Ioan Suciu, the president of the Romanian Gymnastics Federation, spoke about the absence of Ana Bărbosu from the World Championships, but also about the current situation: “We go through a difficult time”

At the first major competition after the Paris Olympics, Romania participates with four gymnasiums. The World Championships take place this year in Jakarta, Indonesia, and are only individual, that is, without team competition. Medals will be granted to the individual compound and in the finals on the devices.

Our country will contest Sabrina Maneca-Voinea, Denisa Golgotă, Ella Oprea and Ana Maria Mihăescu. In addition to Sabrina Voinea, no other gymnast from the Romanian team participating in Paris will be present at the beginning. Before leaving for Jakarta, the Romanians will compete in Ploiești, at the National Championships, between October 2 and 4.

Ana Bărbosu, Olympic bronze medalist in 2024 and European soil gold in 2025, will not be present at the world competition. The Romanian won four medals this year at the EC from Leipzig; In addition to the ground medal, she climbed the podium on the beam, on the second step, and the third to the individual compound and parallel. Ana started her studies at Stanford University this fall.

Also, after a long time, Romania will not have representatives in the men's competition. Ioan Suciu, president of the Romanian Gymnastics Federation of April 2025, spoke about this moment from the Romanian gymnastics.

Ioan Suciu next to Irina Deleanu, the president of the Federation of Rhythmic Gymnastics, the previous days, when they signed a FRG photo collaboration protocol.

– Mr. Suciu, how did Romania come to send any representative in the Jakarta Men's Competition?
– It is a decision composed of many aspects, because, not having constant for more than two years, the boys have failed to coagulate a nucleus to march at a world champion. Then, in relation to everything that is happening at the moment, directly said, at the financial level, things cannot be just in the manner of participation. That is, if we go with a very clear goal, we must know precisely that we are at least one final, but, from the head of the place, we leave on the boys side with participation. I repeat, especially on the financial background we are going to now, we couldn't go that way.

“If they were in Europe, do you think you would have sent someone?”
– At the health problems they have at the moment, I do not want to launch in other optimistic hypotheses, it is not the case. So they do not yet have an honorable availability or presence with which they can represent us at the World Championships.

– How many are in the senior lot?
– Currently, Valid athletes, if you allow me to tell them so, that it sounds a little ugly, we have three: Burtănete brothers and Cotârlan Stefan, if I'm not mistaken. So not to say about others who, for more than four months, are in a permanent recovery. So things are not pink at all. I am glad that we have reached a common denominator and they also understood that, moreover, it is the most important to be leaning, first of all on recovery, on restoration, and then to think about an honorable presence at an competition. There were countless discussions on this participation in the World Championships, which are not close; We are going through a difficult financial period, with zero rectifications and so on.

Ioan Suciu: “Ana Bărbosu wanted to restore”

– Let's move on to girls now. What happens to Ana Bărbosu, why not participate?
– Ana took a margin, let's say so, 2025 until the end, I think 2026, it remains to discuss after the World Championships, to see what her wish is. He wanted, at this stage of his life, he will be restored a little, to try to see what the part of scholarships in the United States means. It is certain that the coaches are in direct connection with her, follow a step-by-one program and we will see, after this year 2025, as it is positioned for 2026. He assured us that in 2027 he wants to return to participate in qualifying for the Los Angeles Olympics.

Ana Maria Barbosu with the Eurpopean gold medal from the Imago Images Photo soil

– Can we talk about withdrawal?
– No, she is still in preparation, with this preparation and schooling attempt. We could not oppose, you realize, priority in every man's life is the school. The desires of the athlete matter, because I cannot force him to perform if he wants something else, on the one hand. On the other hand, I think we have to be a little more open and look a little broader this training, not necessarily centralized, and to support athletes with value and potential, as is Ana in this case, to combine the useful with the pleasant. Specifically, the school, especially since he received a scholarship in the United States, which is not here. And then I came to support this step and anytime Ana is welcome, but I repeat has not stopped from the activity.

– There were two good results too at the World Cups. How do you see Sabrina after the European Championships, where did she not get any final?
– In performance, things are from agony to ecstasy. You cannot know, depending on the moment, when the course of a preparation runs like a book and then you catch a bad day on the day of the competition and it happens what happened to the European. It is true that this mouth of oxygen, both in Paris, the World Cup and Szombathly, for Denisa, gives us hope for the World Championships, where there will be a completely different competition. Things start from scratch, but we go with an aplomb vis-a-vis the last period of preparation before the World Championships. We go with desire, optimism and hope to make a beautiful figure there.

Sabrina Voinea, gold at the Paris World Cup/Photo: Imago Images

– Because you said about financial problems, did you get the money?
– Money, if you ask me directly, I answer you directly, I never reach us, because I do not want to go back to say what financial projection we had, at the level and development, that we are trying to develop. It is true that we are, so to speak, at first in the new positions and then we took a margin of settlement and regulating all things this year and, later, to come up with a sustainable projection for next year and beyond. Here I would open another bracket, but not the case. Let's talk about a multiannual budget and so on. In the current context, things are not simple, so, in conclusion, and we try, seeing and doing from day to day, what we can improve and how we can support us with beautiful results.