Famous Romanian Women

Nadia Comaneci is a Romanian former gymnast. One of the best-known gymnasts in the world, Comaneci has five Olympic gold medals under her belt. Credited with popularizing gymnastics around the world, Nadia Comaneci was honored by the Laureus World Sports Academy by including her in their Athletes of the 20th Century list in 2000.

Simona Halep is a Romanian tennis player. With 22 WTA singles titles and two Grand Slam singles titles under her belt, Simona Halep is one of the most successful Romanian female tennis players of all time. She is also widely considered one of the WTA Tour's best returners of the current generation.

Inna is a Romanian songwriter and singer who achieved popularity after releasing her debut studio album Hot, which was certified Platinum and Gold. Over the years, she has received several awards, such as MTV Europe Music Awards, Romanian Music Awards, and Balkan Music Awards. Also a human rights activist, Inna supports LGBT and children's rights. 

Marie of Romania was a descendant of Queen Victoria and born as the Princess of Edinburgh, before she married King Ferdinand I and became the last queen of Romania. A visual artist and a patron of the Art Nouveau movement, she was also a skilled equestrian and driver.

Ana Ularu is a Romanian actress best known for playing the role of Matilda in the action film Outbound. She began her acting career in the mid-1990s and appeared in a handful of minor roles in TV shows. As her career progressed, she started acting in films as well. She has received a Locarno International Film Festival Award.

Princess Anne Antoinette came to be known as the Queen of Romania after her marriage to Romanian king Michael I. However, she was actually an uncrowned queen, since her husband was forced to abdicate by the Communists shortly before their marriage. She had also been a Free French forces nurse.

Aurelia Dobre is a Romanian former artistic gymnast who won three gold medals at the 24th Artistic Gymnastics World Championships in 1987. In the same World Championships, she won two bronze medals. In 1988, she helped her team win the silver medal at the Summer Olympics. In 2016, she was made an inductee of the International Gymnastics Hall of Fame.

Márta Károlyi is a Hungarian-born Romanian-American gymnastics coach. She was the former national team coordinator for USA Gymnastics. Her husband, Bela, is also a prominent gymnastics coach, and between them, the couple has trained nine Olympic champions, fifteen world champions, sixteen European medalists, and many US national champions. She retired from coaching in 2016. 

Laura Bretan is a Romanian-American soprano who came into prominence in 2016 when she won the sixth season of the popular TV show, Romania's Got Talent. In the same year, Laura Bretan also appeared in America's Got Talent where she finished sixth.

Three-time Olympian Romanian former artistic gymnast Cătălina Ponor has 5 Olympic medals in her kitty, including 3 golds. He has also won a World Cup gold and 8 European Championship gold medals. The sports star started training at age 4 and was scouted by the national selectors during a nationwide talent search.

Moldovan politician Maia Sandu, who was part of the Liberal Democratic Party before forming the Party of Action and Solidarity, has also served her country as its prime minister and is now its president. She has previously also been the advisor to the World Bank executive director.

Nobel Prize-winning author Herta Müller grew up under the dictatorial regime of Nicolae Ceaușescu in Romania. She was fired from her first job for not co-operating with the Romanian secret police. Her works, such as Oppressive Tango and The Passport, mirror the oppression of Germans she has witnessed in Romania.

The daughter of Prince Ferdinand, Princess Elisabeth of Romania became the queen of Greece by her marriage to King George II. She later divorced her husband and became the First Lady of Romania following her mother’s death and her brother Carol II’s dethronement. She adopted an artist lover 30 years younger to her.

Delia Matache is a Romanian singer-songwriter. Over the years, she has released several hit singles, establishing herself as one of the most popular and successful Romanian singers. Delia Matache has also won several prestigious awards, such as Media Music Awards and Radio România Actualități Awards.

Considered a Romanian hero, Helen of Greece and Denmark is remembered for her selfless act of saving Romanian Jews during World War II. The daughter of Greek king Constantine I, Helen served as the queen mother of Romania during the rule of her son, King Michael I.

The daughter of Roman governor Theophylact, Marozia was 15 when she became a mistress of Pope Sergius III. She was known for her intelligence and the wealth she generated from being close to Italy’s influential men. She took over the papacy after attacking Pope John X with Guy of Tuscany.

Alexandra Dinu is a Romanian actress and television presenter. She came into prominence as an actress in 2005, when she portrayed Andreea in the Dan Pița-directed Romanian film Second Hand. Since then, Alexandra Dinu has played important roles in films like Final Score, Bullet Head, and 211.

Mădălina Diana Ghenea is a Romanian model and actress. Apart from acting and modeling, Ghenea also participates in fashion shows around the world. She achieved international fame in 2016, when she became the face of a luxury brand called Vanitas.

Cristina Neagu is a Romanian handball player who plays for the Romanian women's national team. She was part of the team that won the bronze medal at the 2010 European Championship and the 2015 World Championship. Considered the greatest player of all time, Cristina Neagu is the only female handball player to win four World Player of the Year awards.

Romanian former professional tennis player Mariana Simionescu was winner of the French Junior Championships in 1974, the year she turned pro. In 1977, she reached the fourth round at Wimbledon, marking her best Grand Slam performance. The following year, she attained a career-high singles ranking of world no. 36. Her career titles include one in singles and one in doubles.  

Romanian tennis player Mihaela Buzarnescu has had a career-high ranking of 20 in singles. In 2022, she was affected by Wimbledon's strict dress-code when she had to change her black bra due to the code allowing only white attire and lingerie. The tennis star also boasts of a PhD in sports science.

Irina-Camelia Begu is a Romanian tennis player who has represented her country at important tournaments like the Fed Cup and Olympic Games. She also competes in Grand Slam events, reaching the semifinals of the 2018 Australian Open and the 2021 French Open in women's doubles events.

Retired Romanian artistic gymnast Larisa Iordache was touted as The New Nadia when she was just 12. The 2-time Olympian has an Olympic bronze in her kitty, apart from 7 European Championship and 12 World Cup gold medals, and numerous other awards. She excelled in beam and floor exercises.

Virginia Ruzici is a Romanian retired tennis player best known for winning the French Open singles title in 1978. In the same year, she also won the French Open doubles title along with Mima Jaušovec. Virginia Ruzici also represented her country in important tournaments like the Fed Cup. 

Elena Ceauşescu was a Romanian communist politician who served as the first Deputy Prime Minister of Romania from 29 March 1980 to 22 December 1989. She was also the First Lady of Romania from 28 March 1974 to 22 December 1989, during which her husband Nicolae Ceaușescu served as the first President of Romania.

Simona Amânar is a Romanian retired artistic gymnast. A ten-time World Championship, 12-time European Championship, and seven-time Olympic medalist, Amânar also helped her country win four successive world team titles between 1994 and 1999. In 2007, Simona Amânar was made an inductee of the International Gymnastics Hall of Fame.

Sorana Cirstea is a Romanian tennis player who reached the quarterfinals of the 2009 French Open, which remains her best Grand Slam singles result so far. An aggressive baseliner, Cirstea has also represented her country at important tournaments like the Olympics and the Fed Cup.

Daniela Silivaș is a Romanian former artistic gymnast. She is best known for winning six medals (three gold, two silver, and one bronze) at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul. She also earned six individual World Championships titles in her five-year tenure as a Romanian senior national team member. She became a coach after retiring in 1991. 

Romanian artistic gymnast Lavinia Milosovici, also known as Milo, is not just a 2-time Olympic gold medalist but also a 5-time World Champion. She scripted history as the last person to achieve an Olympic perfect 10 and also has 4 European Championship gold medals in her kitty.

Ecaterina Szabo is a Romanian former artistic gymnast who won four gold medals and a silver medal at the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. She also represented her country at the World Championships and European Championships, winning 10 medals and five medals respectively. In 2000, Ecaterina Szabo was made an inductee of the International Gymnastics Hall of Fame.

While Romanian gymnast Andreea Răducan began training at age 4. She won the individual all-around gold medal in the 2000 Summer Olympics but had to give it up due to a doping accusation. She, however, retained her team gold and vault silver, which she won at the same Olympic Games.

Ana Bogdan is a Romanian tennis player who competes in Grand Slam events. Although she is yet to win a Grand Slam, Bogdan has won 14 singles titles on the ITF Women's Circuit so far. Ana Bogdan has also represented her country in important tournaments like the Billie Jean King Cup.

The daughter of German nobleman Hermann, Prince of Wied, Elisabeth of Wied had a flair for writing and initially wished to be a teacher. She later became the first queen of Romania, as the wife of King Carol I. She also wrote many plays, poems, and novels as Carmen Sylva.

Hungarian-origin Romanian table tennis player Bernadette Szocs had the highest rank of 14 in the International Table Tennis Federation rankings and once topped the European Table Tennis Union ranking. A 2-time Olympian, she also has an older brother, Hunor, who is a national table tennis player.

Hildegard Peplau was an American nurse best remembered for creating the middle-range nursing theory, which helped revolutionize the scholarly work in the field of nursing. She was the first nurse to publish her nursing theory since Florence Nightingale. Hildegard Peplau's work paved the way for humane treatment of people with personality and behavior disorders.

Sandra Izbașa is a Romanian former artistic gymnast who won a gold medal at the 2008 and 2012 Olympic Games. She also won seven gold medals at the European Championships during her illustrious career. Sandra Izbașa's best result at the World Championships came at the 2006 Championships where she won the silver medal in the Balance Beam event.