Imre Kaffka

Imre Kaffka grew up on a large estate next to the Drava river in Hungary, building a raft for himself to play on at a young age. After the war Kaffka’s father died and the estate was taken away, with the family forced to relocate to Pécs. The upheaval led to his expulsion from multiple schools, before he finally settled in Budapest, eventually graduating from the Rákóczi Ferenc High School. In 1948 Kaffka joined the Vörös Meteor sports club, where he took up rowing. During his 11 years with the club he became a two-time national champion in both the coxless fours and the eight.

From 1952 to 1956 Kaffka represented the Hungarian national rowing team. In his first year with the team, he was selected to row in the coxless fours at the Helsinki Olympics, with the team being eliminated in the repêchage round. He had better success four years later when he won bronze in the eight at the 1956 European Championships in Beld, Yugoslavia. A few years later Kaffka competed at an event in Grünau, Berlin; however, he tried to defect, with his passport being confiscated when he returned home to Hungary. Now unable to compete abroad he gave up on rowing, instead turning to sailing, where he competed on Lake Balaton in western Hungary.

After his sporting career Kaffka worked for the Ministry of Internal Trade, then the Directorate General of Iron and Technology, before eventually joining the Ministry of Finance. At the latter he took a lead role in the introduction of computer systems in the department, providing training to colleagues across the country. Kaffka worked in the field of taxation throughout his life, until his retirement in 1997.