Blood in the water: Hungary's 1956 water polo gold

Gerald · 08-20-11, 06:53 AM

One of the hardest-fought contests in Olympic history was a water polo match between Hungary and the USSR in 1956 - a match which came to symbolise the Hungarian struggle against Soviet rule.

"A whistle came, I looked at the referee, I said 'What's the whistle for?' And the moment I did that, I knew I'd made a horrible mistake."

Ervin Zador, 21 years old in 1956, was the star player in Hungary's Olympic water polo team at the Melbourne Olympics in Australia.

"I turned back and with a straight arm, he just smacked me in the face. He tried to punch me out."

The man punching Ervin Zador was a Russian water polo player, during one of the most highly charged battles in Olympic history.

Ervin Zador: "I saw about 4,000 stars... I felt warm blood pouring down"

t was only a matter of weeks since Soviet tanks and troops had rolled into the Hungarian capital Budapest - brutally crushing an anti-Soviet uprising.

Hundreds of Hungarians had been killed, thousands more arrested.

But at the height of the crackdown, the country's water polo team had been cut off from the news at a training camp in Czechoslovakia.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-14575260

Note: 20 August 2011 Last updated at 08:15 GMT

Diopos · 08-20-11, 10:52 AM

Yeap, communist solidarity!!!!. Reminds me of EU solidarity in the current debt crisis eh ?!

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08-20-11, 06:53 AM	#1
Gerald SUBSIM Newsman Join Date: May 2008 Location: Close to sea Posts: 24,254 Downloads: 553 Uploads: 0	Blood in the water: Hungary's 1956 water polo gold One of the hardest-fought contests in Olympic history was a water polo match between Hungary and the USSR in 1956 - a match which came to symbolise the Hungarian struggle against Soviet rule. "A whistle came, I looked at the referee, I said 'What's the whistle for?' And the moment I did that, I knew I'd made a horrible mistake." Ervin Zador, 21 years old in 1956, was the star player in Hungary's Olympic water polo team at the Melbourne Olympics in Australia. "I turned back and with a straight arm, he just smacked me in the face. He tried to punch me out." The man punching Ervin Zador was a Russian water polo player, during one of the most highly charged battles in Olympic history. Ervin Zador: "I saw about 4,000 stars... I felt warm blood pouring down" t was only a matter of weeks since Soviet tanks and troops had rolled into the Hungarian capital Budapest - brutally crushing an anti-Soviet uprising. Hundreds of Hungarians had been killed, thousands more arrested. But at the height of the crackdown, the country's water polo team had been cut off from the news at a training camp in Czechoslovakia. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-14575260 Note: 20 August 2011 Last updated at 08:15 GMT __________________ Nothing in life is to be feard,it is only to be understood. Marie Curie

08-20-11, 10:52 AM	#2
Diopos Ace of the Deep Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Athens, the original one. Posts: 1,226 Downloads: 9 Uploads: 0	Yeap, communist solidarity!!!!. Reminds me of EU solidarity in the current debt crisis eh ?! . __________________ - Oh God! They're all over the place! CRASH DIVE!!! - Ehm... we can't honey. We're in the car right now. - What?... er right... Doesn't matter! We'll give it a try anyway!