Rudolf Kárpáti: Last of a Long Line

The small eastern European nation of Hungary has contributed greatly to Olympic history, and perhaps in no field so much as in fencing. Hungarian athletes have historically excelled at the sport, winning gold medals in every individual sabre competition between 1924 and 1964.

One of Hungary’s most accomplished sabre athletes was Rudolf Kárpáti, who trained with members of the nation’s famed Hussar cavalry, in which he had briefly served. An amateur composer, musician, and dancer, Kárpáti brought balletlike grace and a seemingly tireless agility to the fencing court, which served him well at the 1956 Olympic Games in Melbourne, Australia. The 36-year-old Kárpáti faced a formidable field of opponents, including Jerzy Pawlowski of Poland, Lev Kuznyetsov of the Soviet Union, and Jacques Lefèvre of France. He retired 18 of those opponents, losing only a single match to Pawlowski and earning a gold medal. He earned a second gold medal as a member of Hungary’s six-man sabre team, which fought a spirited battle against the Soviet team, exacting symbolic vengeance for the Soviet Union’s recent invasion of their homeland.

After the Melbourne Games, Kárpáti became a fencing coach in Hungary. He competed at the 1960 Olympic Games in Rome, repeating his 1956 performance in both the individual and team sabre events. Kárpáti died in February 1999, revered by his countrymen as the last of a storied line of brilliant sabre fencers.