Andrea Bodó-Molnár

Biographical information

RolesCompeted in Olympic Games
SexFemale
Full nameAndrea Mária•Bodó-Molnár (-Schmid-Shapiro)
Used nameAndrea•Bodó-Molnár
Other namesMolnár Miklósné
Born4 August 1934 in Budapest, Budapest (HUN)
Died21 September 2022 in Novato, California (USA)
Measurements163 cm / 52 kg
AffiliationsVörös Meteor, Budapest (HUN) / BHSE, Budapest (HUN)
NOC Hungary
Medals OG
Gold 1
Silver 2
Bronze 1
Total 4

Biography

Andrea Bodó started her sports career with the encouragement of her high school teacher Valéria Frantz-Herpich, who later became her trainer. Between 1950 and 1956, she was a member of Budapest Vörös Meteor and Budapest Honvéd. In 1955, she won the national championship in horse vault, and a year later in the team event. She was a member of the Hungarian national team from 1952-56. At the 1952 Helsinki Olympics, she won a silver medal in the team all-around and a bronze medal in the team portable apparatus competition. Four years later in Melbourne Olympics she finished first in the team portable apparatus and second in the team all-around competition.

While on a tour of the United States with the Hungarian Olympic team after the 1956 Olympics, Bodó escaped from Hungary. She was with her first husband, Hungarian sportswriter Miklós Molnar, but they soon divorced. Andrea studied physical education and teaching and went on to work in sports psychology and coaching rhythmic gymnastics in the United States. She worked at four Olympics as a gymnastics judge and coached the sport until 1979 at San Francisco State University, where she was a kinesiology professor.

Molnár-Bodó was also author of several books on gymnastics, including Introduction to Women’s Gymnastics (1973, with Blanche Jessen Drury) and Modern Rhythmic Gymnastics (1976). Bodó later married Charles Shapiro, a retired physics professor. Her daughter, Aniko, by Molnar, became a chemical engineer. In 2001, Bodó-Shapiro was inducted into the USA Gymnastics Hall of Fame.

Results

Games Discipline (Sport) / Event NOC / Team Pos Medal As
1952 Summer Olympics Artistic Gymnastics (Gymnastics) HUN Andrea Bodó
Individual All-Around, Women (Olympic) 28
Team All-Around, Women (Olympic) Hungary 2 Silver
Team Portable Apparatus, Women (Olympic) Hungary 3 Bronze
Floor Exercise, Women (Olympic) 19
Horse Vault, Women (Olympic) =23
Uneven Bars, Women (Olympic) 16
Balance Beam, Women (Olympic) =94
1956 Summer Olympics Artistic Gymnastics (Gymnastics) HUN Andrea Bodó-Molnár
Individual All-Around, Women (Olympic) =14
Team All-Around, Women (Olympic) Hungary 2 Silver
Team Portable Apparatus, Women (Olympic) Hungary 1 Gold
Floor Exercise, Women (Olympic) =30
Horse Vault, Women (Olympic) =13
Uneven Bars, Women (Olympic) 13
Balance Beam, Women (Olympic) =16

Special Notes