Hungarian Wheelchair Fencers Return from Brazil with Medals

Fact

At fourteen Anna Nádasdy was considered one of the biggest promises of her age group in women’s foil. However Anna’s life took a dramatic turn, when she started suffering from leukemia. Anna’s treatment was successful and she recovered from her illness, but as a side effect of the treatments, the condition of her left leg deteriorated, making her unfit for fencing. Nevertheless Anna wanted to fence, and the Hungarian medical committee found her suitable for the wheelchair athlete classification, says the official page of the Hungarian Fencing Federation.

Zsuzsanna Krajnyák was born in Budapest on December 23, 1978 with a developmental disorder. She initially tried several sports, but fell in love with fencing. The highlights of her career are undoubtedly her participation in the Paralympics. She competed in a total of six games, winning 12 medals: five silver and seven bronze. This made her the most successful athlete of the Hungarian Paralympic Team of all time, says her profile on the Hajrá Magyarok website.

In recent decades, Hungarian para-athletes have achieved many great results, winning 172 Paralympic medals since 1972, including 15 in Paris last year.