Peter Bakonyi (10 July 1933 – 26 August 1997) was a Hungarian-born Canadian

Olympic Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece b ...

foil Foil may refer to: Materials * Foil (metal), a quite thin sheet of metal, usually manufactured with a rolling mill machine * Metal leaf, a very thin sheet of decorative metal * Aluminium foil, a type of wrapping for food * Tin foil, metal foil ma ...

and

épée The ( or , ), sometimes spelled epee in English, is the largest and heaviest of the three weapons used in the sport of fencing. The modern derives from the 19th-century , a weapon which itself derives from the French small sword. This contains ...

fencer. He competed at the

1968 Summer Olympics The 1968 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1968), officially known as the Games of the XIX Olympiad ( es, Juegos de la XIX Olimpiada) and commonly known as Mexico 1968 ( es, México 1968), were an international multi-sport eve ...

in Mexico City. He was also a six-time Canadian national fencing champion, 18-time

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

fencing champion, three-time medalist at the

Commonwealth Games The Commonwealth Games, often referred to as the Friendly Games or simply the Comm Games, are a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930, and, with the exce ...

, four-time silver medalist at the

Maccabiah Games The Maccabiah Games (a.k.a. the World Maccabiah Games; he, משחקי המכביה, or משחקי המכביה העולמית; sometimes referred to as the "Jewish Olympics"), first held in 1932, are an international Jewish and Israeli multi-sp ...

in Israel.

Early life

Bakonyi was born in

Budapest, Hungary Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population of ...

, and was Jewish. He met his wife Vera at a function in high school. He attended law school and fenced at

Budapesti EAC Budapesti Egyetemi Atlétikai Club (English: Budapest University Athletic Club) is a Hungarian football club from the city of Budapest. The club was founded by the Eötvös Loránd University. History Budapesti EAC debuted in the 1924–25 sea ...

in Budapest, graduating with a law degree in 1956 at the

Faculty of Law A faculty is a division within a university or college comprising one subject area or a group of related subject areas, possibly also delimited by level (e.g. undergraduate). In American usage such divisions are generally referred to as colleges ...

Eötvös Loránd University Eötvös Loránd University ( hu, Eötvös Loránd Tudományegyetem, ELTE) is a Hungarian public research university based in Budapest. Founded in 1635, ELTE is one of the largest and most prestigious public higher education institutions in Hung ...

and trained for the

modern pentathlon The modern pentathlon is an Olympic sport consisting of fencing (one-touch épée), freestyle swimming, equestrian show jumping, pistol shooting, and cross country running. The event is inspired by the traditional pentathlon held during the anci ...

(épée fencing, swimming, horseback riding, shooting, and cross country running). In 1957 he and Vera immigrated to Canada from Hungary. They married in

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

, Canada, in 1959. Bakonyi switched his career to real estate, and began to train solely in fencing. As of 1968, he worked as a finance manager in the real estate division of Canada Permanent Trust Company. He and his family lived in Vancouver. His sons Ron Bakonyi and David Bakonyi fenced for Canada, in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Ron won silver medals in the

1981 Maccabiah Games The 11th Maccabiah Games brought 3,450 athletes to Israel from 35 nations. The Opening Ceremony was held on July 7, 1981, before a crowd of 53,000 and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin in Ramat Gan Stadium, with 3,500 Jewish athletes parading ...

and the

1985 Maccabiah Games The 12th Maccabiah Games brought over 4,000 athletes to Israel from 38 nations to compete in 28 sports. History The Maccabiah Games were first held in 1932. In 1961, they were declared a "Regional Sports Event" by, and under the auspices and super ...

, competed at the 1993 Maccabiah Games, and competed in the 1989 World Fencing Championships. David was a member of the Canadian National Fencing Team from 1993-95, and fenced in three

Fencing World Championships The World Fencing Championships is an annual competition in fencing organized by the Fédération Internationale d'Escrime (FIE; ''International Fencing Federation'' in English). Contestants may participate in foil, épée, and sabre events. Hi ...

, and won a gold medal in team epee at the

1989 Maccabiah Games The 13th Maccabiah Games brought 4,500 athletes to Israel from 45 nations. Jewish athletes from Hungary participated for the first time since World War II, Jewish athletes from Russia had been permitted, by their country, to play for the first ti ...

and a silver medal at the

1997 Maccabiah Games The 15th Maccabiah Games are remembered for being marred by a Maccabiah bridge collapse, bridge collapse that killed several participants. The Maccabiah had more than 5,000 athletes from 33 countries competing in 36 sports. New sports for the Game ...

in Israel."1997 Maccabiah Games Team Canada Delegation"
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Fencing career

Bakonyi was a six-time Canadian national fencing champion, and an 18-time

fencing champion. Bakonyi earned a

bronze medal A bronze medal in sports and other similar areas involving competition is a medal made of bronze awarded to the third-place finisher of contests or competitions such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, etc. The outright winner receive ...

for Canada in team

at the

1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games The 1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games were held in Perth, Australia, from 22 November to 1 December 1962. Athletic events were held at Perry Lakes Stadium in the suburb of Floreat and swimming events at Beatty Park in North Perth. The ...

(now known as the

) in Australia, a

silver medal A silver medal in sports and other similar areas involving competition is a medal made of, or plated with, silver awarded to the second-place finisher, or runner-up, of contests or competitions such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, etc ...

in team épée at the

1966 British Empire and Commonwealth Games The 1966 British Empire and Commonwealth Games were held in Kingston, Jamaica, from 4 to 13 August 1966. This was the first time that the Games had been held outside the so-called White Dominions. They were followed by the 1966 Commonwealth P ...

in Jamaica, and a bronze medal in team épée at the

1970 British Commonwealth Games The 1970 British Commonwealth Games (Scottish Gaelic: Geamannan a 'Cho-fhlaitheis Bhreatainn 1970) were held in Edinburgh, Scotland, from 16 to 25 July 1970. This was the first time the name British Commonwealth Games was adopted, the first tim ...

in Scotland. He also fenced for Canada at the

1963 Pan American Games The 1963 Pan American Games were held from April 20 to May 5, 1963, in São Paulo, Brazil. Host city selection For the first time, two cities submitted bids to host the 1963 Pan American Games that were recognized by the Pan American Sports O ...

São Paulo São Paulo (, ; Portuguese for 'Saint Paul') is the most populous city in Brazil, and is the capital of the state of São Paulo, the most populous and wealthiest Brazilian state, located in the country's Southeast Region. Listed by the GaWC a ...

, Brazil, and the

1967 Pan American Games The 1967 Pan American Games were held in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, from July 23 to August 6, 1967. Winnipeg was chosen as host of the Pan American Games on its second try. It first bid for the 1963 Games at the 1959 PASO meeting in Chicago ...

in Winnipeg, Canada. He competed at 35 years of age at the

in Mexico City for Canada in the individual foil, team foil (coming in 11th), individual épée (coming in 17th), and team épée (coming in 11th) events. Bakonyi won silver medals at the

1961 Maccabiah Games The 6th Maccabiah Games were held in Tel Aviv, Israel in 1961, with 1,100 athletes from 27 countries competing in 18 sports. The Games were officially opened in an Opening Ceremony on August 29, 1961, in Ramat Gan Stadium by Israeli President Yit ...

1965 Maccabiah Games The 7th Maccabiah Games in 1965 saw 1,500 athletes from 29 different countries compete in 21 sports. It was the first Maccabiah Games for Iran, Jamaica, Peru, and Venezuela. The United States delegation won the most gold medals, followed by Israel, ...

, 1969 Maccabiah Games, and at 64 years of age at the

in Israel, and competed in the 1973 Maccabiah Games. Bakonyi died suddenly of a stroke in 1997, at 64 years of age. The annual Peter Bakonyi Men’s Épée World Cup (formerly, Challenge Peter Bakonyi) in

Richmond, British Columbia Richmond is a coastal city in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia, Canada. It occupies almost the entirety of Lulu Island (excluding Queensborough), between the two estuarine distributaries of the Fraser River. Encompassing the ad ...

, Canada is named in his honor. In 2020, Bas Verwijlen of the Netherlands won the gold medal.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bakonyi, Peter 1933 births 1997 deaths 20th-century Canadian people Canadian male épée fencers Canadian male foil fencers Commonwealth Games medallists in fencing Commonwealth Games silver medallists for Canada Commonwealth Games bronze medallists for Canada Competitors at the 1961 Maccabiah Games Competitors at the 1965 Maccabiah Games Competitors at the 1969 Maccabiah Games Competitors at the 1973 Maccabiah Games Competitors at the 1997 Maccabiah Games Eötvös Loránd University alumni Fencers at the 1968 Summer Olympics Fencers at the 1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games Fencers at the 1966 British Empire and Commonwealth Games Fencers at the 1970 British Commonwealth Games Fencers at the 1963 Pan American Games Fencers at the 1967 Pan American Games Fencers from Budapest Hungarian emigrants to Canada Hungarian male épée fencers Hungarian male foil fencers Jewish Canadian sportspeople Jewish male foil fencers Jewish male épée fencers Maccabiah Games medalists in fencing Maccabiah Games silver medalists for Canada Olympic fencers of Canada Sportspeople from Vancouver Medallists at the 1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games Medallists at the 1966 British Empire and Commonwealth Games Medallists at the 1970 British Commonwealth Games

Early life

Fencing career

See also

References