Ferenc Pataki

Thanks to a visit to the circus Ferenc Pataki fell in love with gymnastics at the age of twelve. He was so impressed by the movements of the artists - the somersaults, the dizzying jumps - that he started trying the exercises he later perfected at home. From 1935, he was a member of the VII. district Levente Association, from 1945 the Munkás Testedző Egyesület (MTE), and from 1950 to 1956 the Budapesti Vörös Meteor. From 1937 he was a member of the Hungarian gymnastics team for eighteen years. He won his first national championship title in 1939, which was followed by 35 more.

Unfortunately, the Second World War interrupted his career, but at the 1948 London Olympics he won Olympic gold on the floor, and won bronze medals in horse jumping and the team competition. Four years later in Helsinki, Pataki also participated in the Olympics, but he was already past the peak of his career and missed out on a medal. As the defending champion, he finished 14th in the floor, and could only finish 19th in the vault. In 1953 at the age of thirty-six he made his last appearance at the Hungarian championship, where he won three gold medals.

After his retirement Pataki was finally able to live on what he owed his gymnastics success to: acrobatics. He traveled the world with his wife and they amazed foreign audiences with their unique production. Upon returning home he taught at the State Artist Training Institute and launched many young talents on the field. In 2014 he was posthumously inducted as a member of the Hall of Fame of the Hungarian Gymnastics.