ShivamThe alleged affair
Once again Nadia saw herself in trouble and controversy when the rumors of her dating the son of Roman Dictator Nicolar Ceaușescu spread. It was in the year 1979 and the son Nicu Ceaușescu wasn’t someone who had a very good public image as he was considered a playboy, who wasted his wealth in gambling and was a tyrant. Though, it just remained a rumor but were capable enough to put a dent in Nadia’s public image.
Moscow Olympics
It was obvious that Nadia wasn’t at her best both physically and mentally. This reflected in her performance at the Moscow Olympics, as even after winning 2 silver and 2 gold medals her performance was not at the level it could have been. Her coach had also landed himself in trouble after fussing over the scoring system, saying that it was unfair. The Romanian Sports authority considered it as an embarrassment and were going to take serious action against it.
The Nadia tour
Well, The Romanian government shrewdly made use of Nadia as a cash cow. it was for the very same reason that in the year 1981, ‘Nadia Tour’ was hosted across 11 cities in America. Their ploy turned successful as the government ended up with recieving $250,000 from the state and Nadia thorugh her tour earned $1,000. Now, the time had come when the realitions between Nadia and her coach were going to get bitter.
Károlyi’s defection
It was a testing time for Nadia, when she witnessed her beloved coach getting defected along with his wife from the country due to the coach’s earlier actions in the Moscow Olympics. They resorted to seeking political asylum in the States. It all happened during the ‘Nadia Tour.’ The coach had left their daughter Andrea aged 7 back in Romania until he got permission to take refuge. Nadia was very upset and depressed on witnessing all this happen in front of her.
Stuck in Romania
Nadia was very valuable for the Romanian government. It is for this reason that they decided to keep a close look on Nadia’s activities and even tapped her phone and kept her out of media, as they feared that she could also follow a course of action similar to her coach. Nadia was now trapped in her own country.
Meeting Panait
Apparently, Constantin Panait came like a ray of hope in Nadia’s life in the year 1987. As he had escaped Romania by swimming the Danube river and had settled in Florida. He offered Nadia his help to escape from Romania and start afresh in the United States. Did, Nadia, take this brave decision, which could have landed her in a lot of trouble had the things not go as per plan?