Hungary played an important role in the popularisation of rowing in Europe in the nineteenth century. On May 16, 1827, Count István Széchenyi rowed from Vienna to Bratislava; he covered the distance in 3 hours 52 minutes. The first Hungarian rowing race was held in Bratislava in 1863, and two years later the regatta between Margaret Island and Chain Bridge in Budapest attracted tens of thousands of spectators. In 1893, the Association of Hungarian Rowing Clubs was founded, and the following year the first rowing regatta for women was organised in Szeged.

Hungary was represented by an eight at the 1908 Olympic Games. The dynamic development of the rowing sport in Hungary brought results in the 1930's; Béla Szendey in the single sculls won the first gold medal for Hungary in the European Championships. For four consecutive years, 1932, 1933, 1934, 1935, Hungary won the Glandaz Prize awarded to the most successful national team in the European Championships.

After World War II, at the London Olympics in 1848 the coxed pair of Béla Zsitnik, Antal Szendey, and Róbert Zimonyi, won the first Olympic medal for Hungary. A new era began when Pap Jen?né Kornélia Méray appeared on the scene. She won four European titles: 1958 at Poznan, 1959 at Macon, 1960 at London, and 1961 at Prague. Following her success, the women's crew of Mária Fekete, Mária Pekanovits, Ágnes Salamon, Zsuzsa Szappanos, cox: Margit Komornik, won the first gold medal in the quadruple sculls in 1965.

The best result was in Mexico City in the 1968 Olympic Games. The Hungarian four of Zoltán Melis, György Sarlós, József Csermely, and Antal Melis, became the silver medallists. In the 1970's, Mariann Ambrus, in the single sculls, won a silver medal in the World Championships in 1975 at Nottingham, and two bronze medals, 1977 at Amsterdam and 1978 at Hamilton. Katalin Sarlós won a bronze medal in the Worlds at Bled in 1989 after her.

Rowing in Hungary was in a difficult position in the post-war years. Because the socialist regime labelled rowing as a bourgeois sport, it had to cope with conservative support. Despite many difficulties, Hungary has produced some outstanding rowers and is trying to stay up with the world's rowing elite. The first result of the most recent era is Gergely Kokas's 1999 World Championships bronze medal in the lightweight men's single at St Catherines. Then, it was good omen that Tibor Pet? and Ákos Haller took fifth place at the Sydney Olympics in the men's double sculls following a third place in the World Cup. Pet? and Haller have continued on to win the World Championships in 2001 and 2002, losing only once in the World Cup series. Recently, only three members of the improving Hungarian rowing team avoided the salmonella infection the hit the national squad just before the World Championships in Seville, 2002 affecting their ability to perform.

ROWING PERSONALITIES

Béla Zsitnik : (1924 -) Best result: 1948 London Olympic Games, Bronze medal in the Men's pair with coxswain. After resigning from active rowing he became secretary general of the Hungarian Rowing Federation.

Jenoné Pap (Kornélia Méray) : (1930 -) Best results: Gold medallist at the European Championships: 1958 at Poznan, 1959 at Macon, 1960 at London, and 1961 at Prague. From 1960-1984 she was a journalist and correspondent for the National Sport newspaper. Now retired and she is the author of the novel Waters gave me freedom.

Zoltán Melis : (1947 -) Best results: Silver medal at the 1968 Mexico City Olympic Games in the men's four without coxswain; 33 times national champion. He has been the head coach of the Hungarian rowing team for 16 years and has also worked in Egypt as the head coach.

Mariann Ambrus : (1956 -)
Best results: In the women's single scull, silver medallist at the 1975 World Championships and bronze medallist at the 1977 and 1978 World Championships. Her daughter, Zsófia Fekete, is a talented sculler.

Tibor Pet? : (1980 -) Gold medallist in the men's double sculls at the 2001 and 2002 World Championships in Lucerne and Seville, respectively. Tibor is a student and trains out of the Vác Városi Evez?s Klub, City of Vác Rowing Club. Besides rowing he enjoys cycling.

Ákos Haller : (1976 -) Gold medallist in the men's double sculls at the 2001 and 2002 World Championships. Haller is a student of economics and has a medical degree. His club is DÉMÁSZ Szeged Vízisport-Egyesület. He is an erg specialist and is very strong over 6000 meters.