Hilary Coplin Grivich (May 23, 1977 – May 4, 1997) was an American gymnast and diver. She was a member of the silver medal-winning American team at the 1991 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships and the 1990 junior national champion in gymnastics.Results from 1990 Jr. Nationals at Gymn-Forum
Career One of the original members of the "Károlyi six-pack","Whatever happened to Amy Scherr?" Gymnastics Greats, July 11, 2000 Grivich trained under Béla Károlyi in Houston. In her first season at the senior level, she was a member of the silver medal-winning American team at the 1991 World Championships, acting as the leadoff gymnast during compulsories and competing second in the lineup on all four events in team finals. Nancy Raymond, International Gymnast, May 1991"Hilary Grivich, 19, American Gymnast" New York Times obituary, May 6, 1997
Grivich was a contender for the 1992 Olympics, placing seventh in the all-aroundAA results from 1992 Nationals at Gymn-Forum and third on balance beam and floor exercise at that year's national championships.EF results from 1992 Nationals at Gymn-Forum However, at the Olympic Trials, she placed eighth and did not qualify for the Olympic squad. Béla and Márta Károlyi, and some other gymnastics insiders, claimed that U.S. judges had deliberately underscored Grivich to keep the team from having too many Károlyi club gymnasts. John Lopez, Houston Chronicle 1999
Grivich retired from gymnastics after the Olympics. In 1993, she switched her focus to diving. After only two years in the sport, she earned a scholarship to the University of Houston. She excelled in NCAA competition and hoped to eventually make the U.S. Olympic team as a diver. Luan Peszek, USA Gymnastics press release, May 5, 1997
Death and Legacy Less than a month before her 20th birthday, Grivich was killed in a car accident on a Houston highway. A scholarship with the Strake Jesuit Scholarship Fund was established in her name. USA Gymnastics, May 1997 In addition, Grivich's diving club, Woodlands Diving Academy, used to hold an annual elite meet in her honour, the Hilary Grivich Memorial Invitational, before renaming it the "Laura Wilkinson Golden Invitational."Information on the Hilary Grivich Memorial Invitational from US Diving
References
External links Memorial site