Dezső Lemhényi began his career as a swimmer. In 1935 he swam for the first time in Hungary in the butterfly stroke. From 1935 he played for the BSE, from 1943 for the UTE, from 1953 to 1959 for the Budapest Spartacus, and in 1951 he was the founding coach and player of the Budapest Honvéd. He was a member of the teams that won the national championship in 1940, 1945, 1946, 1948, 1951 and 1952. Between 1948 and 1952 he was a twenty-time national team player. In 1948 he was a member of the team that won the silver medal at the London Olympics before winning gold four years later at the Helsinki Olympics.
From 1936 to 1953 Lemhényi worked as the chief advisor of the financial department of the 6th district municipality in Budapest and as a chief tax officer.
Between 1953 and 1957 Lemhényi was the head coach of Budapesti Spartacus before becoming the head coach of the Hungarian national team from 1957 to 1960. In 1954 and 1958 his team won the European Championship, and in 1960 his team won bronze at the Roma Olympics. Between 1961 and 1969 he was a national team captain and club coach in France. From 1969 he was the head coach of the Central Sports School (KSI) before coaching in Canada from 1973 to 1977. From 1990 he again coached overseas including in Canada, Israel, Sweden, France (Strasbourg), Belgium, and Luxembourg.
From 1990 Lemhényi was the President of the Hungarian Olympic Club, from 1993 to 2003 he served as the President of the Hungarian Olympic Champions Club, and he was a member of the council of the Hungarian Olympic Academy in 1995. Between 1953 and 1960 he was a water polo referee and the President of the referees’ board, and was a member of the board of the Hungarian Swimming Association and then of the Hungarian Water Polo Association.
Hungary