Sándor Garay

Sándor Garay suffered from tuberculosis and heart problems as a child and was made exempt from physical education and not drafted into the army. Garay started competing in athletics when he was 21 years old, first in the Budapesti Levente Association, then from 1943 in the colors of the MAC.

The Second World War interrupted his career, but after 1945 Garay started competing in athletics with Vasas. At the 1946 European Championship he finished fifth in the 1,500 metres, and won the 800, 1,500, and 5,000 metres titles at the Hungarian championships the same year. The following year he won the English Championship in the one-mile. He competed in two Olympics, finishing seventh in the 1,500 metres at the 1948 Games in London. He was a member of the team that set a world record in 4 x 1,500 metres in 1953. Garay was a 20-time national champion and was a member of the national team fourteen times.

After his competitive career he graduated as a teacher, first as a physical therapist and coach, and then in psychology. Garay coached at Vasas for twenty years, with his students winning more than 60 national championships. In addition, he was the president of the Hungarian Athletics Federation (MASz) from 1974-80, a member of the Hungarian NOC from 1974-88, and a member of the MASz board from 1976-80.

Personal Best: 1500 – 3:48.2 (1952).