Pál Kovács | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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![]() Hungarian sabre team at the 1960 Olympics, Kovács is in the center, just above Aladár Gerevich | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Born | Debrecen, Hungary | 17 July 1912||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Died | 8 July 1995 82) Budapest, Hungary | (aged||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Height | 1.79 m (5 ft 10 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Weight | 80 kg (176 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sport | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Weapon | sabre | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Hand | right-handed | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Club | Honvéd Tiszti Vívó Klub ÖT Ganz-Mávag SportegyesületMávag SportegyesületVasas Sport Club | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Pál Kovács (17 July 1912 – 8 July 1995) was a Hungarian athlete, who began as a hurdler, but eventually switched to fencing.
By the time Kovács won his first fencing gold, in 1936, he had already been a member of the winning Hungarian team at the 1933 World Championships. The Hungarians won team sabre gold in five successive Olympics, lasting from 1936 until 1960. The same team won gold eight back-to-back world championships (including the two Olympics, which double as world championships in their respective years). Kovács also won individual gold in 1952, as well as individual bronze in 1948. In 1980, he became vice-president of the Fédération Internationale d'Escrime. He died in Budapest in July 1995. [1]
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The men's sabre was one of seven fencing events on the Fencing at the 1924 Summer Olympics programme. It was the seventh appearance of the event, the only fencing event to have been on the programme at every Games. The competition was held from Tuesday July 16, 1924 to Thursday July 18, 1924. 47 fencers from 15 nations competed. Nations were limited to four fencers each, down from eight in 1920. The event was won by Sándor Pósta of Hungary, beginning a nine-Games streak in which Hungarians won the gold medal in the men's sabre. Roger Ducret of France took silver, while another Hungarian, János Garay, earned bronze.
The men's sabre was one of seven fencing events on the fencing at the 1948 Summer Olympics programme. It was the eleventh appearance of the event. The competition was held from 12 August 1948 to 13 August 1948. 60 fencers from 24 nations competed. Nations were limited to three fencers each. The event was won by Aladár Gerevich, the fifth of nine straight Games in which a Hungarian would win the event. Gerevich became the third man to win multiple medals in the individual sabre, adding to his 1936 bronze. Vincenzo Pinton of Italy took silver and Pál Kovács of Hungary took bronze; it was the third straight Games where the sabre podium was Hungary-Italy-Hungary.
The men's sabre was one of seven fencing events on the fencing at the 1952 Summer Olympics programme. It was the twelfth appearance of the event. The competition was held from 31 July 1952 to 1 August 1952. 66 fencers from 26 nations competed. Nations were limited to three fencers each. The event was won by Pál Kovács, the sixth of nine straight Games in which a Hungarian would win the event. Kovács became the fourth man to win multiple medals in the individual sabre, adding to his 1948 bronze. Hungary swept the medals in the event for the second time. Aladár Gerevich's silver completed a set of three different color medals in the event, the first man to win three medals in individual sabre. Tibor Berczelly earned bronze.
The men's sabre was one of seven fencing events on the fencing at the 1956 Summer Olympics programme. It was the thirteenth appearance of the event. The competition was held on 5 December 1956. 35 fencers from 17 nations competed. Nations had been limited to three fencers each since 1928. The event was won by Rudolf Kárpáti, the seventh of nine straight Games in which a Hungarian would win the event. Jerzy Pawłowski of Poland took silver and Lev Kuznetsov of the Soviet Union took bronze, the first medals in the event for each nation and the first time since 1924 that any nation other than Hungary and Italy earned a medal in the men's sabre.
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