Laszlo Antal

As a medical student in the Southern Hungarian town of Pécs Laszlo Antal was an active participant in the events of the 1956 Hungarian Revoulution. After the Soviet invasion he was forced to hide in a friend’s wine cellar for several weeks before escaping on foot across the Austria border. On arrival in Jennersdorf he joined a group of Hungarian miners who were recruited by Britain’s National Coal Board and he worked for a brief time in the Yorkshire coalfield. He was then offered a chance to study medicine at Oxford University and it was during his time there that he resumed his interest in shooting.

After qualifying as a doctor he settled in Liverpool, joined the local Mossley Hill club and, when he gained British nationality, became a regular member of the national pistol shooting team. Although he won numerous national titles his only medal on the international stage came in 1974 when he won the bronze in the free pistol at the British Commonwealth Games in Christchurch. The 1976 Games at Montréal would be his only competitive appearance at Olympic level though he went to the 1988 Games as the medical officer to the British marksmen and fulfilled the same role at World and European Championships. In addition he served as Britain’s representative on the Olympic Medical Committee and was Vice President of the National Small-bore Rifle Association.

Antal also wrote a series of well regarded textbooks of pistol shooting including one co-authored with the Swedish champion Ragnar Skanaker.