Angelica Adelstein-Rozeanu

ADELSTEIN-ROZEANU, ANGELICA (1921–2006), Romanian table tennis player; considered the greatest female table tennis player in history, winning 18 world titles, including six straight singles championships from 1950 to 1955. Born in Bucharest, Romania, Adelstein-Rozeanu was the first Romanian woman to win a world title in any sport. She began playing at the age of nine and won her first title in competitive play at the age of 12. She won the Romanian National Women's Championship in 1936 at age 15 and won it every year until 1957 excluding the war years. In addition to her run of individual world titles, she picked up seven gold medals in women's and mixed doubles between 1950 and 1956 and helped Romania win the team championship in 1950, 1951, 1953, 1955, and 1956. Adelstein-Rozeanu served as president of the Romanian Table Tennis Commission from 1950 to 1960, and in 1954 was awarded the Merited Master of Sport, the highest sports distinction in Romania. She also received four Order of Work honors from her government. Adelstein-Rozeanu moved to Israel in 1960, where she won the Maccabiah Games Table Tennis Championship in 1961 and the Israeli national championship in 1960–1962.

Source: Encyclopaedia Judaica. © 2008 The Gale Group. All Rights Reserved.

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