Ervin Zádor (7 June 1934 – 28 April 2012) was a Hungarian

water polo Water polo is a competitive sport, competitive team sport played in water between two teams of seven players each. The game consists of four quarters in which the teams attempt to score goals by throwing the water polo ball, ball into the oppo ...

player and member of the Hungarian national team.

Career

At age 21, Ervin Zádor represented Hungary at the

1956 Summer Olympics The 1956 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XVI Olympiad and officially branded as Melbourne 1956, were an international multi-sport event held in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia, from 22 November to 8 December ...

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

. He played four matches and scored five goals. The

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

and Hungary water polo teams met in the semifinals at the Olympics. Because of the Soviet Union's invasion of Hungary a month earlier and the resulting tension between the teams, the game was expected to be very physical. In a match marred by many penalties on both sides, Zádor scored twice as Hungary took a 4-0 lead. Late in the game, Valentin Prokopov struck Zádor in the face, opening a cut under his right eye. Zádor's injury and multiple other combats resulted in it being known as the " Blood In The Water" game. The match was stopped in the final minute to quell fighting among spectators, many of them from Melbourne's large Hungarian community, who were furious over the Soviet invasion of their homeland. Zádor was shown emerging from the water with blood pouring down his face in a news photo published around the world. He later commented "All I could think about is, 'Could I play the next match?'." Zádor's injury kept him out of the Olympic final, but his team won the Olympic gold medal with a 2-1 victory over

Yugoslavia , common_name = Yugoslavia , life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation , p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia , flag_p ...

. In April 2006, a documentary called '' Freedom's Fury'' premiered, with

Lucy Liu Lucy Alexis Liu (; born December 2, 1968) is an American actress, producer, and artist. Widely regarded as a trailblazer for Asian Americans in arts and entertainment, Asian American representation in Hollywood, Los Angeles, Hollywood, she is t ...

and

Quentin Tarantino Quentin Jerome Tarantino (; born March 27, 1963) is an American filmmaker, actor, and author. Quentin Tarantino filmography, His films are characterized by graphic violence, extended dialogue often featuring much profanity, and references to ...

listed as

executive producer Executive producer (EP) is one of the top positions in the production of media. Depending on the medium, the executive producer may be concerned with management accounting or associated with legal issues (like copyrights or royalties). In film ...

s. It depicts the

Hungarian Revolution of 1956 The Hungarian Revolution of 1956 (23 October – 4 November 1956; ), also known as the Hungarian Uprising, was an attempted countrywide revolution against the government of the Hungarian People's Republic (1949–1989) and the policies caused by ...

and climaxes with the

battle between Hungary and the Soviet Union. The documentary follows Ervin Zádor, who is portrayed as the unwitting focal point of the politicized match. In a 2006 interview, Zádor said the Hungarian strategy was to anger the Russian team and cause them to make errors. U.S. Olympic swimmer

Mark Spitz Mark Andrew Spitz (born February 10, 1950) is an American former competitive swimmer and nine-time Olympic champion. He was the Lists of Olympic medalists#Medalist with most medals by Olympiad, most successful athlete at the 1972 Summer Olympi ...

, who narrates "Freedom's Fury", was coached by Ervin Zádor.Radio Free Europe
Hungary: New Film Revisits 1956 Water-Polo Showdown
Retrieved 13 September 2006

Personal life

Born in

Budapest Budapest is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns of Hungary, most populous city of Hungary. It is the List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, tenth-largest city in the European Union by popul ...

, Zádor refused to return to his Soviet-occupied country after the Olympic Games and became a political refugee. He settled in Linden, California. He died on April 28, 2012. Two of his children continue to coach waterpolo in Ripon, California.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Zador, Ervin 1934 births 2012 deaths Water polo players from Budapest People from Linden, California Sportspeople from San Joaquin County, California Hungarian male water polo players Olympic water polo players for Hungary Olympic gold medalists for Hungary Olympic medalists in water polo Water polo players at the 1956 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1956 Summer Olympics 20th-century Hungarian sportsmen

Career

Personal life

See also

References

External links