Sabina Cojocar

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Sabina Carolina Cojocar (born October 23, 1985, Sibiu, Romania) is a retired international elite gymnast from Romania.

Cojocar began gymnastics at the age of 3 ½, though she told her coach she was five. She made her international debut at the age of fourteen at the 2000 Junior European Championships in Paris, France, placing second with her team and winning the all-around title. She was touted as the new leader of the young Romanian team and quickly drew international attention, appearing on the cover of International Gymnast magazine.

In August of 2001, Sabina competed in the Goodwill Games in Brisbane, Australia. She won the all around title, upsetting more established gymnasts such as Svetlana Khorkina, and earned a bronze medal on the floor exercise. She made her debut at the World Gymnastics Championships in Ghent, Belgium, later in the year. She placed first with the Romanian team, sixth in the all-around, and fourth on beam.

Cojocar underwent shoulder surgery in December 2001. In early 2002, she was one of the gymnasts affected when coach Octavian Belu decided to send the entire senior national team home from the Deva training center. Cojocar returned to her home club in Sibiu to train. She was one of the only gymnasts eventually asked to return to Deva, and competed in the 2002 World Championships placing 5th on the vault and 9th on floor exercise.

However, in 2003 Sabina was forced into retirement due to a chronic liver problem. She was diagnosed with Hypercholesterolemia in 2000 and prescribed Zocor. The medicine was not intended for use by children, and had several serious side effects for Cojocar. She complained of weakness and severe muscle and ligament pain, but Belu forced her to continue training and taking the medicine. After leaving Deva, Cojocar was vocal in the media about the problems on the national team. In addition to the medication problems, she alleged that Belu was physically abusive to the gymnasts, and that some girls had suffered "terrible beatings."

In 2004, Sabina returned to training to make one final push towards the Olympic Games, however she was not successful.

[edit] Skills

Vault: Double-twisting Yurchenko
Uneven Bars: Kip; cast to handstand; clear hip to handstand; toe-on to high bar; kip; cast to handstand; giant; hop full; full pirouette; 1 ½ pirouette; Thatchev; kip; cast; overshoot; kip; cast; sole circle; jump to high bar; kip; cast to handstand; giant; giant; full in dismount.
Balance Beam: Jump to knee mount, back handspring, back handspring, tucked full; switch split leap; Chen; front aerial; full turn; back handspring, back handspring, triple twist.
Floor Exercise: Front handspring, 2 1/2 twist; round off, back handspring, double pike; double twisting cat leap, hitchkick; round off, back handspring, 2 1/2 twist; switch ring leap, double twisting tuck jump; full turn (with leg horizontal); round off, whip, triple twist.

[edit] Floor Exercise Music

• 2001- 2002: "Esperanza/El Conquistador"

[edit] External links

• Official website
• Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique profile for Sabina Corolina Cojocar
• Bio at romanian-gymnastics.com