dinamo București, appearing in over 200 league matches and winning three national t ...
,
Mircea Petescu Mircea Petescu (15 May 1942 – 16 December 2018) was a Romanian professional footballer and coach.Dan Coe Daniel Coe (8 September 1941 – 19 October 1981) was a Romanian football defender. He was part of the Romanian team that reached quarterfinals at the 1964 Summer Olympics, and later participated at the 1970 World Cup. Club career Originating f ...
,
Cornel Dinu Cornel Dinu (born 2 August 1948) is a Romanian retired professional footballer and manager who played as a sweeper or a defensive midfielder. He started out his playing career at hometown club Metalul Târgoviște in 1965, and went on to spen ...
,
Marcel Răducanu Marcel Răducanu (born 21 October 1954) is a Romanian former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder. Club career Marcel Răducanu was born in Bucharest on 21 October 1954. He grew up in the Pantelimon neighborhood and s ...
,
Mircea Lucescu Mircea Lucescu (; born 29 July 1945) is a Romanian professional football manager and former player, who is currently head coach of Ukrainian Premier League club Dynamo Kyiv. He is one of the most decorated managers of all time. Lucescu is also ...
,
Anghel Iordănescu Anghel Iordănescu (; born 4 May 1950), also known as "Tata Puiu", is a Romanian former footballer and former manager of the Romania national team, who played as a forward. In 2007, Iordănescu retired from football, and the following February ...
,
Ion Dumitru Ion Dumitru (born 2 January 1950, in București), commonly known as Liță Dumitru, is a Football in Romania, Romanian former professional association football, footballer, and manager who played as a midfielder from 1967 until 1989. He is curre ...
,
Rodion Cămătaru Rodion Gorun Cămătaru (; born 22 June 1958) is a Romanian former professional Association football, footballer who played as a Striker (association football), striker. Club career Rodion Cămătaru was born on 22 June 1958 in Strehaia and debu ...
, Ladislau Boloni,
Silviu Lung Silviu Lung (; born 9 September 1956) is a retired Romanian football goalkeeper and current manager. Playing career Club career Silviu Lung was born on 9 September 1956 in Sânmiclăuș, Satu Mare and started to play football in 1971 at Victo ...
,
Mircea Rednic Mircea Rednic (born 9 April 1962) is a Romanian football coach and former player who played as a defender. Club career Mircea Rednic, nicknamed "Puriul" was born on 9 April 1962 in Hunedoara and until he was 14 years old he played table tenn ...
,
Gheorghe Popescu Gheorghe "Gică" Popescu (; born 9 October 1967) is a Romanian former professional football who played as a defender. He notably played in La Liga where he is a former captain of FC Barcelona. He played for a string of European clubs in tha ...
,
Dan Petrescu Daniel Vasile Petrescu (; born 22 December 1967) is a Romanian football manager and former player, who is currently in charge of Liga I club CFR Cluj. As a player, Petrescu was deployed as a full-back or a winger and represented Premier Lea ...
,
Constantin Gâlcă Constantin Gâlcă (born 8 March 1972) is a Romanian former footballer, and a manager, who was most recently manager of Saudi Professional League club Al-Hazem. Equally at ease as a defensive or central midfielder and possessing an accurate lo ...
,
Miodrag Belodedici Miodrag Belodedici (; sr, Миодраг Белодедић, Miodrag Belodedić; born 20 May 1964) is a Romanian former professional footballer who played as a sweeper. Nicknamed ''the deer'' due to his elegant tackles, he spent the majority o ...
,
Dorinel Munteanu Dorinel Ionel Munteanu (; born 25 June 1968) is a Romanian retired professional footballer and manager. A former midfielder, Munteanu is the most capped Romanian player of all time, with a total of 134 appearances and 16 goals. He played in two ...
,
Bogdan Stelea Bogdan Gheorghe Stelea (; born 5 December 1967) is a Romanian retired footballer who played as a goalkeeper, and a current coach. Having played professionally into his 40s, he played for all three major Liga I clubs in his country's capital, an ...
,
Ioan Lupescu Ioan "Ionuț" Angelo Lupescu (born 9 December 1968) is a Romanian former football player who played as a midfielder and a manager. Club career Ioan Lupescu, nicknamed ''Kaiserul'' was born on 9 December 1968 in Bucharest, Romania and started to ...
,
Ilie Dumitrescu Ilie Dumitrescu (; born 6 January 1969) is a Romanian football manager and former professional footballer. As a player, he was a winger who notably played in the Premier League with Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham United, and in La Liga with S ...
,
Viorel Moldovan Viorel Dinu Moldovan (born 8 July 1972) is a Romanian former professional football forward and currently a manager. He was an important player for the Romanian national team in the 1990s. Career Moldovan was born in Bistrița. At club level, ...
,
Florin Răducioiu Florin Valeriu Răducioiu (born 17 March 1970) is a Romanian former football striker, who played for Dinamo București, A.C. Milan, Brescia Calcio, West Ham United, RCD Espanyol, VfB Stuttgart and AS Monaco. He played for Romania at the 1990 FI ...
,
Adrian Ilie Bucurel Adrian “The Cobra” Ilie (born 20 April 1974) is a Romanian former professional footballer who played as a forward. He represented the Romania national team in one World Cup and two European Championships. Club career Ilie began h ...
,
Bogdan Lobonț Bogdan Ionuț Lobonț (; born 18 January 1978) is a Romanian professional football coach and former player who played as a goalkeeper. He amassed 86 appearances for the Romania national team between 1998 and 2018, representing the country in t ...
,
Cosmin Contra Cosmin Marius Contra (; born 15 December 1975) is a Romanian football manager and former player. Primarily an attacking-minded right-back, he was also deployed as a midfielder. He played professionally in three countries his own notwithstanding, ...
,
Cristian Chivu Cristian Eugen Chivu (; born 26 October 1980) is a Romanian professional football manager and former player who is the head coach of Inter Milan's under-19 side. A defender, he began his career with hometown club CSM Reșița before moving to ...
,
Adrian Mutu Adrian Mutu (; born 8 January 1979) is a Romanian professional football manager and former player, who is in charge of Liga I club Rapid București. During his playing career, he was deployed as a forward or an attacking midfielder. Mutu starte ...
,
Răzvan Raț Răzvan Dincă Raț (; born 26 May 1981) is a Romanian former footballer who mainly played as a left-back. He made a name for himself in Romania at Rapid București, with which he won two national titles, one national cup and one supercup betw ...
,
Dorin Goian Dorin Nicolae Goian (born 12 December 1980) is a Romanian professional football manager and former football player. He is currently the manager of Liga III side Foresta Suceava. Club career Early years (1997–2005) In 1997, he signed for Fore ...
and
Lucian Sânmărtean Lucian Iulian Sânmărtean (born 13 March 1980) is a Romanian former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder or a winger. Regarded by coach Ioan Sabău as the country's most talented player after Gheorghe Hagi, he was awa ...
. In 1986, the Romanian football club Steaua București became the first Eastern European club ever to win the prestigious European Champions Cup title. They reached the final again in 1989, but lost to
AC Milan Associazione Calcio Milan (), commonly referred to as AC Milan or simply Milan, is a professional football club in Milan, Italy, founded in 1899. The club has spent its entire history, with the exception of the 1980–81 and 1982–83 seasons ...
. Other important Romanian football clubs are
Dinamo București A dynamo is a magnetic device originally used as an electric generator. Dynamo or Dinamo may also refer to: Places * Dinamo (Moscow Metro), a station of the Moscow Metro, Moscow, Russia * Dinamo (Yekaterinburg Metro), a station of the Yekaterinbu ...
, Universitatea Craiova,
Rapid București Rapids are sections of a river where the river bed has a relatively steep gradient, causing an increase in water velocity and turbulence. Rapids are hydrological features between a ''run'' (a smoothly flowing part of a stream) and a '' cascade' ...
,
FC Argeş Piteşti FC may refer to: Businesses, organisations, and schools * Fergusson College, a science and arts college in Pune, India * Finncomm Airlines (IATA code) * FranklinCovey company, NYSE stock symbol FC * Frontier Corps, a paramilitary force in Paki ...
,
FC Petrolul Ploieşti FC may refer to: Businesses, organisations, and schools * Fergusson College, a science and arts college in Pune, India * Finncomm Airlines (IATA code) * FranklinCovey company, NYSE stock symbol FC * Frontier Corps, a paramilitary force in Pakis ...
,
UTA Arad Uta or UTA may refer to: Universities *University of Texas at Arlington, in the United States * University of Tarapacá, in Chile *University of Tampere, in Finland Sports * FC UTA Arad, a Romanian football club based in the town of Arad * A ...
and
FC Timişoara FC may refer to: Businesses, organisations, and schools * Fergusson College, a science and arts college in Pune, India * Finncomm Airlines (IATA code) * FranklinCovey company, NYSE stock symbol FC * Frontier Corps, a paramilitary force in Pakis ...
. The
Romanian national football team The Romania national football team ( ro, Echipa națională de fotbal a României) represents Romania in international men's Association football, football competition and is administered by the Romanian Football Federation ( ro, Federația Rom ...
has taken part in seven
FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the ' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The tournament ha ...
s, and had its most successful run through the 1990s, reaching the quarter-finals of the
1994 FIFA World Cup The 1994 FIFA World Cup was the 15th FIFA World Cup, the world championship for men's national soccer teams. It was hosted by the United States and took place from June 17 to July 17, 1994, at nine venues across the country. The United States ...
in the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
, when the "Golden Generation" was at its best. The
National Arena Many countries have a national sport stadium, which typically serves as the primary or exclusive home for one or more of a country's national representative sports teams. The term is most often used in reference to an association football stadiu ...
Stadium in
Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ro, București ) is the capital and largest city of Romania, as well as its cultural, industrial, and financial centre. It is located in the southeast of the country, on the banks of the Dâmbovița River, less than north of ...
hosted the
2012 UEFA Europa League Final The 2012 UEFA Europa League Final was the final match of the 2011–12 UEFA Europa League, the 41st season of Europe's secondary club football tournament organised by UEFA (after the UEFA Champions League), and the 3rd season since it was renamed ...
.


Handball

Handball Handball (also known as team handball, European handball or Olympic handball) is a team sport in which two teams of seven players each (six outcourt players and a goalkeeper) pass a ball using their hands with the aim of throwing it into the g ...
is one of the most popular sports in Romania. The
Romania men's national handball team The Romania men's national handball team is governed by the Romanian Handball Federation ( ro, Romanian Federaţia Română de Handbal) and takes part in international handball competitions. Romania was for many decades the most ...
has won the Handball IHF World Cup a record four times (1961, 1964, 1970, and 1974). The only other team to have matched this record is Sweden in 1999 and France in 2011. The
Romania women's national handball team The Romanian women's national team represents Romania in senior women's international handball and is controlled by the Romanian Handball Federation, the governing body for handball in Romania. It competes in the three major intern ...
has won the Handball World Cup in 1962. Steaua, Dinamo and
CSM București Clubul Sportiv Municipal București, commonly known as CSM București is a Romanian professional Sports club, multi-sports club based in Bucharest. Departments Active branches: *Sport of athletics, Athletics *Basketball *Dancesport *Handball *Jud ...
have also won several European titles over the years. Romania has produced many great handball players, including
Gheorghe Gruia Gheorghe Gruia Marinescu (October 2, 1940 – December 9, 2015) was a Romanian handball player, coach and sports official. Born in Bucharest, Gruia won the gold medal in the 1964 World Handball Championship and the 1970 World Championship. In t ...
,
Alexandru Dedu Alexandru Mihai Dedu (born 15 September 1971 in Ploiești) is a retired Romanian handballer who played for the Romanian national team in line player position. He was part of the Romanian team which ranked eight at the 1992 Summer Olympic Game ...
, Vasile Stângă,
Mircea Costache II Mircea Costache II (2 May 1940 – 16 February 2016) was a Romanian handball player and coach who played as a pivot for Dinamo București and for the national team. He scored the winning goal in the 1961 World Championship final. After retiring ...
,
Petre Ivănescu Petre Ivănescu (15 April 1936 – 1 April 2022) was a Romanian handball player and coach who played for Dinamo București and for the Romania national team. Coach Team ;VfL Gummersbach *Bundesliga: 1982, 1983 *DHB-Pokal: 1982, 1983 *EHF ...
,
Cornel Penu Cornel Penu (born 16 June 1946) is a retired Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the ...
,
Alexandru Buligan Alexandru Buligan (born 22 April 1960) is a retired Romanian handball goalkeeper who played a record of 280 international games for Romania. He won bronze medals at the 1984 Summer Olympics and the 1990 World Championships. At the club level h ...
, Marian Dumitru, Cristian Gaţu and
Cristian Zaharia Cristian Valentin Zaharia (born 8 July 1967) is a Romanian former professional handball player and current coach. He competed in the men's tournament at the 1992 Summer Olympics. Honours Team ;Dinamo Bucharest *Romanian League The Liga I ( ...
. On the women's side, the top Romanians include: four times
IHF World Player of the Year The IHF World Player of the Year is a handball award given annually to the player who is considered to have performed the best in the previous season, both at club and international competitions. It is awarded based on votes from experts, media a ...
winner
Cristina Neagu Cristina Georgiana Neagu (; born 26 August 1988) is a Romanian professional handballer who plays as a left back for CSM București and the Romanian national team. Often considered the best player in the world and rated by many in the sport as t ...
,
Luminița Dinu Luminița Dinu (née Huțupan; born 6 November 1971 in Piatra Neamț) is a Romanian handball player. She is considered a handball legend in Romania. She received a silver medal at the 2005 World Championship and was named goalkeeper of the All ...
,
Mariana Tîrcă Mariana Tîrcă (born 9 October 1962) is a retired Romanian handball player. She is considered a living legend of the Romanian and international handball, being voted top 5 women handball players of the 20th century. She has played 335 games f ...
,
Narcisa Lecușanu Narcisa Georgeta Lecuşanu (née Paunica; born 14 September 1976 in Bacău, Socialist Republic of Romania) is a retired Romanian handballer who played for the Romanian national team. She received a silver medal in the 2005 World Championship. ...
, Valentina Elisei and
Cristina Vărzaru Cristina Georgiana Vărzaru (born 5 December 1979) is a Romanian retired professional handball player who last played for CSM București. She was a member of the Romanian national team. Biography Vărzaru participated at the 2000 Summer Olym ...
.


Volleyball

Romania is represented by the men's and women's national volleyball teams, which are governed by Federaţia Română de Volei and take part in international volleyball competitions. Both the men's and women's teams have won several medals at international competitions over the years, especially in the 1950s and 1960s. The men's national volleyball team also won a bronze medal at the 1980 Olympics. Its most recent notable results include the Final 4 of the 2010 Men's European Volleyball League. The performance was also repeated in the next year. At club level
Dinamo București A dynamo is a magnetic device originally used as an electric generator. Dynamo or Dinamo may also refer to: Places * Dinamo (Moscow Metro), a station of the Moscow Metro, Moscow, Russia * Dinamo (Yekaterinburg Metro), a station of the Yekaterinbu ...
,
Rapid Rapids are sections of a river where the river bed has a relatively steep gradient, causing an increase in water velocity and turbulence. Rapids are hydrological features between a ''run'' (a smoothly flowing part of a stream) and a ''cascade''. ...
and
CSM București Clubul Sportiv Municipal București, commonly known as CSM București is a Romanian professional Sports club, multi-sports club based in Bucharest. Departments Active branches: *Sport of athletics, Athletics *Basketball *Dancesport *Handball *Jud ...
have won several European titles. The city of Bucharest hosted the Final Four of the
2017–18 CEV Women's Champions League The CEV Champions League was the highest level of European club volleyball in the 2017–18 season and the 58th edition. The Turkish club VakıfBank Istanbul won its fourth overall and second consecutive title. The Romanian club CSM Volei Alba Bla ...
.


Basketball

Basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
is a very popular sport among Romanian youth, although its results, both past and present, are more modest than other Romanian team sports.
Gheorghe Mureșan Gheorghe Dumitru Mureșan (; born 14 February 1971), also known as "Ghiță" (), is a Romanian former professional basketball player. At , he is tied with Manute Bol for the tallest player ever to have played in the NBA. Early life Mureșan was ...
was the first Romanian to enter
NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...
, and he became known as the tallest man ever to play in that league. Other products of the Romanian basketball school are Mihai Albu, Dragoș Nosievici, Costel Cernat,
Constantin Popa Constantin Popa ( he, קונסטנטין פופה; born February 18, 1971) is a Romanian-Israeli professional basketball coach and former player. Biography Popa played for Dinamo Bucharest in his native Romania before going overseas to play colle ...
, Virgil Stănescu and
Vlad Moldoveanu Vlad-Sorin Moldoveanu (born February 11, 1988) is a Romanian professional basketball player who last played for CSO Voluntari. He also represents the Romanian national basketball team in international competition. Standing at , he plays at the pow ...
. In 2016, Romania was chosen as a host for the 2017 FIBA EuroBasket. Romania will host the
2020 FIBA Under-17 Women's Basketball World Cup The 2020 FIBA U17 Women's Basketball World Cup ( ro, Cupa mondială de baschet feminin FIBA sub-17 ani 2020) would have been an international basketball competition to be held in Cluj-Napoca, Romania. It would have been the sixth edition of the F ...
with
Cluj-Napoca ; hu, kincses város) , official_name=Cluj-Napoca , native_name= , image_skyline= , subdivision_type1 = Counties of Romania, County , subdivision_name1 = Cluj County , subdivision_type2 = Subdivisions of Romania, Status , subdivision_name2 ...
as the host city between August 15 and 23 2020.


Rugby union

Rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...
is a relatively popular team sport played in Romania, with a tradition of more than 100 years and were bronze medalists when Rugby was included in the 1924 Paris Olympic Games. The
Romania national rugby union team The Romania national rugby union team ( ro, Echipa națională de rugby a României) represents Romania in men's international rugby union competitions, nicknamed Stejarii (''The Oaks''), is long considered one of the stronger European teams out ...
competed at every
Rugby World Cup The Rugby World Cup is a men's rugby union tournament contested every four years between the top international teams. The tournament is administered by World Rugby, the sport's international governing body. The winners are awarded the Webb E ...
up until 2019, where the team were disqualified for fielding ineligible players in the qualifying campaign. They returned to compete at
Rugby World Cup 2023 The 2023 Rugby World Cup is scheduled to be the tenth men's Rugby World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for men's rugby union teams. It is scheduled to take place in France from 8 September to 28 October 2023 in nine venues across the cou ...
. The Romanian CEC Bank SuperLiga is the Premier Club Rugby Competition in Romania which first commenced in 1914 and has been played almost uninterrupted since then.


Individual sports


Gymnastics

Romania holds a long tradition in artistic gymnastics, especially in the ladies competition.
Gymnastics Gymnastics is a type of sport that includes physical exercises requiring balance, strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, dedication and endurance. The movements involved in gymnastics contribute to the development of the arms, legs, shou ...
is responsible for the majority of Romania's Olympic medals, gold, silver, and bronze. The most famous Romanian gymnast is
Nadia Comăneci Nadia Elena Comăneci Conner (born November 12, 1961) is a Romanian retired gymnast and a five-time Olympic gold medalist, all in individual events. In 1976, at the age of 14, Comăneci was the first gymnast to be awarded a perfect score of 10. ...
, who was the first gymnast to ever score a perfect 10 at the Olympic Games, during the
1976 Summer Olympics Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 Phi ...
. She also won three gold medals, one silver, and one bronze, all at the age of fourteen. Her success continued in the
1980 Summer Olympics The 1980 Summer Olympics (russian: Летние Олимпийские игры 1980, Letniye Olimpiyskiye igry 1980), officially known as the Games of the XXII Olympiad (russian: Игры XXII Олимпиады, Igry XXII Olimpiady) and commo ...
, winning two gold medals and two silver medals. At the 1976 Olympic Games,
Teodora Ungureanu Teodora Ungureanu (born 13 November 1960) is a Romanian former gymnast who competed at the 1976 Summer Olympics. She is a three-time Olympic medalist (two silver and one bronze) and a world championships silver medalist. After retiring from gymn ...
did very well too, but did not receive as much fame as Nadia. Other famous gymnasts include: Daniela Silivaş,
Ecaterina Szabo Ecaterina Szabo ( hu, Szabó Katalin, ; born 22 January 1967) is a former Romanian artistic gymnast who won 20 Olympic, world and continental medals. Szabo won gold medals in the 1984 Olympics in three individual events (vault, balance beam ( ...
, Lavinia Miloşovici,
Gina Gogean Gina Elena Gogean (born 9 September 1977) is a retired artistic gymnast from Romania who competed internationally in the late 1980s and throughout the 1990s. During her career she won an impressive number of 30 medals at Olympic Games, world cha ...
,
Simona Amânar Simona Amânar (; born 7 October 1979) is a Romanian former artistic gymnast. She is a seven-time Olympic and ten-time World Championship medalist. Amânar helped Romania win four consecutive world team titles (1994–1999), as well as the 2000 ...
,
Andreea Răducan Andreea Mădălina Răducan (; born 30 September 1983) is a retired gymnast from Bârlad, Romania. She currently works as a sports announcer and journalist. Răducan began competing in gymnastics at a young age and was training at the Romanian j ...
,
Maria Olaru Maria Olaru (born 4 June 1982)
Maria Olaru
is a ...
,
Cătălina Ponor Cătălina Ponor (; born 20 August 1987) is a Romanian former artistic gymnast who competed at three Olympiads: 2004, 2012, and 2016. She won three gold medals at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens on balance beam, floor and as part of the R ...
,
Sandra Izbaşa Sandra or SANDRA may refer to: People * Sandra (given name) * Sandra (singer) (born 1962), German pop singer * Margaretha Sandra (1629–1674), Dutch soldier * Sandra (orangutan), who won the legal right to be defined as a "non-human person" Pla ...
, and
Larisa Iordache Larisa Andreea Iordache (; born 19 June 1996) is a former Romanians, Romanian Artistic gymnastics, artistic gymnast. She represented Romania at the 2012 Summer Olympics, Romania at the 2012 Olympic Games, winning a bronze medal with the team, a ...
. Top Romanian men's gymnasts include:
Marius Urzică Marius Daniel Urzică (born 30 September 1975 in Toplița, Romania) is a Romanian gymnast. Urzică is an Olympic champion, a three-time world champion and a three-time European champion on pommel horse. He competed at three Olympic Games, medali ...
and
Marian Drăgulescu Marian Drăgulescu (born 18 December 1980 in Bucharest) is a former Romanian artistic gymnast. During his senior gymnastics career he won 31 medals at Olympic Games at World and European Championships, of which eight are gold medals at the World ...
. Gymnastics has a very long tradition in Romania, which goes back in time decades before the major success of Montreal. Romania was also successful in the 1950s, when
Elena Leușteanu Elena Leușteanu-Popescu (later Teodorescu, 4 July 1935 – 16 August 2008) was a Romanian artistic gymnast who competed at the 1956, 1960 and 1964 Olympics. During her career she won three Olympic bronze medals, one world bronze medal and five ...
won an individual Olympic medal in 1956.


Tennis

Ilie Năstase Ilie Theodoriu Năstase (, born 19 July 1946) is a former World No. 1 Romanian tennis player. He was ranked world No. 1 in singles from 23 August 1973 to 2 June 1974, and was the first man to hold the top position on the computerized ATP ranking ...
, a famous Romanian tennis player, is another internationally known Romanian sports star. He won several
Grand Slam Grand Slam most often refers to: * Grand Slam (tennis), one player or pair winning all four major annual tournaments, or the tournaments themselves Grand Slam or Grand slam may also refer to: Games and sports * Grand slam, winning category te ...
titles and dozens of other tournaments and was the first player to be ranked as number 1 by ATP from 1973 to 1974; he also was a successful doubles player.
Virginia Ruzici Virginia Ruzici (born 31 January 1955) is a former professional tennis player from Romania. She won the 1978 French Open singles championship. Career Ruzici became a professional tennis player in 1975. One of her main assets on court was her po ...
was a successful tennis player in the 1970s. Ilie Năstase and
Simona Halep Simona Halep (; born 27 September 1991) is a Romanian professional tennis player. She has been ranked world No. 1 in singles twice between 2017 and 2019, for a total of 64 weeks, which ranks eleventh in the history of the Women's Tennis Assoc ...
are the only Romamian tennis players to have achieved no. 1, in the ATP and WTA, respectively. Romania reached the
Davis Cup The Davis Cup is the premier international team event in men's tennis. It is run by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and is contested annually between teams from competing countries in a knock-out format. It is described by the organis ...
finals three times (1969, 1971, 1972). Other popular men's tennis players include
Ion Ţiriac An ion () is an atom or molecule with a net electrical charge. The charge of an electron is considered to be negative by convention and this charge is equal and opposite to the charge of a proton, which is considered to be positive by conven ...
and
Andrei Pavel Andrei Pavel (born 27 January 1974) is a Romanian tennis coach and former professional tennis player. Career Andrei began playing tennis at age eight, and moved to Germany at age sixteen. Turned professional in 1995. He won three singles tit ...
. As for active players, the top Romanians on the men's side are the doubles players,
Horia Tecău Horia Tecău (; born January 19, 1985) is a Romanian former professional tennis player who specialised in doubles. He is a three-time Grand Slam champion, having won the 2015 Wimbledon Championships and 2017 US Open alongside Jean-Julien Rojer ...
and
Florin Mergea Florin Mergea (; born 26 January 1985) is a Romanian tennis player and a doubles specialist. He has reached the final of the ATP World Tour Finals in 2015 and won an ATP Masters title at the Mutua Madrid Open earlier that year. He achieved a c ...
, who also brought Romania's first olympic medal in tennis, a silver in 2016. In women's tennis,
Magda Rurac Magda Rurac (née Berescu;11 July 1918 – 9 May 1995)Virginia Ruzici Virginia Ruzici (born 31 January 1955) is a former professional tennis player from Romania. She won the 1978 French Open singles championship. Career Ruzici became a professional tennis player in 1975. One of her main assets on court was her po ...
,
Irina Spîrlea Irina Spîrlea (born 26 March 1974) is a retired tennis player from Romania who turned professional in 1990. She won four singles and six doubles titles. Spîrlea reached her career-high ranking on the WTA Tour on 13 October 1997, when she becam ...
, and
Ruxandra Dragomir Ruxandra Dragomir Ilie (born 24 October 1972) is a retired tennis player from Romania. She won four singles and five doubles titles on the WTA Tour during her career. The right-hander reached her highest individual WTA ranking on 25 August 1997 ...
are among the top Romanian players of all time. Among active players, the top Romanians include
Simona Halep Simona Halep (; born 27 September 1991) is a Romanian professional tennis player. She has been ranked world No. 1 in singles twice between 2017 and 2019, for a total of 64 weeks, which ranks eleventh in the history of the Women's Tennis Assoc ...
,
Sorana Cirstea Sorana may refer to: * Sorana (Pescia), a village in Pistoia, Tuscany, Italy ** Sorana bean, a type of cannellini bean grown in Sorana *Sorana Cîrstea (born 1990), Romanian tennis player *Sorana Păcurar (better known as only Sorana) Romanian sin ...
,
Mihaela Buzarnescu Mihaela is a female given name of Hebrew origin, very common in Romania. Notable people with the name include: *Mihaela Bene (born 1973), Romanian sprint canoer *Mihaela Botezan (born 1976), Romanian long-distance runner *Mihaela Buzărnescu (born ...
,
Irina Begu Irina-Camelia Begu (born 26 August 1990) is a Romanian professional tennis player. She reached a career-high singles ranking of No. 22 in the world, in August 2016. Two years later, she reached her highest WTA doubles ranking, also No. 22. Beg ...
,
Monica Niculescu Monica Niculescu (born 25 September 1987) is a Romanian professional tennis player. She has been ranked by the Women's Tennis Association as high as 28 in singles and 11 in doubles. Niculescu has won several titles: three singles and ten doubles ...
. Simona Halep has won two
Grand Slam Grand Slam most often refers to: * Grand Slam (tennis), one player or pair winning all four major annual tournaments, or the tournaments themselves Grand Slam or Grand slam may also refer to: Games and sports * Grand slam, winning category te ...
singles titles: the
2018 French Open The 2018 French Open was a Grand Slam (tennis), major tennis tournament played on outdoor clay courts. It took place at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France, from 27 May to 10 June and consisted of events for players in singles, doubles and m ...
and the
2019 Wimbledon Championships The 2019 Wimbledon Championships was a Grand Slam tennis tournament that took place at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, London, United Kingdom. The main tournament began on Monday 1 July 2019 and finished on Sunday 14 J ...
, and was the year-end No. 1 in 2017 and 2018.


Oină

Oină ''Oină'' () is a Romanian traditional sport, similar in many ways to baseball. History The name "oină" was originally "hoina", and is derived from the Cuman word ''oyn'' "game" (a cognate of Turkish ''oyun''). The oldest direct mention come ...
is a traditional Romanian sport with similarities to
baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...
.


Boxing

Boxing Boxing (also known as "Western boxing" or "pugilism") is a combat sport in which two people, usually wearing protective gloves and other protective equipment such as hand wraps and mouthguards, throw punches at each other for a predetermined ...
is popular in Romania, especially in the TV broadcastings. Famous boxers include:
Nicolae Linca Nicolae Linca (1 January 1929 – 27 June 2008) was a Romanian amateur welterweight boxer. After winning bronze medals at the 1953 and 1955 European championships, he became Romania's first Olympic champion in boxing at the 1956 Summer Olympics. ...
,
Francisc Vaştag Francisc is the Romanian-language form of Francis. In other cases Francisc is the Romanianized form of the Hungarian name Ferenc. Notable people with the name include: * Francisc Hossu-Longin * Francisc Rainer *Francisc Șirato Francisc Şira ...
,
Mihai Leu Mihai Leu also known as Michael Loewe (born 13 February 1969, in Hunedoara) is a Romanian former professional boxer who competed between 1991 and 1997. He held the WBO welterweight title in 1997. Leu retired after one title defense, against Mic ...
,
Lucian Bute Lucian Bute (born February 28, 1980) is a Romanian-Canadian former professional boxer who competed from 2003 to 2017. He held the International Boxing Federation, IBF super-middleweight title from 2007 to 2012, successfully making nine consecutiv ...
,
Leonard Doroftei Leonard Dorin Doroftei (, also known as ''Leonard Dorin''; born 10 April 1970) is a Romanian former boxer, the WBA Lightweight World Champion from 5 January 2002 to 24 October 2003. Amateur highlights Doroftei took up boxing at the age of 14 ...
, and
Adrian Diaconu Adrian Diaconu (born 9 June 1978) is a Romanian former professional boxer who competed from 2001 to 2011, and held the WBC light-heavyweight title from 2008 to 2009. As an amateur he won a silver medal in the middleweight division at the 19 ...
.


Rowing and canoeing

Romanian oarspeople have brought numerous successes, including 35 Olympic medals (18 gold) for
rowing Rowing is the act of propelling a human-powered watercraft using the sweeping motions of oars to displace water and generate reactional propulsion. Rowing is functionally similar to paddling, but rowing requires oars to be mechanically atta ...
and 34 medals (10 gold) for
canoeing Canoeing is an activity which involves paddling a canoe with a single-bladed paddle. Common meanings of the term are limited to when the canoeing is the central purpose of the activity. Broader meanings include when it is combined with other acti ...
. Romania is a leading rowing nation. Often boasting many wins each year in the Junior World Rowing Championships. In the under-23's age level, Romania often field a strong team. Often medalling in the women's events. The Romanian Senior Women's rowing team is particularly strong. They have been the poster child team as regards women's rowing. They consistently perform in the coxed women's eight. In the Olympics, they won the women's
coxless pair A coxless pair is a rowing boat used in the sport of competitive rowing. It is designed for two rowers, who propel the boat with sweep oars. The crew consists of a pair of rowers, each having one oar, one on the stroke side (rower's right h ...
.


Chess

Chess Chess is a board game for two players, called White and Black, each controlling an army of chess pieces in their color, with the objective to checkmate the opponent's king. It is sometimes called international chess or Western chess to disti ...
is fairly popular among some groups, especially retired people and mathematicians. The highest
FIDE rating The Elo rating system is a method for calculating the relative skill levels of players in zero-sum games such as chess. It is named after its creator Arpad Elo, a Hungarian-American physics professor. The Elo system was invented as an improved c ...
Romanian player is the grandmaster
Liviu-Dieter Nisipeanu Liviu-Dieter Nisipeanu (born 1 August 1976) is a Romanian (until 2014) and German (since 2014) chess grandmaster. His peak FIDE rating was 2707 in October 2005, when he was ranked fifteenth in the world, and the highest rated Romanian player eve ...
.


Fencing

Fencing as a sport was introduced in Romania in the 19th century by French masters. The first national fencing competition was held in 1921 and the
Romanian Fencing Federation The Romanian Fencing Federation ( ro, Federația Română de Scrimă) is the governing body for the sport of fencing in Romania. Affiliated to the Federation Internationale d'Escrime since 1914, it is a member of the European Fencing Confederation ...
was created in 1931. The first Romanian fencer to reach the podium in a major international competition was
Maria Vicol Maria Vicol (née Taitiș, 17 October 1935 – 13 March 2015) was a Romanian foil fencer, Olympic bronze medalist in 1960 and an Olympic team bronze medalist in 1968. Career Vicol took up fencing at Progresul Bucharest, where she was trained ...
, who earned a silver medal at the 1956 Junior World Championships in
Luxembourg Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small lan ...
. Since then, fencing has brought Romania eight Olympic team medals and seven Olympic individual medals, including three golds:
Ion Drîmbă Ionel Alexandru "Ion" Drîmbă (also Drâmbă, March 18, 1942 – February 20, 2006) was a Romanian fencer. he competed at the 1960, 1964 and 1968 Olympics and won the first ever Olympic gold medal in fencing for Romania in 1968. Biography Dr ...
(
foil Foil may refer to: Materials * Foil (metal), a quite thin sheet of metal, usually manufactured with a rolling mill machine * Metal leaf, a very thin sheet of decorative metal * Aluminium foil, a type of wrapping for food * Tin foil, metal foil ma ...
) at the
1968 Summer Olympics The 1968 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1968), officially known as the Games of the XIX Olympiad ( es, Juegos de la XIX Olimpiada) and commonly known as Mexico 1968 ( es, México 1968), were an international multi-sport eve ...
in
Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
, Laura Badea (foil) at the
1996 Summer Olympics The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...
in
Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
, and
Mihai Covaliu Mihai Claudiu Covaliu (born 5 November 1977 in Brașov) is a Romanian retired sabre fencer, Olympic champion in 2000 and world champion in 2005, and coach of the Romanian men's sabre team. He is also ex-president of the Romanian Fencing Federat ...
(
sabre A sabre ( French: sabʁ or saber in American English) is a type of backsword with a curved blade associated with the light cavalry of the early modern and Napoleonic periods. Originally associated with Central European cavalry such as th ...
) at the
2000 Summer Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 (Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from 1 ...
in
Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
. Romanian fencers also earned 13 gold medals in
World Fencing Championships The World Fencing Championships is an annual competition in fencing organized by the Fédération Internationale d'Escrime (FIE; ''International Fencing Federation'' in English). Contestants may participate in Foil (fencing), foil, épée, and S ...
and 13 gold medals in
European Fencing Championships The European Fencing Championships is an annual top-level European fencing competition organized by the European Fencing Confederation. History The first competition bearing the name of "European Fencing Championships" was held in Paris in 1921. T ...
. Six Romanians feature in the Hall of Fame of the
International Fencing Federation International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations". International may also refer to: Music Albums * ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011 * ''International'' (New Order album), 2002 * ''International'' (The T ...
: Laura Badea, Mihai Covaliu, Ana Pascu,
Petru Kuki Petru Kuki (born 22 May 1955) is a Romanian épée and foil fencer. He competed at the 1976, 1980 and 1984 Summer Olympics The 1984 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXIII Olympiad and also known as Los Angeles 1984) were an inte ...
, Ioan Pop and Reka Szabo. Three Romanian athletes are currently amongst the ten top-ranked fencers:
Ana Maria Brânză Ana Maria Popescu, formerly known as Ana Maria Brânză (, born 26 November 1984), is a Romanian left-handed épée fencer. Popescu is a four-time team European champion, 2013 individual European champion, and two-time team world champion. A f ...
and
Simona Gherman Simona Gherman (née Alexandru; born 12 April 1985) is a retired Romanian épée fencer, European champion in 2012 and 2016. She was twice team World Champion in 2010 and 2011 and five-time team European Champion in 2008, 2009, 2011, 2014 and 201 ...
in women's
épée The ( or , ), sometimes spelled epee in English, is the largest and heaviest of the three weapons used in the sport of fencing. The modern derives from the 19th-century , a weapon which itself derives from the French small sword. This contains ...
and
Tiberiu Dolniceanu Tiberiu Dolniceanu (; born 3 April 1988) is a Romanian sabre fencer, European champion in 2013 and bronze medal in the 2013 World championships. As part of Romania's sabre team, he won the team silver medal in the 2012 Summer Olympics and the ...
in men's sabre.


Motorsports

Transilvania Motor Ring Transilvania Motor Ring is a 3.7 km racing circuit located 20 km south–west of Târgu Mureș, in the historical region of Transylvania. It is the largest racing venue in Romania. References External links Official site
{{Motorcycle-speedw ...
is the first permanent circuit in Romania, and was opened in November 2018 near
Târgu Mureș Târgu Mureș (, ; hu, Marosvásárhely ) is the seat of Mureș County in the historical region of Transylvania, Romania. It is the List of cities and towns in Romania, 16th largest Romanian city, with 134,290 inhabitants as of the 2011 Romania ...
.


Other sports

Romania had significant success in the 20th century in athletics.
Iolanda Balaș Iolanda Balaș (, hu, Balázs Jolán, later ''Balázs-Sőtér Jolán''; 12 December 1936 – 11 March 2016) was a Romanian athlete, an Olympic champion and former world record holder in the high jump. She was the first Romanian woman to win an ...
and
Lia Manoliu Lia Manoliu (; 25 April 1932 – 9 January 1998) was a Romanian discus thrower who won one gold and two bronze Olympic medals. She was the first track and field athlete to compete at six Olympics (1952–1972). Early life; sports and educat ...
are important names of the mid-20th century.
Table tennis Table tennis, also known as ping-pong and whiff-whaff, is a sport in which two or four players hit a lightweight ball, also known as the ping-pong ball, back and forth across a table using small solid rackets. It takes place on a hard table div ...
is also a sport with good results in Romania.
Angelica Rozeanu Angelica Rozeanu (née Adelstein) (15 October 1921 – 21 February 2006) was a Romanian table tennis player of Jewish origin, the most successful female table tennis player in the history of the sport, winning the women's world singles title 6 ye ...
achieved major success in this sport in the 1950s.
Elizabeta Samara Elizabeta Samara (born 15 April 1989 in Constanța) is a professional Romanian table tennis and a three-time European champion. She is currently the player of CSA Steaua București. Samara previously represented Fenerbahçe SK. She has repres ...
is a contemporary table tennis three-time European champion.


Olympics

Maybe slightly surprising for a country of its size, Romania has been one of the most successful countries in the history of the
Summer Olympic Games The Summer Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'été), also known as the Games of the Olympiad, and often referred to as the Summer Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inau ...
( 15th overall) with a total of 307 medals won throughout the years, 89 of which are gold medals. Romania has appeared in 21 of the 28 Summer Olympic Games. The nation debuted at the
1900 Summer Olympics The 1900 Summer Olympics (french: Jeux olympiques d'été de 1900, link=no), today officially known as the Games of the II Olympiad () and also known as Paris 1900, were an international multi-sport event that took place in Paris, France, from 1 ...
, appeared again three times between the World Wars, and has competed at every event since the
1952 Summer Olympics The 1952 Summer Olympics ( fi, Kesäolympialaiset 1952; sv, Olympiska sommarspelen 1952), officially known as the Games of the XV Olympiad ( fi, XV olympiadin kisat; sv, Den XV olympiadens spel) and commonly known as Helsinki 1952 ( sv, Helsin ...
. At the winter Olympics Romania won only one medal, at the
1968 Winter Olympics The 1968 Winter Olympics, officially known as the X Olympic Winter Games (french: Les Xes Jeux olympiques d'hiver), were a winter multi-sport event held from 6 to 18 February 1968 in Grenoble, France. Thirty-seven countries participated. Frenchm ...
with two-man bobsleigh team led by
Ion Panțuru Ion Panţuru (11 September 1934 – 17 January 2016) was a Romanian bobsledder. He competed in two-man and four-man events at the 1964, 1968, 1972 and 1976 Olympics and served as the Olympic flag bearer for Romania in 1964 and 1972.
and
Nicolae Neagoe Nicolae Neagoe (2 August 1941 – 29 April 2023) was a Romanian bobsledder who competed in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Neagoe was born in Sinaia on 2 August 1941. With his driver Ion Panţuru, he won the bronze medal in the two-man eve ...
.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sport In Romania