The Most Famous

ATHLETES from Romania

This page contains a list of the greatest Romanian Athletes. The pantheon dataset contains 6,025 Athletes, 159 of which were born in Romania. This makes Romania the birth place of the 21st most number of Athletes behind New Zealand, and Czechia.

Top 10

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary Romanian Athletes of all time. This list of famous Romanian Athletes is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography's online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of Romanian Athletes.

1. Iolanda Balaș (1936 - 2016)

With an HPI of 67.84, Iolanda Balaș is the most famous Romanian Athlete. Her biography has been translated into 36 different languages on wikipedia.

Iolanda Balaș (Romanian pronunciation: [joˈlanda ˈbalaʃ], Hungarian: Balázs Jolán, later Balázs-Sőtér Jolán; 12 December 1936 – 11 March 2016) was a Romanian athlete, an Olympic champion and former world record holder in the high jump. She was the first Romanian woman to win an Olympic gold medal and is considered to have been one of the greatest high jumpers of the twentieth century.

2. Mihaela Peneș (1947 - 2024)

With an HPI of 62.07, Mihaela Peneș is the 2nd most famous Romanian Athlete. Her biography has been translated into 26 different languages.

Mihaela Peneș (22 July 1947 – 29 August 2024) was a Romanian javelin thrower. She competed at the 1964 and 1968 Olympics and won a gold and a silver medal, respectively. Peneș first trained in swimming, handball and basketball, and changed to athletics because of her mother, a former athlete. In 1963, she won the national junior championships, setting a national record in the javelin throw, and since 1964 competed as a senior. After finishing her active career she worked as an athletics coach and official. In 1990, she joined the Romanian Olympic Committee, in 1995 became head of its international department, and in January–April 1999 served as its Secretary General. Peneș died on 29 August 2024, at the age of 77.

3. Ecaterina Oancia (1954 - 2024)

With an HPI of 61.28, Ecaterina Oancia is the 3rd most famous Romanian Athlete. Her biography has been translated into 21 different languages.

Ecaterina Oancia (25 March 1954 – 3 December 2024) was a Romanian rowing cox. She died on 3 December 2024, at the age of 70.

4. Ivan Patzaichin (1949 - 2021)

With an HPI of 59.40, Ivan Patzaichin is the 4th most famous Romanian Athlete. His biography has been translated into 30 different languages.

Ivan Patzaichin (Romanian pronunciation: [iˈvan paˈt͡sajkin]; 26 November 1949 – 5 September 2021) was a Romanian canoe racing coach and sprint canoeist. He took part in all major competitions between 1968 and 1984, including five consecutive Olympics, and won seven Olympic and 22 world championship medals, including four Olympic gold medals. This makes him the most decorated Romanian canoeist of all time. He later worked as a canoeing coach, attending five more Olympics in this capacity. In 1990 he was awarded the Olympic Order, and in 2006 a nationwide poll included him on the list 100 Greatest Romanians of all time.

5. István Somodi (1885 - 1963)

With an HPI of 57.43, István Somodi is the 5th most famous Romanian Athlete. His biography has been translated into 17 different languages.

István Somodi (22 August 1885, Kolozsvár, Kingdom of Hungary – 8 June 1963, Cluj, Romania) was a Hungarian athlete who competed mainly in the high jump. He competed for Hungary at the 1908 Summer Olympics, held in London, Great Britain, where he won the silver medal in the high jump.

6. Gheorghe Berceanu (1949 - 2022)

With an HPI of 57.42, Gheorghe Berceanu is the 6th most famous Romanian Athlete. His biography has been translated into 18 different languages.

Gheorghe Berceanu (28 December 1949 – 30 August 2022) was a Romanian light-flyweight Greco-Roman wrestler. He won the world title in 1969 and 1972, the European title in 1970, 1972, and 1973, and an Olympic gold medal in 1972 in Munich and a silver in 1976 in Montreal. Berceanu spent most of his career at Steaua București, and later worked there as a coach. Berceanu died on 30 August 2022, at the age of 72.

7. Maricica Puică (b. 1950)

With an HPI of 57.06, Maricica Puică is the 7th most famous Romanian Athlete. Her biography has been translated into 25 different languages.

Maricica Puică (née Luca on 29 July 1950) is a retired Romanian middle-distance runner. She is the 1984 Olympic champion in the 3,000 metres. One of the greatest female middle-distance runners of the 1980s, she also twice won the World Cross Country Championship (1982, 1984) and broke the world record for the mile in 1982.

8. Dumitru Pârvulescu (1933 - 2007)

With an HPI of 56.84, Dumitru Pârvulescu is the 8th most famous Romanian Athlete. His biography has been translated into 16 different languages.

Dumitru Pârvulescu (or, in older spelling, Pîrvulescu; 14 June 1933 – 9 April 2007) was a flyweight Greco-Roman wrestler from Romania. He competed at the 1952, 1956, 1960 and 1964 Olympics and won a gold medal in 1960, placing third in 1964 and fourth in 1956. At the world championships he won a silver medal in 1961 and finished fourth-fifth in 1953 and 1958.

9. Argentina Menis (1948 - 2023)

With an HPI of 56.74, Argentina Menis is the 9th most famous Romanian Athlete. Her biography has been translated into 21 different languages.

Argentina Menis (19 July 1948 – 3 March 2023) was a Romanian discus thrower who won silver medals at the 1972 Summer Olympics in. Munich and 1974 European Athletics Championships. She finished sixth at the 1976 Olympics. On 23 September 1972, she set a world record that stood for eight months. After retiring from competitions she worked at her club Dinamo București. Menis died on 3 March 2023, at the age of 74.

10. Doina Melinte (b. 1956)

With an HPI of 56.57, Doina Melinte is the 10th most famous Romanian Athlete. Her biography has been translated into 28 different languages.

Doina Ofelia Melinte (Romanian pronunciation: [ˈdojna meˈlinte]; née Beșliu on 27 December 1956) is a retired Romanian middle-distance runner. She competed at four Olympics (1980–92), and won a gold medal in the 800 metres and a silver medal in the 1,500 metres in 1984. She won the world indoor title in 1987 and 1989 and the European indoor title in 1985, 1988 and 1990 in the 1,500 m. Her world indoor mile record of 4:17.41 in 1990, stood for 26 years.

People

Pantheon has 159 people classified as Romanian athletes born between 1885 and 2003. Of these 159, 137 (86.16%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living Romanian athletes include Maricica Puică, Doina Melinte, and Valeria Bufanu. The most famous deceased Romanian athletes include Iolanda Balaș, Mihaela Peneș, and Ecaterina Oancia. As of April 2024, 159 new Romanian athletes have been added to Pantheon including Iolanda Balaș, Mihaela Peneș, and Ecaterina Oancia.