Hilary Grivich

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Hilary Grivich (May 23, 1977May 4, 1997) was an American gymnast.

One of the original members of the "Károlyi six-pack," Grivich trained under Béla Károlyi in Houston Texas. A strong and consistent competitor, she won the US Junior National Championships in 1990. The following year she was a member of the silver medal-winning American team at the 1991 World Championships, competing second in the lineup on all four events.

Grivich seemed on course for the 1992 Olympics, placing seventh in the all-around and third on balance beam and floor exercise at that year's National Championships. However, at the Olympic Trials she placed eighth and did not qualify for the Olympic squad. Béla and Marta Károlyi and many other gymnastics insiders protested this turn of events, claiming that US judges deliberately underscored Grivich to keep the team from having too many Károlyi club gymnasts.

In 1993 Grivich switched her focus from gymnastics to diving. After only two years in the sport, she earned a scholarship to the University of Houston. She excelled in NCAA competition and hoped to eventually make the US Olympic team as a diver.

Less than a month before her twentieth birthday, Grivich was killed in an early morning car accident on a Houston highway. A scholarship with the Strake Jesuit Scholarship Fund was established in her name.


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