Gheorghe Gruia

Gheorghe Gruia Marinescu (October 2, 1940 – December 9, 2015) was a Romanian handball player, coach, and sports official. Born in Bucharest, Gruia won two gold medals in the 1964 World Handball Championship and the 1970 World Championship. In the 1972 Summer Olympics, he won the bronze medal with Romania and became the top scorer of the competition with 37 goals. He played as a right back and spent his entire professional career with Steaua Bucharest.^[1]

Gheorghe Gruia
Gruia pictured in the 1970s
Personal information
Full name	Gheorghe Gruia Marinescu
Born	(1940-10-02)October 2, 1940 Bucharest, Romania
Died	December 9, 2015(2015-12-09) (aged 75) Mexico City, Mexico
Height	1.92 m (6 ft 4 in)
Playing position	Right back
Number	10
Youth career
Years	Team
1958–1961	CCA Bucharest
Senior clubs
Years	Team
1961–1973	Steaua Bucharest
National team
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1962–1973	Romania	126	(636)
Teams managed
1978–1980	Mexico
1981–1985	Universitario Chiapas
1986–1989	Pumas UNAM
1988–1991	Mexico
Medal record Representing  Romania Men's handball Olympic Games 1972 Germany Team World Championship 1970 France Team 1964 Czechoslovakia Team 1967 Sweden Team World University Championship 1968 Germany Team 1963 Sweden Team

The International Handball Federation named him in 1992 "The Greatest Handball Player of All Times".^[2]

Gruia resided in Mexico City, Mexico, since 1978, where he worked as a coach and an official in the sport and is credited with popularizing the sport in the country.^[3]

His daughter, Andreea, is a former Mexican telenovela actress known for her roles in Spanish language telenovelas on Televisa.

Gruia died on December 9, 2015, in Mexico City following a heart attack.^[4] Gruia is considered the 'father of handball' in Mexico.^[5]

Gallery

• 
  Gruia (back row, first from the right) with Romania's junior team in 1965
• 
  Gruia during a training session in 1965
• 
  Gruia in action during a match against West Germany in 1966
• 
  Gruia (back row, second from the right) with the European Cup champions Steaua in 1968
• 
  Gruia (back row, fifth from the right) with the 1970 World Championship-winning Romanian team
• 
  Gruia (center) in 1970

Honours

Club

Steaua Bucharest

• 8× Romanian League Champion: 1963, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973
• European Cup Champion: 1968
  • Runner-up: 1971

National team

Romania

• 2× World Champion: 1964, 1970  Gold
• World Championship: 1967  Bronze
• Summer Olympic Games: 1972  Bronze

Orders

• Ordinul "Meritul Sportiv": 2009.^[6]