By Sophie Kaufman on SwimSwam
Two swimmers were honored at the Hungarian Sports Journalists’ Association End of Year Awards ceremony on Monday, Jan. 13. Hubert Kós received the trophy for male athlete of the year, and Zsófia Konkoly won the top honors in the women’s para-athlete of the year category.
Two legends in the sport of swimming, Katinka Hosszú and Ian Thorpe, presented Kós with his trophy. Hosszu, a long-time fixture of Hungarian swimming, announced her retirement from professional racing last week.
Kós, the 2023 world champion in the 200 backstroke, cemented himself as the biggest name in the event at the Paris Games. There, the 21-year-old made the first Olympic medal of his career a gold, pulling away from the field and winning in 1:54.26. The win marked Hungary’s first medal in the pool at the Paris Olympics.
Kós’ gold-medal swim marked a breakout for him on the Olympic stage. But Konkoly, 22, arrived in Paris for her third Paralympic Games as a decorated Paralympic medalist. She already owned four Paralympic medals, including a gold from Tokyo in the 100 butterfly S9. She added to her haul at the 2024 Games, striking gold in the 400 freestyle S9 and 200 IM SM9, upgrading from the silver she won in both events during the Tokyo Paralympics. Konkoly added a silver medal in the 100 butterfly S9, bringing her Paris medal count to three and her overall Paralympic Games total to seven.
Complete List Of Winners at the MSUSZ Awards:
- Male Athlete of the Year: Hubert Kós, Swimming
- Female Athlete of the Year: Michelle Gulyás, Pentathlon
- Male Para-Athlete of the Year: Peter Pal Kiss, Para-Kayaking
- Female Para-Athlete of the Year: Zsófia Konkoly, Para-Swimming
- Para Team of the Year: Women’s Wheelchair Fencing
- Best Team of the Year In Traditional Team Sports: Women’s Handball
- Best Team of the Year In Individual Sports: Men’s Epée
- Best Coach of the Year: Vladimir Golovin, Women’s Handball
- Sports Moment of the Year: Kevin Csoboth, 100th-minute winning goal in a group match against Scotland at the European Football Championships
- Community Sports Event of the year: Carpathian Basin Universities Cup
- Lifetime Achievement Award: László Bölöni
Read the full story on SwimSwam: Swimmers Hubert Kós and Zsófia Konkoly Honored By Hungarian Sports Journalists’ Association