Julianne McNAMARA

United States (USA)

Date of birth

11 October 1965

Hometown

 

Place of birth

 

Profession

 

Height

 

cm

Children

Sons, Garrett and Ian, and daughter, Hannah.

Weight

 

kg

Start gymnastics

 

Gender

 Female

Club

NAAG
SCAT
Karolyi's Gymnastics

Nickname

 

Head coach

Dick & Linda Mulvihill
Don Peters
Bela & Marta Karolyi

Spouse name

Todd Zeile (baseball player) (from 1989)

Favourite apparatus

 

 

World class in

 1981

First competition

 1979

Last competition

 1984

 

Winner of the U.S. women's first individual event gold medal in Olympic history, Julianne McNamara climaxed her career at the 1984 Games. There, she tied China's Ma Yanhong for first place on uneven bars (both gymnasts scored 10.0 in the final), won silver medals on floor and with her team, and placed fourth all-around.

Born to Australian parents on Oct. 11, 1965, McNamara won the '80 U.S. all-around title and earned a spot on the Olympic team that boycotted the Moscow Games. A year later, at the world championships that were coincidentally also held in Moscow, McNamara notched the top U.S. women's world all-around finish (seventh place) to that point in history. She also earned a bronze medal on bars, and finished fifth on beam and seventh on floor. (McNamara entered the beam final in first place, but went overtime in the final and dropped out of the medals.)

At the '82 World Cup, McNamara fell off the bars to place eighth all-around. In finals, though, she earned a bronze on vault and seventh place on beam. At the '83 world championships, McNamara had a mistake on floor to finish 16th all-around, but earned sixth place on vault and seventh on bars.

In '82, the Netherlands Flower Council, headed by namesake Dutch Queen Juliana, christened the "Julianne McNamara" rose. At the time, the only other American woman to be so honored was then-U.S. First Lady Nancy Reagan.

Upon her retirement from gymnastics, McNamara embarked on an acting career, appearing in television shows such as "Charles in Charge" and "Knight Rider." In 1989, she married baseball player Todd Zeile, whom she met while attending UCLA. Zeile currently plays third base for the New York Mets.

 

 

Medal Total

Olympic Games:  1 Gold, 2 Silver
World Championships:  1 Bronze
World Cup:  1 Bronze

Year

Competition

Team

AA

Vault

Uneven Bars

Beam

Floor

1979

Jr. US Nationals

 

6

6

2

-

-

1980

Caesar's Palace Invitational
KIPS Invitational
2nd Elite Nationals 
US Nationals 
US Olympic Festival
US Olympic Trials 
Women's Games 

-
-
-
-
-
-
-

3
2
2
1
6
7
2

-
1
-
1
-
-
-

-
1
-
3
-
-
-

-
-
-
6
-
-
-

-
3
-
9
-
-
-

1981

21. World Championships
Albuquerque Journal Intl. Invit
All-American Classic
American Cup
Intl. Gymnastics Team Champs
Intl. Mixed Pairs
USA-FRG Dual Meet
US Nationals
US World Trials 

5
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-

7
1
2
1
1
5
1
4
1

-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-

3
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-

5
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-

7
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-

1982

American Cup
Australia Cup 
Emerald Empire Cup 
Ennia Gold Cup 
Pacific Cup
USA-CHN Dual Meet
USA-USSR Dual Meet 
US Classic
US Nationals 
World Cup 

-
-
-
-
-
-
2
-
-
-

1
1
2
3
1
1
-
1
2
8

-
-
2
3
-
-
-
-
4
3

-
-
1
1
-
-
-
-
-
-

-
-
3
1
-
-
-
-
1
7

-
-
3
-
-
-
-
-
3
-

1983

American Cup
22. World Championships
USA-USSR Dual Meet 
US Nationals 

-
7
2
-

2
16
5
2

-
6
-
4

-
7
-
1

-
-
-
-

-
-
-
-

1984

American Cup 
23. Olympic Games
Caesar's Palace Invitational 
Intl. Mixed Pairs 
USA-CAN Dual Meet 
USA-CHN Dual Meet
US Olympic Trials 
US Nationals 

-
2
-
1
1
-
-
-

3
4
10
-
2
2
2
2

-
-
-
-
-
-
-
5

-
1
-
-
-
-
-
1

-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-

-
2
-
-
-
-
-
2

 

Filmography as Actress:

  1. Monday Morning (1990) ...Noreen Hedges
  2. Saturday the 14th Strikes Back (1988) ...Linda

Notable TV guest appearances:

  1. "Charles in Charge" (1984) as Paula Thackery (episode 2.6 _American Teen (2/7/1987)
  2. "Charles in Charge" (1984) as Paula Thackery (episode 2.22 _Undergraduate, The (1987)
  3. "Charles in Charge" (1984) as Paula Thackery (episode 2.12 _Music, Music, Mayhem (1987)
  4. "Knight Rider" (1982) as Julie Rogers (episode 4.10 _Knight Behind Bars (12/6/1985)
  5. "Charles in Charge" (1984) as Paula Thackery (episode 1.6 _Slumber Party (11/14/1984)
  6. "Charles in Charge" (1984) as Paula Thackery (episode 1.2 _Extracurricular Activity (10/10/1984)

 

 Gymnastics > Biography > McNamara > Pictures