European Athletics President Svein Arne Hansen was on hand to help the Hungarian athletics federation – Magyar Atlétikai Szovetség – celebrate it’s 120th anniversary at the traditional Athlete of the Year Gala in Budapest on Friday.
The Hungarian athletics federation was formed on 21 March 1897 can proudly claim that only to be seven other national federations were formed before it and it is the fourth oldest national body among the European Athletics Member Federations.
It was notably also one of the 17 founding federations of the IAAF when the global governing body of the sport was created in 1912.
In addition to helping present the prizes to the Hungarian award winners, with the main Athlete of the Year honours going to IAAF World Championships London 2017 medallists Balazs Baji and Anita Marton, President Hansen too the chance to discuss the possibility of major athletics events being staged by Hungary in the future with local sporting and political dignitaries.
With my good friend, fellow @EuroAthletics Council Member & CEO of the 120 year old Hungarian Athletics Federation Marton Gyulai in Budapest tonight. #120Anniversary pic.twitter.com/6nx6JHlDHl
— Svein Arne Hansen (@SvenPres) December 15, 2017
Among those also present, in addition the Hungarian athletics federation president and general secretary Miklos Gyulai and Marton Gyulai, that latter is also a European Athletics Council member, were the Hungarian National Olympic Committee President Krisztián Kulcsán, the deputy mayor of Budapest Alexandra Szalay-Bobrovinczky and the deputy secretary of state for education and sports Péter Sárfalvi, the latter a former world champion in modern pentathlon.
The Hungarian city of Gyor will be the venue for the second edition of the European Athletics U18 Championships next summer, the latest in a myriad of European Athletics competitions staged in the country.