Olympic Coach Bela Karolyi Speaks at Darien YMCA Fundraiser

The Darien YMCA’s event featuring guest speaker Olympic gymnastics coach Bela Karolyi has been postponed until Friday, March 8th.  The event begins at 6:30pm and will be held at the Country Club of Darien.   Bela Karolyi will speak regarding his experiences training 9 Olympic champions, 28 Olympians, and many more gymnasts during his 30 years of coaching.  The event is a fundraising dinner for the Darien YMCA and was originally scheduled for February 8th but was postponed due to a blizzard.   Tickets that have already been sold will be honored at the event and a limited number of tickets are still available.  Tickets can be purchased by calling the Darien YMCA at 203-655-8228 ext. 1352 or emailing beladinner@darien-ymca.org.

Bela Karolyi is perhaps best known for coaching Nadia Comaneci who earned the first-ever perfect 10 in Olympic gymnastics competition.  He and his wife Marta have also trained Mary Lou Retton, Betty Okino, Teodora Ugueanu, Kim Zmeskal, Kristie Phillips, Dominique Moceanu, and Kerry Strug, whom he is famous for carrying to the podium after she injured her ankle on the gold medal-winning vault in the team competition at the 1996 Summer Olympics.  

This fundraising dinner will also feature a live and silent auction of unique experiences.  These include a week at Bela Karolyi’s gymnastics camp for a young gymnast which is held at a designated Olympic training site for the women’s gymnastics team, tickets to see live broadcasts of television shows in New York City including the Katie Couric show, and a one-of-a-kind trip on a private plane.

Ticketholders to this event will be provided with a free raffle ticket for a Darien YMCA membership. The Darien YMCA website is www.darien-ymca.org.