On 17 September, Minister of Human Resources Zoltán Balog, State Secretary of Sports Attila Czene and Deputy State Secretary of Sports Pál Szekeres presented state awards and diplomas of merit to athletes who achieved 4th, 5th and 6th places at this year’s Olympics and Paralympics as well as to professionals and sports managers who took part in their training.

The Minister of Human Resources expressed his gratitude to the athletes for their excellent performance at the London Olympics and Paralympics, which helped Hungary rise to be among the most successful nations in the world. He stressed, the most important we could learn from the winners was that we can achieve success and overcome our fears. Success is important in order for us to believe that we can hold our ground and take our place among the world’s best. This could also serve as an example to follow in the fields of economy and culture.

Both the Olympic and Paralympic Games brought great success for Hungary this year. 157 Hungarian athletes qualified for the London Olympics and – with eight gold, four silver, five bronze medals and a number of other good results – obtained 127 points, ranking 14th out of 205 nations; in the final medal table, Hungary stood finished in 9th place. The 33 Hungarian athletes delegated to the 14th Summer Paralympics won two gold, six silver, six bronze medals and a couple of other important results, achieving 38th place in the final ranking out of the 165 nations who qualified.

(Prime Minister’s Office)