Christy Henrich
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Christina Renee Henrich ("Christy") (July 18, 1972 - July 26, 1994) was an American gymnast.
Training with Al Fong at the Great American Gymnastics Express club in Blue Springs, Missouri, Henrich made the US national gymnastics team in 1986 after placing fifth at the Junior National Championships. She continued to climb through the elite ranks over the next four years, placing ninth at the 1988 Olympic Trials and winning the silver medal in the all-around at the 1989 US National Championships. She represented the United States at the 1989 World Championships in Stuttgart, placing fourth with the American team and just missing a medal in the uneven bars final.
While Henrich was succeeding in gymnastics, her health was beginning to suffer from an eating disorder. Around 1989, while competing in an international meet, a judge told her she needed to lose weight. Apparently, Henrich took the comment to heart. Her drive to lose a few pounds progressed to unhealthy eating habits and, eventually, full-blown anorexia nervosa. The eating disorder was fueled further by the culture of elite gymnastics--which, in the late 80s and early 90s was ruled by "pixies", ie, small, underweight, prepubescent girls--and Henrich's own coaches, who allegedly made insulting remarks about her size and body type. At first, neither her family nor her coaches were aware of the situation.
Eventually, Henrich's battle with anorexia took such a toll on her health that she was asked to leave the gym. Her weight dropped dangerously low, and her family intervened and compelled her to enter hospital treatment for her eating disorder. In spite of numerous treatments and periods of recovery, Henrich died of multiple organ failure at the age of 22.
Henrich's death brought the problem of eating disorders in women's gymnastics into the spotlight. Prominent gymnasts such as Kathy Johnson and Cathy Rigby admitted their bouts with anorexia and bulimia; other athletes from the US National team stepped forward. The focus on gymnast wellness was addressed with several programs on both the national and international levels, to varying degrees of success.
Additionally, American television channels broadcasting gymnastics competitions, such as NBC-TV and ABC-TV, stopped commenting about or listing gymnasts' weights in captions in the mid-1990s. Television stations from other nations have adopted similar policies.
[edit] External links and resources
- Tribute to Christy Henrich Username and password required. *"Striking the Balance", Benita Fitzgerald Mosley, Technique magazine, July 1997
- Little Girls in Pretty Boxes, Joan Ryan, 1995, Doubleday, New York, ISBN 978-0-385-47790-1
