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Aladar Gerevich

(Chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2006-08-27 14:21
Hungarian fencer Aladar Gerevich is famous for having six straight saber successes.

Aladar Gerevich He is the only athlete in any sport to win the same Olympic event six times.

Even more amazing, he is also the only athlete to earn gold medals in six different Olympics.

A specialist in saber fencing, Gerevich's record probably would have been even more extraordinary if his career had not been interrupted when World War II forced the cancellation of two Olympics.

Gerevich made his first Olympic appearance at the 1932 Los Angeles Games when he was 22-years-old, earning his first gold medal as a member of Hungary's saber team.

At the 1936 Berlin Games, Gerevich scored 17 wins against only two losses to lead the Hungarians to victory in the team saber event. He then earned a bronze medal in the individual saber. He also competed in the team foil event, placing seventh.

After the war, Gerevich returned to the 1948 Olympics stronger than ever. Not only did he win another gold medal in the team saber and place fifth in the team foil, he earned the gold medal in the individual saber with a record of 19 wins and only one loss.

At the 1952 Helsinki Games, Gerevich won a complete set of medals: bronze in team foil, gold in team saber and silver in individual saber.

In 1956, Gerevich placed fifth in the individual saber and again helped extend the Hungarian winning streak in the team saber. He made his final Olympic appearance at the 1960 Rome Games - at the age of 50 - earning yet another gold medal in the team saber.

Gerevich's wife, Erna Bogen, his son, Pal Gerevich, and his father-in-law, Albert Bogen, were also Olympic medalists.