Sarolta Monspart (17 November 1944 – 24 April 2021) was a
Hungarian orienteering
Orienteering is a group of sports that require navigational skills using a map and compass to navigate from point to point in diverse and usually unfamiliar terrain whilst moving at speed. Participants are given a topographical map, usually a s ...
competitor. In 1972 she became the first non-Scandinavian female runner to win the
World Orienteering Championships.
[World Orienteering Championship, senior statistics 1966-2006](_blank)
She is considered to be the most successful orienteer in Hungary. During her active years she won 14 national orienteering championships and six
cross-country skiing
Cross-country skiing is a form of skiing where skiers rely on their own locomotion to move across snow-covered terrain, rather than using ski lifts or other forms of assistance. Cross-country skiing is widely practiced as a sport and recreation ...
championships. She was the first European woman to finish the
marathon
The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of , usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There are also wheelchair div ...
distance within 3 hours.
Her sport career was stopped because of a serious
encephalitis
Encephalitis is inflammation of the brain. The severity can be variable with symptoms including reduction or alteration in consciousness, headache, fever, confusion, a stiff neck, and vomiting. Complications may include seizures, hallucinations, ...
inflammation caused by a
tick. After recovering from the disease, she became an advocate for women to live a healthy life. According to
Tünde Szabó
Tünde Szabó (born May 31, 1974, in Nyíregyháza, Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg) is a Hungarian retired female swimmer and politician.
Aged eighteen she won a silver medal at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, one at the 1991 World Champi ...
, she was responsible for hundreds of thousands of Hungarian women participating in various sports. In 2003 she received a medal for lifetime merit from
Ferenc Mádl, president of Hungary.
Monspart died in 2021 after a long, serious illness.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Monspart, Sarolta
1944 births
2021 deaths
Hungarian orienteers
Female orienteers
Foot orienteers
World Orienteering Championships medalists
Sportspeople from Budapest