Olympic Gymnast Coach Bela Karolyi Has Died — Inside His Career With High Profile Athletes

Even if you don't know much about the world of professional gymnasts, whether it be related to the Olympics or not, you might have heard the name Bela Karolyi thrown around from time to time. That's because, for years, he worked with some of the top gymnasts as a coach. On Nov. 15, he died at the age of 82. But what was Bela Karolyi's cause of death?

The retired coach was born in Romania, but he moved to the United States in the 1980s. He and his wife Marta Karolyi both gained international recognition for coaching gymnasts in the Olympic Games, and Bela went on to be attached to multiple big names that live on in the world of Olympic athletes. Like them, he left his mark in the field of Olympic athletics, though in some ways, his name was marred by controversy.

Bela was 82 years old at the time of his death and has long-since retired from coaching. According to the Associated Press, no cause of death was immediately given following the news of his passing. Following his death, many of Bela's former athletes he worked with shared social media posts about the loss.

Dominique Moceanu, who became the youngest U.S. gymnast of her time at the age of 14, shared a lengthy post on X to address her former coach's passing. In her post, she admitted to a complicated relationship with Bela, who had gained a reputation for his strict and reportedly borderline abusive coaching methods and, later, his association with Larry Nassar, the former Team USA doctor who was convicted of sexual assault against multiple athletes.

"Anyone who has followed my story knows that my journey under Bela's guidance as my coach came with immense challenges," Dominique wrote in her post. "His harsh words and critical demeanor often weighed heavily on me. While our relationship was fraught with difficulty, some of these moments of hardship helped me forge and define my own path."

She added, "As we bid farewell to Bela, I choose to send loving thoughts to his family and loved ones, and honor our relationship by embracing lessons learned and striving to help create a world where compassion and encouragement guide our actions."

During his decades-long career, Bela worked with a number of successful U.S. Olympic gymnasts. This includes Mary Lou Retton, who became the first woman to be an all-around Olympic gold medalist. However, both Bela and his wife Marta's careers would later be tainted, not only by their coaching techniques which drew criticisms from the public, but also by their association with Nassar.

In 2018, Nassar was sentenced to up to 175 in prison after he was found guilty of crimes related to sexual abuse after more than 100 women came forward with their accounts of abuse from his years in his field as a doctor to gymnasts. And although Bela and Marta were not implicated in Nassar's crimes or accused of being accessories to what happened, many of the accusers stated that the crimes took place at Karolyi Ranch.