József Remecz (3 March 1907 – 17 May 1989) was a Hungarian discus thrower. Remecz broke the European record in men's discus throw several times and was the first European to break 50 metres. He was one of the favorites at the
1932 Summer Olympics
The 1932 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the X Olympiad and also known as Los Angeles 1932) were an international multi-sport event held from July 30 to August 14, 1932 in Los Angeles, California, United States. The Games were held duri ...
, but only placed ninth.
Career
Hungary became Europe's leading discus throw power during the early 1930s, with the emergence of throwers like Remecz,
István Donogán
István Donogán (; 13 December 1897 – 25 November 1966) was a Hungarian discus thrower. He competed in the Summer Olympic Games in 1928 and 1932 and was third at the European Athletics Championships, European Championships in 1934.
Career
D ...
and
Endre Madarász
Endre Madarász (8 November 1909 – 5 May 1976) Remecz first broke the European record in 1931, throwing 48.83 m in
Debrecen
Debrecen ( , is Hungary's second-largest city, after Budapest, the regional centre of the Northern Great Plain region and the seat of Hajdú-Bihar County. A city with county rights, it was the largest Hungarian city in the 18th century and i ...
; his mark was the best in the world that year. Remecz broke the European record three more times in 1932, eventually reaching 50.73 m in
Dunakeszi
Dunakeszi () is a city in Pest county, Budapest metropolitan area, Hungary. It is located to the north of Budapest on the left bank of the Danube.
Politics
The current mayor of Dunakeszi is Csaba Dióssi (Fidesz-KDNP).
The local Municipal Asse ...
; he was the first European to break 50 metres. He was one of the leading favorites at the
1932 Summer Olympics
The 1932 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the X Olympiad and also known as Los Angeles 1932) were an international multi-sport event held from July 30 to August 14, 1932 in Los Angeles, California, United States. The Games were held duri ...
in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
, but he underperformed and only reached 45.02 m, placing ninth and failing to qualify for the final rounds.
Remecz's European record was broken by Sweden's Harald "Slaktarn" Andersson in 1934. Remecz was Hungarian champion in 1932, 1933 and 1934 and placed fourth at the inaugural
European Championships
The European Championships is a multi-sport tournament which brings together the existing European Championships of some of the continent's leading sports every four years. The inaugural edition in 2018 was staged by the host cities of Berlin, ...
in
Turin
Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital ...
, behind Andersson,
Paul Winter
Paul Winter (born August 31, 1939) is an American saxophonist, composer, and bandleader. He is a pioneer of world music and earth music, which interweaves the voices of the wild with instrumental voices from classical, jazz and world music. The ...
and Donogán. Although Remecz never improved his personal best again, he remained in good shape for a long time, ranking in the world's top 25 thirteen times between 1931 and 1944.