Translation: Bea Gheorghisor:
Octavian Bellu:
… as a gymnast I did not excel. I participated in Nationals, in average competitions, but I never reached high performance because after a point I was not built for gymnastics. …
You said that you wanted to study medicine?
I even studied for Medical school. But when I arrived in Bucharest for the exam, my colleagues hijacked me and I went to IEFS (Institute of Physical Education and Sport).
When did you start growing a mustache?
In high school in the ninth grade. I had great difficulties, because all the teachers claimed it would be better to shave. Just as I had difficulties when I went to Valea C?lug?reasc? teacher with long locks.
Locks?
I had long hair, yes. I am a rocker.
What music are you listening to?
Woodstock ’62. Beatles, Rolling Stones, Uriah Heep, Janis Joplin. …
To the National team, how did you get?
There was this Balkan Championship and two little girls from my club went to Onesti, the people from the Federation saw me and in ’81 when Bela Karoly left for the U.S. Athanasia Albu was a coach at the Federation at that point, I got a call: “Do you want to go to Deva?”. I said, “Yes.” …
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Source for the interview: adevarul.ro
Octavian Ioan Atanase Bellu (… born February 17, 1951 …) is the current head of the Romanian national women’s artistic gymnastics team. He was the main coach with interruptions, between 1990 and 2005 and returned as head of the national team in 2010. …
Bellu has one daughter, Iolanda, born in 1978, with his first wife Camelia … In 2008-2009 Bellu married his coaching partner Mariana Bitang. …
Gymnastics Coaching.com 