McNamara, Julianne (1966—)
McNamara, Julianne (1966—)
American gymnast . Born in Flushing, New York, on October 6, 1966.
Won the American Cup; won a bronze in the vault in World Cup (1982); shared a gold in the uneven bars in the Los Angeles Olympics (1984).
Five years after she began gymnastics, Julianne McNamara made the 1980 Olympic team. She performed well enough to make the last place berth, despite her relative lack of experience and a strained ligament. Unfortunately, her hopes of Olympic competition were dashed when the United States boycotted the 1980 Moscow Olympics after the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan. McNamara continued to compete, however, and in the 1981 World championships she placed 7th in the all-around, the highest an American woman gymnast had ever placed until that time. That same year, she won two American Cup titles and a bronze in the vault in the 1982 World Cup. McNamara often competed with Mary Lou Retton , the two scoring very close in points in match after match. Her best event was the uneven bars, and McNamara often used moves from the men's repertoire that were seldom attempted by other women gymnasts. In 1984, Julianne McNamara finally competed in the Olympics, where she shared a gold medal in the uneven bars with Ma Yanhong of China; Mary Lou Retton placed third.
sources:
Markel, Robert, Nancy Brooks, and Susan Markel. For the Record: Women in Sports. NY: World Almanac Publications, 1985.
Karin Loewen Haag , Athens, Georgia