LIFE AFTER GYMNASTICS

Daniela Silivas retired in 1990 partly because of her nagging knee injury and partly due to the Romanian Revolution in 1989 which closed the Deva school for several months.

After spending a year at the University in Bucharest, Silivas took up an invitation from relatives in the USA to help them coach at a club in Georgia, Atlanta. She has been living there ever since, working with the Olympic Committee demonstrating how to teach gymnastics to children.

LATEST HAPPY NEWS:

8 April 2004: Daniela Silivas is the proud mum of Jaden Scott! Coleen Lou reports: Silivas Baby has Arrived.

January 2004: Coleen Lou informs us: Daniela is going to be a MOTHER!!!

For details, please visit Coleen's webpage: Daniela Silivas has a BIG announcement.

WEDDING BELLS:

May 2003: Margie Ortiz-Tudor writes: Daniela marries Scott Harper in the USA and marries him again in Deva in July!

If you can read Romanian, here's a report on Daniela's wedding from the Gazeta Sporturilor :

Nunta si īn Romānia
 Fosta campioana olimpica si mondiala la gimnastica Daniela Silivas (31 de ani) s-a casatorit religios cu Scott Harper, duminica, la Deva, īn prezenta a 60 de invitati. Cununia civila a avut loc īn Atlanta, pe 25 mai, bunicul mirelui fiind cel care a oficiat ceremonia. Daniela a vrut sa sarbatoreasca fericitul eveniment si īn Romānia, alaturi de familie si de prietenii ei din Europa. Scott Harper, care īn august va īmplini 29 de ani, este de profesie manager sportiv si a cunoscut-o pe Daniela īn urma cu trei ani, la centrul de gimnastica unde aceasta este antrenoare. Familia fostei sportive l-a cunoscut pe Scott doar acum, dar este foarte multumita de tinarul ginere. La petrecerea care a avut loc īn Statele Unite au participat doar 40 de invitati. Nasii cuplului au fost Adrian si Carmen Goreac, care au antrenat-o pe Silivas in anii '80, la lotul national. Daniela e stabilita in Atlanta din 1991. STEFAN COSTIN

After that little translation test, here's the English version courtesy of Nicole Citroen (many thanks!) :

Wedding in Romania too

Former Olympic and World Champion Daniela Silivas (31 years old), religiously married to Scott Harper on Sunday in Deva with 60 guests present. The civil wedding took place in Atlanta, on the 25th of May and the uncle of the bridegroom officiated the ceremony. Daniela wanted to celebrate the happy occasion in Romania too, along with her family and friends from Europe. Scott Harper, who will be 29th in August, is a professional sports manager and got to know Daniela 3 years ago at the gymnastics centre where she is a coach. The family of the former gymnast only got to know Scott now (just before the wedding) but they are satisfied with the young son-in-law At the wedding that took place in America, they only had 40 guests. The godparents of the couple were Adrian and Carmen Goreac, who trained silivas in the 80s at the national team. Daniela has been living in Amerca since 1991.

And here's one in English from Monitorul de Sibiu (25 June 2003) as reported in the Amazing Andreea webpage :

A two time bride
Daniela Silivas, who got engaged to Scott Harper last year in April, got married last month, on the 24th of May. Daniela: "It wasn't love at first sight, we were friends first. After a couple of months we realised that we were meant for each other and last year in April, we decided to get engaged.

At the wedding, which took place in Atlanta, only Scott's relatives and mutual friends from America were present. The wedding for Daniela's family will take place mid July and the godparents will be Adrian and Carmen Goreac. Daniela: "My mother is organising the wedding. After discussing it with her, we decided that the wedding will take place in Cetate Deva. It won't be a really big event, about 30 guests will be invited among whom my brother who left for Africa. I'll wear my wedding gown again for my family and friends. I didn't have Godparents here in America because they don't have this custom, I hope that in Deva, Adrian Goreac, my former coach and his wife Carmen who live in France now, can be my Godparents. I would also like to have Octavian Belu and Mariana Bitang there. They have promised me that if they are in Romania at that period of time, they won't miss the wedding."

Daniela will go to Romania at the beginning of July to help with the last preparations for the wedding. Scott will arrive a couple of days before the wedding. Daniela: "His work doesn't allow him to take too much time off. He'll only stay in Romania for a week but I'm happy that he will finally get to know my mother and my brother. Up until now he's only seen photos of them.

After the wedding in America, they didn't have a real honeymoon because of Scott's busy schedule. They spent a week in Florida and they will have another week in Romania.

 

June 2002: Daniela was inducted into the International Gymnast Hall of Fame.

Daniela receives her award from Nadia Comeneci and Bart Conner at the 6th Annual Induction Ceremony in Oklahoma City on 21st June 2002. Photographs courtesy of Goh Mailoon.


December 16, 1999:

Daniela sent a Christmas card, letter, and autographed postcard to Ying Min, founder of these pages. She wrote:

I'm still living in Atlanta and I really love it here. I'm coaching little girls and I go to competition only here in Georgia. I would like to thank you for all the beautiful pages on the Internet.

("You're welcome! It's our pleasure" say Min and Jennifer)

Next week I'll leave for New York where I'm gonna stay a week and after that I'm going to France where I will spend two weeks with my brother and my coach Adrian Goreac. Anyway, I hope you like the picture. It was taken right after the Olympics.

Love,

Daniela

Here is the autographed postcard. Daniela poses with her Olympic medals.

Many thanks to Mayland Crosson who wrote to me with this recent(Feb 97) account and took this photograph of Silivas with Nistor Sandro at the 1996 Olympics.

"She is very happy with her life now, coaching in the gym in Atlanta. Mostly her focus is on really being happy - she spent a lot of her time in Romania not having anything to really be happy about, and now here she just feels that opportunities abound and wants to experience everything. She was very friendly to me and was thrilled that my interest wasn't in the big name people but in the sport. When we discussed gymnatsics it was more the technical aspects and not her accomplishments. She is in many ways embarrassed to have her accomplishments brought up and generally feels uncomfortable when others can list everything she has done. I think that is a rare quality to be so humble when there are such unusual and extraordinary successes for a person. I guess if you were to publish anything that I state about her it is her humble quality. She loves attention, fun, and being loved, but not for what she has done, but because of who she is inside."

Thanks too to Alexandra at costiniu@kappa.ro for translating the following 2 articles.

This is from 4.12.1996. Daniela had been invited to a Paging Congress organized by Motorola. She gave this interview in Paris to a Romanian reporter:

Reporter: Daniela, what is the occasion for which you're here?
Daniela Silivas: I've been invited by Motorola to talk the paricipants, but everything was almost on the spot. Olga Korbut was supposed to be here, but she had some problems and she couldn't make it.
R : Where do you live?
DS: After I had a knee operation in 1991,I went to the USA and now I live in Atlanta. I've got a gymnastics centre where I'm training only children(3-12 years old). I'm being paid by the American government. Now I've got a short holiday, and I'm heading to Dijon to pay a visit to my ex-coach, Adrian Goreac.
R: What do you know about your former teammates?
DS: I heard Nadia's getting married. Aurelia Dobre lives in the US too, she's got 2 children. Dumitrita Turner is a coach in Guatemala.
R: What about your family?
DS: I talk to my parents every week. I'm very happy you have not forgotten me!I'd love to see this article when it's published!

The article below was published when Daniela turned 24. The journalist's name is Andi Vilara:

"I met Daniela in Atlanta. She looked just like a native American. I noticed right away that her car (Honda) had stickers all over it and they all represented the Romanian flag or the "RO" symbol! Some friends even asked her if she had got a job at Marta(Atlanta subway),which used the same colours. But no way, Dana is working as the chief manager at Hammond Gym and she's coaching 150 gymnasts. Her dream is to become a well-known gymnastics judge and a great coach, training world and Olympic champions. At 24, we think Dana has earned the right to hope these dreams will come true. Everybody remembers your incredible routines Dana, and every Romanian wishes you HAPPY BIRTHDAY!"

"Gymnastics fans will miss Daniela Silivas, the friendly, cheerful brilliant gymnast. She will always be remembered as one of the world's finest competitors. And although she never wore the all-around gold so many thought she deserved, Daniela was, in many ways, a true winner." ~International Gymnast May 1991
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