Olga Szabó-Orbán Explained

Olga Szabó-Orbán
Birth Date:9 October 1938
Birth Place:Cluj, Romania
Death Date:[1]
Death Place:Bârzava, Romania
Weapon:Foil
Hand:right-handed
Natlcoach:Andrei Vâlcea
Club:CSA Steaua
Show-Medals:yes

Olga Szabó-Orbán (Orbán, 9 October 1938 – 5 January 2022) was a Romanian foil fencer, world champion in 1962, and team world champion in 1969. A five-time Olympian, she won an individual silver medal in 1956 and team bronze medals in 1968 and 1972.[2] [3] [4]

Career

Orbán was born into a Hungarian minority in Transylvania. She took up fencing at the relatively late age of 14 after her teacher Ecaterina Bartoș led the whole class to the fencing hall, where her husband Tibor was a coach.[5] Her talent became rapidly apparent and she was placed under the responsibility of coach Ludovic Ozoray at club Progresul Cluj. She won in 1954 her first national championship in the junior category, followed in 1955 by a title in the senior category.

At the 1956 Olympics she earned a silver medal, the first Olympic medal in fencing for Romania. The gold medal went to Great Britain's Gillian Sheen, whom Orbán had beaten twice during the event. In 1961 Orbán won with Maria Vicol, Ana Pascu and Ecaterina Orb-Lazăr Romania's first medal at the World Fencing Championships with a team bronze medal, followed in 1962 by an individual gold medal. After retiring from competitions Orbán became a fencing coach at her club CSA Steaua. In 1990 she moved to Hungary with her husband, Olympic water polo player Alexandru Szabó, and later worked at the Budapest Honvéd sport club.[6]

Personal life and death

Olga Szabó-Orbán died in January 2022, at the age of 83.[7]

Notes and References

  1. http://szabadsag.ro/-/bucsu-a-kolozsvari-vivas-nagyasszonyatol-szabo-orban-olgatol Búcsú a kolozsvári vívás nagyasszonyától, Szabó-Orbán Olgától
  2. Web site: Olympics Statistics: Olga Orban-Szabo . 19 October 2010 . databaseolympics.com . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20121018094622/http://www.databaseolympics.com/players/playerpage.htm?ilkid=SZABOOLG01 . 18 October 2012 .
  3. Web site: Olga Orban-Szabo Olympic Results . https://web.archive.org/web/20200417230430/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/or/olga-orban-szabo-1.html . dead . 17 April 2020 . 19 October 2010 . sports-reference.com.
  4. http://www.3szek.ro/load/cikk/66482/egyetemes_magyar_sport_%E2%80%93_lapozgato_53 Egyetemes magyar sport – Lapozgató (53.) – 2013. december 30., hétfő – Háromszék, független napilap Sepsiszentgyörgy
  5. Web site: Olga Szabo Orban: Marele meu regret este faptul că nu am câștigat o medalie de aur la Jocurile Olimpice!. Romanian Fencing Federation. Daniel Remeș. 16 September 2014. ro.
  6. http://www.cosr.ro/sportiv/olga-orban Olga Orban
  7. https://ziare.com/olga-orban-szabo/deces-medaliata-olimpica-scrima-1718662 A murit prima medaliată olimpică şi prima campioană mondială a scrimei româneşti