Nadia Comaneci at World Gymnastics Championship in October

Nadia Comaneci was in Montreal today, setting the stage for the upcoming World Gymnastic`s Competition the city will host in October.

As the spokeswoman for the event, she returned to the scene of her amazing achievements.

Comaneci told CBC Montreal’s sports reporter, Jessica Rusnak, that visiting Montreal is always emotional, bringing back memories of her first Olympic experience.

At just 14, too young to be nervous, she said, Comaneci remembers hearing the noise in the arena as she walked from the uneven bars, following her first routine, to the beam.

She said she didn’t usually look at the scoreboard but when she saw a “1” and not the nine-point-something she was expecting, she was confused.

The board was not configured to register a perfect 10 at the time, and only a signal from her teammates on the sidelines clarified that it was a 10!

She went on to register seven perfect 10s, winning five medals, three of them gold.

Now living in the United States, with husband Bart Conner, also an Olympic gold gymnast, Comaneci told Rusnak that her medals are kept in a safe in her hometown of Norman, Oklahoma, where the couple run a thriving gymnastic academy.

Comaneci began gymnastics at six and a half, in a nearby gym. Her mother thought it would be a great outlet for Nadia’s incredible energy.

Now at 55, the Olympian still works out, running, stretching and lifting light weights. In an interview earlier today, on Montreal’s Breakfast Television show, she said everyone can find 30 minutes for that. And she said she can still start the day with a cartwheel.

She is looking forward to the championships in October. In the first week, from the 2nd to the 8th, 500 participants from 80 countries, will be at Montreal’s Olympic Stadium, hoping to come close to Comaneci’s legendary performances.

With files from CBC Montreal and Global’s Breakfast Television Montreal.