Switzerland was still the first to announce on March 16 that they would boycott the Hungarian World Aquatics Championships if Russian and Belarusian athletes were allowed to participate.Continue reading
After five years, Hungary will once again host the World Aquatics Championships from June 18 to July 3. According to the latest information, 191 countries have registered to participate in the competition. In swimming, a total of 31 Hungarian athletes will compete. The captain and the federation expect three or four medals in swimming, at least one of them gold.
This article was originally published on our sister-site, Ungarn Heute.
Kristóf Milák, Katinka Hosszú, Szebasztian Szabó, Tamás Kenderesi, and open water swimmer Kristóf Rasovszky are the athletes who can win a medal in front of the home crowd.
22-year-old Kristóf Milák is the biggest favorite in the 200m butterfly in Budapest. He is an Olympic gold medalist and world record holder in the 200m butterfly, but he can also win a medal in the 100m butterfly, as he did at the Tokyo Olympics.
Former Olympic bronze medalist Tamás Kenderesi also has a good chance of winning a medal in the 200m butterfly, as does European 50m butterfly champion Szebasztián Szabó, who will take part in the 4×100m freestyle relay in addition to his individual races.
Three-time Olympic champion Katinka Hosszú will compete in Budapest in both the 200m butterfly and 200m and 400m medleys. Hosszú is the queen of the individual medley, so her most important appearance will be on the last day in the 400m medley final.
Boglárka Kapás, former Olympic bronze medalist and world champion, will compete in Budapest only in the 200m butterfly after a long hip injury, and her goal now is to qualify for the final.
The open water swimming competitions will be held on Lake Lupa from June 26 to 30. The most successful open water swimmer in the Hungarian team is the Olympic silver medalist Kristóf Rasovszky, who will be able to compete for medals in 5 and 10 km.
Sándor Wladár, president of the Hungarian Swimming Association and chairman of the organizing committee, said that Hungary is setting an example by organizing such a major world event in just over 90 days. He added that although the number of spectators will be relatively limited this time, he is confident that the miracle of the strength and support of the public from five years ago, which can bring Hungarian competitors to the top of the rankings, can be repeated in front of a full house.
Featured image: Kristóf Milák in the men’s 200m butterfly final at the Debrecen Sportuszoda on April 21, 2022. Photo by Anikó Kovács/MTI
