FINA – Budapest2017

Budapest awarded extraordinary FINA World Championships – UPDATE

duna aréna

The Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and FINA President Husain Al-Musallam today announced an agreement for Hungary’s capital city to hold a FINA World Championships from 18 June – 3 July 2022.

The agreement ensures athletes have a global aquatics championship to target in the summer of 2022. The agreement was reached after approval from the FINA Bureau today.

FINA and key stakeholders of the Fukuoka 2022 Organising Committee jointly agreed last week to move the FINA World Championships from 13-29 May 2022 to 14-30 July 2023 due to the current health impacts of the Omicron COVID-19 variant and the pandemic measures currently in place in Japan.

“As an aquatics community, we are finding solutions around the pandemic and today’s announcement is an important step in this process,” FINA President Husain Al-Musallam said.

“We know we need to be imaginative in our approach in navigating through the current health crisis for our athletes. Today’s agreement is a testament to this work. FINA also recognises that the pandemic is evolving differently according to time and place. We are extremely fortunate to have event hosts that share our passion for aquatics and have the willingness, capability and flexibility to organise FINA’s most prestigious event. We are deeply grateful to all our hosts and know that aquatics athletes feel the same way.”

“With four FINA World Championships and the Paris 2024 Olympic Games over the next four years, we are maximising the racing opportunities and earnings potential for established and emerging aquatics athletes alike,” FINA President Al-Musallam added.

A regular stop for FINA Swimming World Cup, FINA Water Polo World League and FINA World Series events, Budapest previously hosted the FINA World Championships in 2017. That event saw 12 world records set in the pool during an event that drew record-breaking numbers of spectators and television viewers.

This FINA World Championships is set to feature five FINA aquatics disciples: swimming, diving, water polo, artistic swimming and open water swimming.

FINA will continue to work towards similar event programming for high dive athletes and masters competitors.

FINA continues to consult athletes and stakeholders on the schedule for the FINA World Championships in Doha, Qatar and more information will follow as soon as possible.

milák olympic gold
Read alsoHungary’s Milák wins uncontestable gold in Tokyo 2020 – Video

Sándor Wladár, head of the Hungarian Swimming Association and leader of the organising committee, told a press conference that the event would use already existing facilities only, therefore, the high-diving event will not be included.

Events of the championships will be held in Budapest, Sopron, Debrecen, and Szeged.

Hungary’s got it! – 2027: FINA World Championship again in Budapest!

FINA Budapest

After 2017, Budapest will once again host one of the most important sporting event in the world, FINA World Championship in 2027 – announced by Gergely Csurka, reporter of Nemzeti Sport. The decision was later confirmed by Fédération Internationale de Natation (FINA) and the Hungarian Swimming Association.

The conclusive presentation – before the final vote – was held in English by:

  • Alexandra Szalay-Bobrovniczky – Budapest Mayor’s Deputy;
  • Dániel Gyurta – Olympic champion swimmer, Member of the International Olympic Committee;
  • Balázs Fürjes – Leader of the proposal, Minister of State for the development of Budapest and the international sports competition;
  • Dávid Szántó – International leader of the Hungarian Swimming Federation.

As nemzetisport.hu describes, co-presidency of the tender committee was represented by:

  • Sándor Wladár – Olympic champion, President of the Hungarian Swimming Association;
  • Ágnes Kovács – Olympic champion swimmer;
  • Dénes Kemény – Coach of the triple Olympic champion Hungarian water polo team;
  • Attila Vári – Double Olympic water polo champion, president of the Hungarian Water Polo Association.

Regarding the decision, Julio Cesar Maglione, President of FINA pointed out that two years ago the Hungarian capital organised the best World Cup ever, and no doubt that this opportunity will be provided again to Budapest.

 

FINA Budapest2
Image: Julio Cesar Maglione, President of FINA; Source: MTI

According to Balázs Fürjes, FINA’s decision is based on trust. One of the world’s most prestigious international sports organisation trusts Hungarians trusts Budapest and holds Hungary in high esteem.

This is a shared success of Hungarian champions, Hungarian sports and Budapest – described in the announcement.

Within the framework of the tender, our opponents were such countries as China, the United States, Australia, Serbia and Ukraine; however, Greensboro of the US cancelled its application. 

“Thousands of visitors attend the World Cup from abroad, a great mass of high spending guests arrive at the capital during this period. Additionally, several hundred million people in the world see Budapest’s most beautiful face on television, in newspapers, online platforms, which serves as an inestimable marketing tool. As a result, Budapest will gain more reputation, it will be more popular and frequently visited. We can cheer together again for Hungarian victory, which enhances our nation’s self-esteem and strengthens the feeling of togetherness “- said Balázs Fürjes.

Alexandra Szalay-Bobrovniczky, Budapest Mayor’s Deputy considers it a great honour that – after the successful 2017 World Cup – Budapest will give place again for the world’s most prestigious sporting event. She also emphasised that still then, several people visit the embellished Margaret Island; thousands of sportsmen, families, and children use every day the renovated Császár-Komjádi swimming pool, Hajós Alfréd National Swimming Pool, and the world’s best Olympic-size swimming pool, Danube Arena.

FINA Budapest3
Image: Team of the Hungarian representatives; Source: MTI

According to Sándor Wladár – President of the Hungarian Swimming Federation – Hungarian swimming sport will be significantly boosted by the new event organisation.

“Our contestants return with medals from all over the world, but the support of the audience, relatives, and friends serves as a huge extra motivation. Several youngsters jump into the swimming pool, hoping that someday they will experience it as a World Cup athlete “- written in the announcement.

In 2021, the World Cup will be held at Fukuoka – it is the second time that the Japanese city will host the event after 2001 -; while in 2023 it will be organised in Doha. The 2025 World Cup will also “return” to a former host place, the Russian Kazan.

Budapest – which organized the water sports top event together with Balatonfüred in 2017 – is the 6th city that gives place to the World Cup for the second time – along with Perth (1991, 1998), Rome (1994, 2009), Barcelona (2003, 2013), Fukuoka (2001, 2021) and Kazan (2015, 2025).

Featured image: MTI

Only in Budapest on the continent: FINA Champions Swim Series 2019

Duna Aréna, Katinka Hosszú, swimming, FINA, competition

The FINA Bureau approved the new series of meets called FINA Champions Swim Series. It will include a long course 3-leg competition between April and June that will be on an invitation-only basis and will include a team scoring format.

Index reported that it is now sure that on the European continent the Hungarian capital is the only one getting the chance to welcome this spectacular event.

This three-day competition, featuring the most prominent swimmers in the world, will be held in Danube Aréna between May 10 and 12. From Hungary, only three swimmers got invited to take part in this new competition series:

Katinka Hosszú, László Cseh, and Kristóf Milák.

FINA Champions Swim Series will take place at three locations:

  1. Guangzhou, China (April 27-28)
  2. Budapest, Hungary (May 10-12)
  3. Indianapolis, USA (May 31–June 1)

Representatives of the Hungarian Swimming Association Sándor Wladár and Tamás Gyárfás travelled to Lausanne, Switzerland to negotiate the details of this new competition.

It is the first time in history that FINA puts the matter of royalties behind, which is always a problematic point for the country that hosts the swimming competitions of the federation. Also the prize – which is approximately 1,000,000 Euros – will be covered by FINA as well, which means that the organising countries only have to pay for the location and other logistics factors.

This competition and spectacular event aim to lessen the conflict between swimmers and FINA.

Sándor Wladár added that the reason that FINA chose Budapest as a location is that Hungary was an excellent host and organiser of the FINA World Cup in 2018 and the FINA World Championship – Budapest2017 two years ago.

Featured image: www.facebook.com/uszoszovetseg

FINA World Aquatics Championships praised by the State Audit Office

The State Audit Office shared its evaluation of the FINA World Aquatics Championshisps titled ‘Utilized findings at the Budpaest 2017 Ltd.’

According to blikk.hu, the analysis showed that the account of the income and expenses of the company was proper. Its asset management was similarly formal, the value of the tools and sources were backed up by inventory in the scale of accounting records.

The asset register and the account of material instruments’ decrease in value were also adequate. There some issues with transparency, but the company managed to overcome these after the report.

Featured image: www.fina-budapest2017.com

World champion swimmers coming to Budapest – 2018 FINA Swimming World Cup

katinka hosszú swimmer

Budapest will be hosting the fourth leg of the 2018 FINA Swimming World Cup series from 4th October to 6th October. Since the Hungarian capital city successfully hosted numerous FINA swimming events, it has fair chances of becoming one of the most popular venues of the World Cup, argues Duna Aréna Press.

Dávid Szántó, the head of the organising committee has revealed that thanks to the unforgettable events hosted by Duna Aréna, not just one but seven star-swimmers from the 2017 World Championships will participate at the 2018 World Cup, including Katinka Hosszú, the best swimmer of the Hungarian team.

Hosszú excelled at the 200m and 400m medley numbers at the 2017 FINA World Championships.

Fans are welcome to cheer for the Swedish Sarah Sjöström (1st places at the 50m freestyle, 50 and 100m butterfly-stroke numbers, women), the Russian Júlia Jefimova (1st place at 200m breaststroke, women), the Spanish Mireira Belmonte (1st place at 200m butterfly-stroke, women), the South-African Chad le Clos (1st place at 200m butterfly, men), the British Benjamin Proud (1st place at 50m butterfly, men), and the Russian Anton Chupkov (1st place at 200m breaststroke, men).

The number of events that Hosszú and Sjöström will participate in is yet to be revealed, along with the ones in which they will compete against one another. However, the head coach of the Hungarian swimming club, Dr Csaba Sós, argues that

it is very likely that the Hungarian and Swedish swimmers will both participate in the 200m freestyle and the 100m medley, thanks to the 25 metres long swimming pool that Duna Aréna can provide.

Szántó said that it would be impossible to tell how many records will be broken at the Budapest leg but it is already an enormous achievement and honour for the Duna Aréna to welcome representatives from more countries than the other venues do. The following list contains an overview of the number of participants and number of countries represented:

Budapest – 39 nations, 298 swimmers (out of which 195 are Hungarians)
Kazan – 23 nations, 174 swimmers
Doha – 23 nations, 131 swimmers

Among the 195 excellent Hungarian contestants, one will find names like Boglárka Kapás, Zsuzsanna Jakabos, Evelyn Verrasztó, Péter Bernek, László Cseh, Dominik Kozma, Tamás Kenderesi, Nándor Németh and Dávid Verrasztó. The benefit of Budapest hosting the fourth leg is that it can be represented in greater numbers, and naturally, it is a great opportunity for these sportsmen and -women to prove themselves in the pools and to win recognition for their country.

From this, it is obvious that sports lovers really have something to look forward to on October 4, 5 and 6.

The Budapest World Cup will be organised by the Hungarian Swimming Association, Duna Aréna and Bp2017 Nonprofit Kft.

featured image: MTI

Great! Budapest Dagály Bath was opened again

dagály bath swimming pool

We have been eagerly waiting for the re-opening of the Dagály Bath and Danube Arena complex that is awaiting visitors with the biggest swimming pool arena in Budapest. After a temporary closure, the bath complex was opened again.

Dagály Bath has originally been built in 1948 near Árpád bridge, in the 13th district and quickly became one of the most popular baths in the city. Its original name was ’Liberty Bath’, but due to its location close to Dagály street, it has always been called Dagály Bath by the public.

The Bath has many things to offer: among other possibilities, one can enjoy the magnificent thermal bath that makes Budapest truly unique for foreigners.

The Bath has recently been closed down temporarily from the public due to the construction of the Danube Arena, that was built a complement to the Bath area. The Arena was designed for the 2017 FINA World Championships with a capacity to host more than 10,000 visitors.

Dagály has benefited from the construction of the Arena in many ways: renovated swimming pools, new wellness facilities and bicycle storage space have been added to the facilities.

dagály bath danube arena
Photo: József Szaka

However, the renovation of the Bath has not been without hurdles: the plans for the 2017 re-opening failed, and the construction works have been prolonged by several months.

Nevertheless, it seems that it was worth waiting, as the Dagály Bath is better than ever, and its prices are proportionate, too.

Currently, only out-door facilities are open to visitors, which will be shortly followed by the wellness and medical divisions. On the opening day, reduced prices were available for visitors, and the full prices are also beneficial compared to entry fee to Palatinus and other baths.

The entry fees will be as follows:

During weekdays:

Adult: HUF 2.500 (~EUR 8)
Children (aged between 3-14), retired and student: HUF 2.100 (~EUR 7)
Family ticket I. (2 adults, 2 children): HUF 7.100 (~EUR 21)
Family ticket II. (1 adult, 2 children): HUF 4.600 (~EUR 14)

During weekends:

Adult: HUF 2.700 (~EUR 8)
Children (aged between 3-14), retired and student: HUF 2.300 (~EUR 7)
Family ticket I. (2 adults, 2 children): HUF 7.700 (~EUR 24)
Family ticket II. (1 adult, 2 children):  HUF 5.000 (~EUR 15)

Opening hours: M-Su 8:00-20:00.

Featured image: https://www.facebook.com/Dagály-Fürdő

Hungary wins several medals at the FINA World Series in Madrid

The sixth meet of the FINA Artistic Swimming World Series was held on 25-27 May, in Madrid, Spain. Hungary won three silver and one bronze medal, Fina.org and Független Hírügynökség (FüHü.hu) report. One bronze medal was lost due to certain regulations.

The previous (fifth) meet of the FINA Artistic Swimming World Series was held in Budapest, where the Hungarian team, unfortunately, could not make it to the top three. The sixth meet, however, seemed to bring more success to the girls. If you are interested in what happened at the Fina World Series in Budapest, here are all the details and photos.

[button link=”https://dailynewshungary.com/amazing-gyor-become-first-to-defend-finalfour-title/” type=”big” newwindow=”yes”] Amazing! Győr become first to defend finalfour title! – VIDEO, PHOTOS[/button]

Solo Technical Final silver – Szofi Kiss

Photo: fuhu.hu

On the first day of the FINA Artistic Swimming World Series in Madrid, Hungarian Szofi Kiss won silver in the Solo Technical Final. She scored 75.2077 points, not so far behind gold winner Swiss Vivienne Koch, who scored 76.0091.

“I wanted to win, but the silver medal is good. It is my best result this season. It means a lot, it is a really special thing for me” said Szofi Kiss.

Luca Rényi earned the third best score in solo. However, according to the Fina rules, only one person can stand on the podium from each country, so the bronze medal went to Polish Swietlana Szczepanska.

Solo Technical
  1. Vivienne Koch (SWI) 76.0091
  2. Szofi Kiss (HUN) 75.2077
  3. Swietlana Szczepanska (POL) 66.0431

Free Combination silver

On the second day of the FINA Artistic Swimming World Series in Madrid, the Hungarian team scored 78.5332 and claimed the silver medal in Free Combination. The Hungarian team lead by Russian team captain Natalia Tarasova encompasses Anna Apáthy, Janka David, Boglárka Gács, Mira Gerstenkorn, Szabina Hungler, Szofi Kiss, Luca Renyi, Anna Viktória Szabó and Veronka Szabó. The gold was won by the Spanish team with 90.8332 points.

Free Combination
  1. Spain 90.8332
  2. Hungary 78.5332

Solo Free Final silver – Szofi Kiss

Also on the second day, Szofi Kiss won silver at the Solo Free Routine final with 76.0668, while Swiss Vivienne Koch won first place with 78.0000.

Free Solo
  1. Vivienne Koch (SWI) 78,0000
  2. Szofi Kiss (HUN) 76,0668
  3. Ivette Pinter (AUT) 74,3332

Team Free bronze

The Hungarian team also won the bronze medal in the Team Free category, earning 77.6000 points. The Austrian team won silver by 77.7000, and the Spanish girls won gold by 91.8332 points.

Team Free
  1. Spain 91.8332
  2. Austria 77.7000
  3. Hungary 77.6000

Congratulations to our girls!

Featured image: fuhu

3 solo Hungarian contenders at artistic swimming world series

FINA swimming artistic synchronised

The artistic swimming world series will be hosted from Friday to Sunday in Duna Arena, according to FuHu. Three female athletes will represent Hungary in the solo category of artistic swimming: Szofi Kiss, Luca Rényi and Veronika Szabó.

At a press conference, the association’s manager Bernadett Iker confirmed that the representatives of three teams (BVSC, H2O and Medúza) will participate in the world championship in Hungarian colours.

She also highlighted that the association intended to invite several countries, including the greatest masters of the sport to create a strong competition.

According to her, the Russian, the Ukrainian, the Spanish or the Italian team may provide a fair challenge for the Hungarian athletes. Miss Iker shared her hopes of seeing a tough contest, which will contribute to the development of the Hungarian team.

State secretary of sports Tünde Szabó claimed that artistic swimming is a “modern, dynamic, spectacular” sport and it is important that the world championship hosted in Hungary will help to get it more known by the audience of this country.

The Russian coach of the Hungarian team, Natalia Tarasova mentioned that there are many young athletes in the team, so good results serve as inspiring initial experience — like the recent bronze medal at the world championship in Slovakia. This third place was an important stepping stone, but Tarasova emphasised that she hopes for favourable results in the even more challenging competition in Budapest.

Szofi Kiss counts as a true veteran in the team: she has already participated at the Olympic Games.

She stated that the fact that the Hungarian swimmers brought so favourable results last year at this same venue is motivating her to do her best and repeat the success. She also mentioned that seeing the greatest concurrence training in Duna Arena fills her and her fellow Hungarian swimmers with adrenaline and encourages them to prepare for the challenge.

Luca Rényi claimed that the competition is more difficult in solo because there is no one else to help her catch the attention of the jury; it is easier to execute spectacular moves in pairs. She was training in Duna Arena for long, and she had an opportunity to participate in the national championship there. Rényi hopes that knowing the pool and the encouragement coming from the audience may give her advantage during the contest.

Vice mayor Alexandra Szalay-Bobrovinczky added that last year’s FINA World Championship is still talked about today, which greatly helps to increase the reputation of Hungary as a venue of such events.

Head of the organising committee, Éva Szántó announced that the renewed Duna Arena will be inaugurated this weekend. The stadium’s capacity has been reduced from 12,000 to 5,300 visitors.

It is also worth mentioning that the students of the schools in Angyalföld may attend the world championship for free.

The tickets are available through Eventim.

Photo: Facebook.com

The largest swimming complex in Budapest to reopen! – Duna Aréna – EXCLUSIVE PHOTOS

duna aréna swimming pool complex water

Duna Arena is the largest indoor water complex in the Hungarian capital, and it was significantly developed after last year’s FINA World Championship. Now its capability to host worldwide water sports events is even better. Visitors may also use the services of the most modern swimming complex soon.

Due to the decision of FINA, Budapest has been the venue of the association’s world championship in 2017. However, the Hungarian capital did not have the appropriate complex to host such an event, so the government decided to construct a scalable arena for the championship and other upcoming water sports events. The process was finished in an incredibly short time by 2017.

duna aréna swimming pool complex water
duna aréna swimming pool complex water
duna aréna swimming pool complex water
duna aréna swimming pool complex water
duna aréna swimming pool complex water

The new building was named Duna Arena, and it was the venue of FINA World Championship and FINA Masters World Championship. There has been full house throughout the entire event, so more than 10,000 people could cheer for their favourite contenders at the same time.

duna aréna swimming pool complex water
duna aréna swimming pool complex water
duna aréna swimming pool complex water
duna aréna swimming pool complex water

The transformation process began right after the end of the world championship because the building’s capacity extended with the scaffolding will be “only” 6,000 people at the end. The remodelling has begun in September 2017, and its reopening is scheduled between 18 and 20 May, at the time of the FINA Artistic Swimming World Series. A month later, Duna Arena will be the venue of the Artistic Swimming Junior World Championship.

duna aréna swimming pool complex water
duna aréna swimming pool complex water

The complex was designed to serve sportsmen (swimmers, water polo players, synchronised swimmers, artistic divers) not only during the competitions but also provide an opportunity for training. According to the announcements, hobbyist swimmers and athletes will also be allowed to visit the arena every day, all day long. The building will include shops, changing rooms, training rooms, buffets; moreover, the original plans also involves a restaurant and an event hall, not to mention the VIP auditorium, the offices and conference rooms.



Dagály Bath will also be renewed, though the company operating the building did not determine the exact schedule yet. Still, as it can be seen on these photos, the pools are already completed, so only minor works are left. Let us hope that swimmers may enjoy its services as soon as possible.

Photos: Daily News Hungary

The program guide for the Budapest FINA Artistic Swimming World Series is finally here

World Championships FINA artistic swimming artistic synchronised swimming

In the history of the FINA Artistic Swimming World Series, it will be Budapest’s first time to host the competition. After the great success of the 17th FINA World Aquatics Championships, which was held in Budapest and Balatonfüred, the best athletes of artistic swimming will return to the Hungarian capital’s new jewellery box, the Duna Arena.

If you remember last year’s grand event, the 17th FINA World Aquatics Championships (the main happenings of which you can recap on if you click here), you will know that Budapest gives its best when it comes to hosting sporting events. The event last July attracted great international interest with star swimmers competing in the Hungarian capital city, Budapest. A dedicated arena was built for this purpose, the Duna Arena, but all of the venues were perfect examples of Hungary’s dedication.

Now, after the 17th FINA World Aquatics Championships, and the 17th FINA World Masters Championships, the FINA Artistic Swimming World Series arrives in Budapest in May. Check out the program and see you there!

May 18 – Competition Day 1

11:00-12:15 Duet Technical Routine
17:00-17:30 Free Combination

May 19 – Competition Day 2

10:00-10:30 Team Technical Routine
11:30-12:30 Solo Technical Routine
17:00-17:15 Highlight Routine
18:30-19:45 Duet Free Routine

May 20 – Competition Day 3

10:00-11:05 Solo Free Routine
15:00-15:35 Team Free Routine
16:30-17:00 Gala Exhibition

Besides the best Hungarian artistic swimmers, many world champions showed interest in competing in front of the best and loudest crown in May. The team of Ukraine, Italy and Spain are expected to come.
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Everyone is more than welcome!

https://www.facebook.com/szinkronuszas/posts/1362808867199168

featured image: www.facebook.com/Budapest2017FINAVizesVilágbajnokság

Budapest to be rocked by the World Junior Artistic Swimming Championships this summer

World Championships FINA artistic swimming synchronised swimming

It seems like our capital has officially become one of the most popular locations for water sports competitions. After the success of the 2017 FINA World Championships, Budapest continues to host prestigious events this year: first, it will be home to the FINA Artistic Swimming World Series in May to then welcome the contestants of the 2018 World Junior Artistic Swimming Championships between the 18th and 22nd of July.

The FINA Bureau held its decision-making meeting three days before the start of the 2017 FINA World Championships. They announced that Budapest had won the opportunity to host the 2018 World Junior Artistic Swimming Championships. The Hungarian Synchronised Swimming Federation is proud to organise another illustrious event after last year’s success.

“Before the session, we managed to agree with the Canadian Bureau member, Margi Mountjoy, that they would be the hosts in 2019. FINA approved the agreement” Tamás Gyárfás told nemzetisport.hu concerning the other candidate.

For that matter, the FINA World Junior Artistic Swimming Championships or FINA World Junior Synchronised Swimming Championships is held every two years since 1989. The competition features four events: solo, duet, team and free combination.

Brief history

According to mszusz.hu, artistic swimming or synchronised swimming evolved at the turn of the 19th and 20th century from the combination of life-saving movements and swimming techniques. The sport called artistic, “fine” swimming or water ballet – as it was called back then – was practised by men in the beginning, but women took over quite early on.

World Championships FINA artistic swimming synchronised swimming
Photo: www.facebook.com/Budapest2017FINAVizesVilágbajnokság

The first significant representative of the sport was Australian Anette Kellerman, who performed in New York in 1907. From that moment, the fame of the sport spread all over the world. In the upcoming decades, clubs were formed, the rules and legal standards were established.

It became an official Olympic sport in 1984.

Until 1992, the solo and duet events occurred at the Olympic Games. In 1996, only the team performance was allowed. Since 2000, solo and duet formations also form part of the Olympic schedule.

FINA acknowledged synchronised swimming as the fourth official water sport in 1968. The first World Championships was held in 1973, while it debuted at the European Championships in 1974.

In 2014, FINA allowed the participation of male synchronised swimmers at their competitions. The event of “mixed duets” was added to the schedule of the 2015 World Championships. According to the plans, male swimmers will also be able to compete in team performances from 2021.

World Championships FINA artistic swimming synchronised swimming
Photo: www.facebook.com/Budapest2017FINAVizesVilágbajnokság

Hungarian national team

The Hungarian national team is led by Natalia Tarasova, former synchronised swimmer star, who plays a crucial role in the professional advancement of the Hungarian team.

World Championships FINA artistic swimming synchronised swimming
Photo: www.facebook.com/MagyarSzikronúszóSzövetség

Moreover, the federation aims to work with further professionals to facilitate the preparation for the 2018 World Junior Artistic Swimming Championships. Among others, the Hungarian girls got to work together with choreographer Anastasia Ermakova, Olympic, World and European Champion synchronised swimmer, who joined forces with Natalia Tarasova to create amazing choreographies for the team.

World Championships FINA artistic swimming synchronised swimming
Photo: www.facebook.com/AnastasiaErmakova

The junior national team features Szabina Hungler, Veronika Szabó, Kamilla Kassai, Mira Gerstenkorn, Réka Kleinhappel, Anna Apáthy, Linda Farkas, Boglárka Gács, Réka Valenta, Angéla Takács, Lili Péntek, Anna Viktória Szabó, Dóra Kassai, Tamara Sárkány, Dalma Csöppű, Janka Dávid and Zsuzsa Welker.

World Championships FINA artistic swimming synchronised swimming
Photo: www.facebook.com/MagyarSzikronúszóSzövetség

We wish the best of luck to the girls for the 2018 World Junior Artistic Swimming Championships, which will be held between the 18th and 22nd of July!

Featured image: www.facebook.com/Budapest2017FINAVizesVilágbajnokság

Money invested in sport pays back – Interview with Prof Attila Borbély

According to GLOBS Magazine, the sport is the only thing that doesn’t divide the country based on political parties and convictions since it is the success of everyone. This is the concept of Prof Attila Borbély, the professor at the University of Debrecen, active sports organiser and athlete, owner of the Merit of the Hungarian Olympic Committee. He teaches and educates the sports economists of the next generation, thus preparing them to be able to appreciate the successes of the Hungarian sport and make use of the financial opportunities lying in the field.

GLOBS: Sport is not only a way to spend our free time, it has become an industry as well, right?
Borbély: Of course, the sport has become a noteworthy industry. Money invested in sport is guaranteed to return. In both financial and prestige side. It pays back even more in marketing, since the products athletes wear and thus advertise result in higher sale numbers. The most income is generated by the six “spectacular” sports due to the television broadcasts. In the case of television broadcasts, it can be calculated right away how great of an income was generated by a match or competition. This is actually quite easy to calculate. However, all sports are determined by the results and its iconic or marketable representatives, who are not only known in the country, but preferably the whole world. There’s no professional sport without idols. Some sports stand out even in this category. Obviously, you can think of Katinka Hosszú, but we shouldn’t forget Tímea Babos and Márton Fucsovics either, who achieved great successes recently at the Australian Open. A marginal – at least in terms of Hungarian results – sport like tennis was followed by a lot of people in Hungary, out of whom many are not fans. But they watched it for themselves and the Hungarian success.

GLOBS: In an economic sense, what is the most important thing about the sport as an industry?
Borbély: Primarily, its economic effect, because there are quit a few. Until now, we only dealt with the scientific side of sport in the institutions of higher education. Eight higher education institutions have been offering this study programme for decades. But the economic side of sport wasn’t emphasised up till now. If anything was mentioned in connection with the topic, it was mostly about expenses, even though the income is just as important today. On a macroeconomic level, statistics show that expenses and incomes are almost in balance. Hungary spends around 0.9-1% of its budget on sport. But the same amount pays back. In fact, based on numbers, the sport sector is the greatest net payer of the budget. And this is nothing compared to Western Europe, where the numbers are twice as great as in Hungary. In those countries, twice as much money is spent on sport and marketing, but the payback and the touristic incomes connected to it are also higher.

GLOBS: In your opinion, based on these economic aspects, what did the 2017 FINA World Aquatics Championships mean to Hungary?
Borbély: This is very clear. Hungary is known to be a very good organiser and executer. I have been among the organisers and members of the organising committees of many similar world-class events of different sports. Our greatest advantage is that we offer an excellent return on invested money compared to Germany and the UK, still we organise world events on a very high level. The sport strategy accepted by the parliament clearly states the long-term goal: to become a sporting nation from being a sport nation. Based on the results, we are on the right path.

GLOBS: What do you think about the doubters?
Borbély: Currently, sport is a national issue. It enjoys highlighted support. Being a professional economist, I think that a nation can only profit from investing money in the development of physical education, body culture, recreation and related useful ways of spending free time. A debatable point is whether or not professional sport or second line education should be the top priority, because it is true that the latter pays back later and doesn’t result in spectacular success from one year to the next. Meanwhile, professional sport comes with immediate acknowledgement, result, thus quicker payback. In fact, it is the measure of success, due to which we can confidently state that Hungary is a sport superpower. In terms of professional sport and Olympic successes, we are among the top 10 countries of the world. Several researches have proved that considering the number of the population and the medals won, we are around the second-third place. This is an invaluable commercial value, or if you’d like: a national brand. This way, we can be featured in international press without commercial spending.

GLOBS: What can be said about the payback of the World Aquatics Championships?
Borbély: The Championships brought us new estates, touristic waves and of course, money, but the amount cannot be calculated yet. The touristic surplus have already manifested. The hotel capacities grew by 70-80%. Such developments were executed in Balatonfüred that would have only been done much later. Not to mention that the hype surrounding Hungary was unprecedented. This kind of advertisement couldn’t have been paid on market basis.

GLOBS: What do you think about the potential of organising an Olympic Games?
Borbély: This is a question of intent. It has to be asked again in good time. A healthy nation also depends on the sporting habits of the future generation. This can be facilitated by physical education in kindergarten and school, second line education and the overall popularisation of sport. The obligatory nature of sport can be debated just like the lack of infrastructure, but the desirable goal is to do some kind of sport activity every day. Sport has never received as much financial support as it does now. But the new establishments should be accessible for everybody.

GLOBS: Do sports investments return?
Borbély: I can only speak for the current situation, not for the long-run. The money invested roughly pays back. But the maintenance of establishments cannot be based exclusively on economic foundations. This must be financed – at least partly – by the state and municipalities.

GLOBS: Has the interest in the sports economist study programme increased?
Borbély: The study programme was initiated by me in Debrecen as part of the Sports Economy and Management Department, with the full support of the university’s directors, rector and chancellor. We have written 17 textbooks, which form the base of the sports economist master programme. We currently have 42 students, including the correspondence course as well, who were chosen from 80 applicants. I am very happy about this. Graduate students get an economist diploma. We also created a sport economic department in the Hungarian Economic Association, and I was chosen to be its president. We work with excellent professionals, we come up with the opportunities of the future, answer challenges and fill the sports section with further professionals.

GLOBS: How can students who take part in the programme take advantage of the acquired knowledge and skills?
Borbély: There are more than 3000 sports clubs in Hungary. Besides sports clubs, students with a sport economist master diploma also have competitive skills to work for municipalities, enterprises, recreational sports clubs and institutions dealing with disadvantaged and handicapped people.

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Featured image: https://btk.unideb.hu

Duna Aquatics Arena is the model for Paris hosting the 2024 Olympic Games

As Magyarorszagkul.nlcafe.hu reports, the Organising Committee of the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games visited the Duna Aquatics Arena that was giving home to the FINA World Aquatics Championships in 2017. While preparing for setting up the new facilities for the oncoming Olympics, the French organisers stated that the Hungarian complex is the perfect example for how a modern sports establishment should look like, as it is the best competition pool in the world. Here are the details of the Committee’s visit in Hungary.

As MTI also reports, Anthony Piqueras, technical director of the Olympic Games’ Organising Committee, emphasised at the press conference during their 1-day visit in Budapest that the Duna Arena sets the perfect model for all prospective swimming pools. It is also a shining example for the French swimming arena that is going to be constructed within the framework of the Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games.

As Piqueras pointed out, the Duna Arena is a great example for how a construction like this can be reused by spectators and sportspeople alike after the sport event has taken place.

Sustainability, which was in focus during the construction of the Duna Arena, is also a basic concept for the Committee who are making the necessary preparation for the Games.

Anthony Piqueras, at the press conference in Duna Arena
/MTI: Szilárd Koszticsák /

Since the construction of the swimming pool serving as the venue for sportspeople at the 2024 Olympic Games has not started yet, the French delegates were curious about how the Hungarians could set up the swimming pools so quickly that became one of the fastest constructed sports venues in the world.

Furthermore, they also wanted to figure out how the organisers executed that the building can host permanently 6,000 people, but with temporary grandstands, the number of spectators can grow to 15,000 people.

Therefore, they wanted to uncover the secret of the quick execution since, during the World Championships, they already expressed their desire to establish the Olympic venue based on the model of the Hungarian Duna Arena.

The reconstruction of the Arena has started
/MTI: Szilárd Koszticsák/

Hosting the Swimming Championships/facebook/Duna Aréna/

Balázs Fürjes, a member of the FINA World Aquatics Championships Organising Committee, reported that they hardly had two years at their disposal to set up the perfect venue while other organisers usually have 7-8 years for the construction. In spite of this, the success of the Arena is shown by the fact that it set up three records:

  • there has never been a swimming arena before that was built within 1.5 years
  • there has never been a similar case before where a year after the Olympic Games, 11 world records became set up at the World Championships
  • there has never been a construction like this before that employed around 5,000 people.

Daniel Gyurta, the Hungarian member of the International Olympic Committee, said that it was a great experience for him to swim in the Arena. He added that foreign competitors also praised the establishment and the great atmosphere where thousands of Hungarians cheered for the swimmers.

In the near future, the Duna Arena is also goint to get a prominent role as it is going to host 2 international competitions, the FINA World Junior Synchronised Swimming Championships and the World Junior Swimming Championships. 🙂

Featured image: facebook/Duna Aréna

Budapest becoming the center of water sports

Budapest will host LEN’s annual congress on 2 June 2018 due to the decision of the international organization’s assembly on Friday in Copenhagen, as M4 Sport reported. The preparations for the international event will be carried out by the Hungarian Swimming Association (MÚSZ) and BP2017 Nkft. It was the latter that hosted the professionally and economically successful FINA World Championship 2017.

LEN’s finance manager Tamás Gyárfás stated that he managed to have an agreement with president Paolo Barelli about Rome’s withdrawal. This means that LEN Büro decided on Friday in Copenhagen that it will be Budapest that hosts next year’s congress.

“We welcome everyone to Budapest”, president of MÚSZ Sándor Wladár claimed at the assembly. He was introduced by Paolo Barelli as the champion of 200-meter backstroke at the Olympics in Moscow.

Wladár added that “Hungarian water sports are in good hands, as those people manage it who have them in their genes.”

Managing director Éva Szántó and finance director Sándor Balogh represented BP2017 Nkft. in Copenhagen and they presented the plans for the congress. The event was hosted in Hotel InterContinental.

Tamás Gyárfás added, after the assembly: “The leaders of water sports loved Budapest too much because of the professional execution of the world championship and the European championships before that. I can say, with a bit of exaggeration, that we have achieved that, whenever a host is needed for an event, the first question the international association or the leadership of FINA and LEN asks: is Budapest available for the task? The competition is only initiated if the answer is no… It is an honor for everyone who took part in the preparation and execution of past years’ events.”

A whole lot of international water sports events are ready to be hosted in Hungary.

An open water world championship is due in Balatonfüred (16 June 2018) and one of the stations of the swimming world championship will also be in Hungary in late summer or early autumn. A part of the synchronized swimming World Series opens in the Duna Aréna in May, followed by the junior championship of synchronized swimmers and the men’s junior water polo world championships in Szombathely.

Open water world championships and swimming world cups seem to be recurring events. Budapest will host all the European championships (water polo in January, swimming, diving and synchronized swimming in May, open water swimming in June) in 2020. Duna Aréna will be the venue of the short course swimming world championships in 2024.

Photo: Facebook.com/dunaarenabudapest

The Budapest World Aquatics Championship’s high diving tower chosen as the sport venue of the year

According to m4sport.hu, the 2017 FINA World Aquatics Championships’ high diving competition venue was chosen as the Sport Venue of the Year at the International Sport Awards (ISA).

The outstanding sport venues of 2017 were judged by the International Sport Awards’ team and the International Sports Chamber of Commerce.

The high diving events of the 2017 FINA World Aquatics Championships held in Budapest took place in a temporary establishment set up at Batthyány Square. The scenery was simply breath-taking, it’s no surprise that the tickets for the high diving events sold out the quickest.

So the tower was set up at Batthyány Square, which meant that the background of the dives was the Parliament. Everyone watched the athletes in awe. The location perfectly complemented the mightiness of the discipline. It will be hard to top this off, right?

Photo: www.fina-budapest2017.com

This was the first time in the history of World Aquatics Championships that the high divers didn’t dive into natural water, but a temporary pool instead. The goal of the organisers was to attract attention to the beauty of Budapest and Hungary by choosing such a unique venue.

“Hungary can be proud of this amazing and unforgettable sport event, which received another prestigious acknowledgement” said Tamás Gyárfás, member of FINA’s Executive Committee.

Featured image: www.fina-budapest2017.com

FINA’s committees – Hungary and Spain own the most seats among the European countries

FINA published a list presenting the members of its different committees on 29 July, during the 17th FINA World Championship in Budapest and Balatonfüred. The names on this list changed in the recent days, according to the official site of FINA 2017.

The 17th FINA World Championship was a huge success from the Hungarian point of view. The local athletes were in top form: the male team’s bronze medal on 4×100 meters, László Cseh’s eighth medal, Katinka Hosszú’s third gold on 200 meters, Kristóf Milák’s or the water polo team’s silver medal were all well deserved.

Fortunately, Hungary also succeeded outside the pools.

FINA has a committee dealing with rules, organization, developing new systems and many more. It was revealed that Hungary will host the FINA European Championship in 2020 and the Short Course Swimming World Championship in 2024. It is a great honor.

LEN’s chairman Paolo Barelli argued that LEN (Ligue Européenne de Natation) member countries do not receive seats in FINA’s committees according to their results and reputation in sports. This is the reason why he called back five representatives nominated by Italy. Others did not follow his example.

Due to Barelli’s decision, Europe will be represented by 59 members in FINA committees instead of 64. America has 63, Asia has 53, Africa has 38 and Oceania has 27 representatives in the decision-making embodiments.

Hungary and Spain own the most seats among the European countries.

Moreover, Tamás Gyárfás is a member of FINA’s executive committee.

The numbers of representatives from each country are the following: The Netherlands: 6; Russia: 5; Great Britain, Germany: 4-4; Croatia, France, Switzerland: 3-3; Portugal, Romania, Turkey, Belarus: 2-2; the Czech Republic, Finland, Greece, Israel, Montenegro, Sweden, Ukraine and Italy after the change: 1-1. The rest of the countries do no represent themselves in the committees.

Besides his duties in the executive embodiment, Tamás Gyárfás also took the responsibility of the FINA liaison.

The United States has 23 representatives, while Hungary and Japan has 8 each.

The Hungarian sport diplomats:

  • Dénes Kemény, vice-chairman of the Trainer Committee
  • Gergely Csurka – Media Committee
  • Dr. Béla Merkely – Medical Committee
  • Tamás Molnár – Waterpolo Committee
  • Iván Petrov – Trainer Committee
  • Dr. Ferenc Salamon – Masters Committee
  • Natalia Tarasova – Artistic Swimming Committee

Getting 8 members into the FINA committees is a huge success for Hungary’s sport diplomacy. The 17th FINA World Championship became a role model among these kind of water sports events. As the president of FINA, Dr. Julio C. Maglione stated:

“This was the best world championships of all time.” 

Ce: bm

Budapest to host Summer Youth Olympic Games?

According to insidethegames, the Hungarian capital city is among the cities that are considered as potential hosts for the next Summer Youth Olympic Games. Budapest is already in contact with the International Olympic Committee.

According to the current plans, the Summer Youth Olympic Games (YOG) is scheduled to take place in 2023. However, there is still a possibility for bringing the event forward, to 2021.

Budapest campaigned for hosting the 2024 Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games, but it seemed that almost no-one was interested in the matter, as, after a poor reception on the side of the public and the political parties, the city withdrew in February. Still, Budapest is still eager to host major events like that, so this could contribute to the success of the FINA World Aquatics Championship.

The organising officials of Budapest and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) are already discussing the topic.

It was confirmed by the executive director for the Olympic Games, Christophe Dubi, that the IOC is in talks with several cities.

Regarding Budapest, Dubi said that the organising team presented very creative ideas and they were good at technicalities too. Dubi goes even further, stating that

Budapest is not only a good candidate for the YOG, but also for hosting even the Olympics.

However, the role of hosting the YOG usually goes to cities not be suitable for bigger events.

Next year’s Summer Olympic Games will take place in Buenos Aires. Previously, Singapore (2010) and Nanjing (2014) were hosts. In 2015, due to a possible clash with the Winter Olympic Games, the next edition was postponed until 2023, but there are chances that the Summer Olympic Games will take place two years earlier.

Dubi commented on the matter of scheduling, saying that the IOC decided to push back the Summer Games to 2023, but there are discussions again about the dates, arguing why 2023 is not an ideal date for the Summer Games. In reality, there are a number of National Olympic Committees and International Federations events each year. Still, the IOC plans to stick with 2023. If there is a need to re-open the discussion officially, it could happen Pyeongchang (the next session in February), the earliest.

Several people and stakeholders are arguing in favor of 2021 instead or 2022, so the IOC has to validate 2023 or re-open discussions on the matter. For this, however, they need to have a complete picture of the situation.

Budapest hosted several major events in 2017, like the FINA World Aquatics Championship and the International Judo Federation World Championships, and all those have been quite successful.

The capital city is keen on becoming the host of the 2023 International Association of Athletics Federations World Championships. Eventually, after a meeting between Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, Budapest’s Mayor István Tarlós and the Hungarian Olympic Committee, Budapest withdrew their bid for 2024 in February. The Momentum Movement represented a strong opposition. They’ve collected over 250 thousand signatures and presented them to the Budapest Election Committee, asking for a referendum on the topic.

Photo: MTI

Ce: bm

Budapest is one of the world’s sports capitals, says Orbán’s cabinet

“After a summer like this there can be no question that Budapest is one of the world’s sports capitals”, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó told reporters, referring to the Judo World Championships and the World Aquatic Championships, following a meeting between Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and Russian President Vladimir Putin, who is on a visit to Budapest to attend the Judo World Championships.

“There can also be no question that a country’s Prime Minister should receive world and sports leaders who visit Budapest to attend major international sports events. This is the case with Vladimir Putin, it will be the case on Tuesday with the Mongolian Prime Minister, and with the presidents of the International Judo Federation (IJF) and the International Olympic Committee (IOC)”, he added. He indicated that Vladimir Putin had invited the Hungarian Prime Minister to attend next year’s FIFA World Cup in Russia, an invitation that Mr. Orbán had accepted.

With regard to the meeting, Mr. Szijjártó told the press that no new decisions were made; the parties reviewed the implementation of previous agreements. In their view, “the fruits of the previously made joint decisions are starting to ripen”, their positive results and effects are beginning to be noticed.

Following several years of recession cause by the EU sanctions and other global economy effects, trade flow between the two countries began to increase significantly again this year, by 34 percent year-on-year by the end of May, he highlighted. As part of this growth, Hungarian exports also increased by 30 percent, which, he detailed, is made up of two components: firstly a 44 percent increase in pharmaceutical industry exports, and secondly the fact that Russia is funding food industry investments on the part of Hungarian enterprises, with three projects complete and two in progress, enabling Hungarian grain exports to increase by 89 percent during the first five months of the year. The next step will be the realisation of Hungarian water industry projects, the Foreign Minister told the press.

Mr. Szijjártó said that that during their meeting the Russian President and the Hungarian Prime Minister had confirmed what had been said at the meeting with Minister without portfolio for the Paks expansion János Süli and the CEO of Russian energy company Rosatom, namely that following a delay of 22 months caused by EU procedures, the construction process at Paks will begin at the very beginning of next year in January, and “nothing can now stop” the construction of the Paks II Nuclear Power plant. The total cost of the project is 12 billion dollars, and it was also confirmed on Monday that Hungarian enterprises will be able to perform 5 billion dollars worth of the related tasks, meaning the Russian party is fulfilling its previous promise of allowing Hungarian companies to have a 40 percent share in the project, he emphasised.

Mr. Szijjártó also mentioned that the direct air passenger route between St. Petersburg and Budapest had been launched, and that 184 Russian students will begin their studies at Hungarian universities in September. On Monday, he and the Russian Minister of Health had agreed to increase the number of scholarship places provided to Hungarian students to one hundred, he added.

On the subject of natural gas shipments, Mr. Szijjártó confirmed that in addition to Hungary, Russia is also working with Turkey, Bulgaria and Serbia to ensure that Russian gas transported to Turkey will also reach Western Europe. This route “must be established by the end of 2019”. This is not a new pipeline, like the South Stream would have been, but is being realised through the modernisation of the Bulgarian, Serbian and Hungarian networks, and in certain places by the construction of short new stretches of pipeline. Practically speaking, this means that at the end of 2019 an infrastructure capable of accepting 10 billion cubic metres of gas will have been established at Hungary’s southern border, which in addition to providing for Hungarian consumption will be leaving the country “in the direction of Austria”, and accordingly Austria’s involvement means “there is also a major Western European interest” in the project.

In reply to a question, the Hungarian Foreign Minister told reporters that the refurbishing of Budapest’s M3 metro line was not mentioned at the meeting between the Prime Minister and the Russian President, but that it had been a subject of discussion during his meeting with the co-Chair of the Russian-Hungarian Joint Economic Committee, at which both parties had confirmed their intent that “the project must be realised without the amendment of contractual deadlines”.

Also in reply to a question from the press, Mr. Szijjártó said he had spoken with the recently recalled Hungarian Ambassador to The Hague, and the Hungarian charge d’affaires in Holland had visited the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which had repeated Friday’s standpoint, for which he had expressed his thanks. He explained that in his opinion “everything possible had been done” at Foreign Minister level, and it was now the turn of the Prime Ministers, who will meet on 29 September at the EU summit in Tallinn. “We hope that following that, we will be able to permanently close this issue”, he said. The Hungarian Ambassador will not be sent back to The Hague until then, however, he added.

With relation to the fact that opposition activists had protested against Vladimir Putin on the first day of the Judo World Championships, Mr Szijjártó said: “Everyone has the right to voice their opinion” and this is something we will continue to respect. When asked why the protestors were accompanied out of the sports arena, the Foreign Minister said that was something he knew nothing about and with relation to which he had not issued a decision.

Photo: MTI