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Athlete of the Nation: six yeses needed for the decision

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2023.01.26. 20:59
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Nemzet Sportolója
As early as mid-February, the Athletes of the Nation can propose a new member to fill the vacancy left by the death of János Varga.

The 12th seat vacated by the death of János Varga will not remain so for long, as the now-11-member committee of former athletes will soon make a decision. The day of the vote will be set by Ádám Schmidt, the Secretary of State for Sports, who will also convene the members. This must be done by the first day of March, as the relevant regulation stipulates that the proposal for the new member must be made within 60 days of the death of the deceased athlete.

"We buried János Varga on Tuesday, so naturally we have not yet discussed a possible successor,"Pál Schmitt, Olympic champion fencer, Athlete of the Nation, former President of Hungary and of the Hungarian Olympic Committee, the honorary member of the International Olympic Committee, told our newspaper. “It would be discourteous of me to list names, for fear of leaving someone out of the list: we have a strong and worthy poll from which to choose. According to the criteria, we must choose as our twelfth member a person over sixty years of age, with an outstanding sporting record and a lifetime of service to Hungarian sport. I hope that we will make the right decision this time, as we have done so far – since no one has ever questioned our decisions. There is no written or unwritten rule, or even customary law, to nominate someone from the same sport for the title after a deceased member. It was an extraordinary gesture by the decision-makers to entrust us with this task. To be awarded the title Athlete of the Nation is a recognition of a lifetime's achievement, and this has not only moral but also financial implications. Few people are privileged to be a member of this society, and it is truly an honor to belong here."

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The process of nomination and election are as follows: members can individually present their nominees who they think shall be honored with the Athlete of the Nation title. One person can suggest more than one sportsperson. Once the total number of candidates has been tallied, only those on the list can be voted for, and each outstanding former athlete can only nominate one person. Voting continues until someone gets more than fifty percent of the votes, namely six yeses. The nominee with the fewest votes in a round is always removed from the list.

Once someone has more than fifty percent of the votes, the Secretary of State for Sport checks whether the nominee meets the legal criteria - and when the government approves the proposal, the nomination of the Athlete of the Nation becomes official.

The current Athletes of the Nation
András Balczó (pentathlon), Tamás Faragó (water polo), László Hammerl (sport shooting), Mária Ivánkay (para table tennis), István Jónyer (table tennis), Jenő Kamuti (fencing), Ágnes Keleti (gymnastics), Zoltán Magyar (gymnastics), Lajos Portisch (chess), Ildikó Rejtő (fencing), Pál Schmitt (fencing)


NS OPINION – ZSIGMOND DEÁK

With all due respect to Pál Schmitt, if there is another truly capable candidate, common law and logic dictate that the new Athlete of the Nation should come from the same sport as the old one who is gone forever. Wrestling is one of the best sports in the Hungarian Olympic rankings, and last year's Prima Primissima winner Csaba Hegedüs is a worthy successor to János Varga – just look at the attached table of his achievements as a competitor, coach and sports manager. Perhaps we are not wrong to consider the 74-year-old “Mr. Tus” the most likely candidate.

NS OPINION – ERIKA KOVÁCS

It is painful and exhilarating every time they meet: the Athletes of the Nation are rarely all together, or almost never. There are usually eleven of them, and the joyful moments of reunion are mixed with sad moments because it is always a time to say goodbye to someone. To then welcome another legend to their ranks. The task is noble, but also difficult, as Hungary has fortunately given many outstanding athletes to the world of sport - it is not difficult to predict that in a few years' time, the decision will become even more difficult, as the (gold) medalists of the Seoul and Barcelona Olympics reach the age of 60. Of course, there are already some of them who would be worthy of the membership, such as fencer Bence Szabó and pentathlete Attila Mizsér. Although there are no rules on the number of people from each sport who can be members of the panel, the fact that fencing is our most successful Olympic sport (currently three fencers represent the sport) may have a slight impact on Szabó's chances - which is probably why Lídia Sákovicsné Dömölky and Tibor Pézsa have (so far) been left out of the circle. Whatever decision the Athletes of the Nation make in a few days or weeks from now, no one will question them. And not just because respect and decency dictate it.

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