András Balczó
- Born:
- August 16, 1938, Kondoros, Békés, Hungary (age 86)
- Awards And Honors:
- Olympic Games
András Balczó (born August 16, 1938, Kondoros, Békés, Hungary) is a Hungarian modern pentathlete who dominated the sport in the 1960s and is considered to be among the greatest of the storied line of Hungarian competitors in the modern pentathlon.
The modern pentathlon combines five sports—riding, fencing, swimming, running, and shooting—in four events.
A strong swimmer and runner and a consistent fencer, Balczó won individual championships in 1963, 1965–67, and 1969. He also won five team championships with the Hungarian team. He was less fortunate in Olympic competition. In his debut at the 1960 Rome Games, Balczó finished first in the swim and second in the run, but poor shooting left him in fourth place and off of the medal stand. He missed the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games but returned to the Olympics at the 1968 Games in Mexico City. He was a favorite in the competition but won a silver medal after a surprising performance by Björn Ferm of Sweden. Balczó won gold medals in the team event in 1960 and 1968. Determined to earn a gold medal on his own, he returned to the individual Olympic competition in 1972 at Munich. In the final event, the cross-country race, he put forth a courageous effort to pass three other competitors and win the gold.
