Sarolta Monspart

Summary

Sarolta Monspart (17 November 1944 – 24 April 2021) was a Hungarian orienteering competitor. In 1972 she became the first non-Scandinavian female runner to win the World Orienteering Championships.[1]

Sarolta Monspart

Monspart in 1978
Medal record
Women's orienteering
Representing  Hungary
World Championships
Gold medal – first place 1972 Jičín Individual
Silver medal – second place 1970 Eisenach Relay
Bronze medal – third place 1976 Aviemore Relay

She is considered to be the most successful orienteer in Hungary. During her active years she won 14 national orienteering championships and six cross-country skiing championships. She was the first European woman to finish the marathon distance within 3 hours.

Her sport career was stopped because of a serious encephalitis inflammation caused by a tick. After recovering from the disease, she became an advocate for women to live a healthy life. According to Tünde Szabó, she was responsible for hundreds of thousands of Hungarian women participating in various sports.[2] In 2003 she received a medal for lifetime merit from Ferenc Mádl, president of Hungary.

Monspart died in 2021 after a long, serious illness.[3]

References edit

  1. ^ World Orienteering Championship, senior statistics 1966-2006 Archived 2011-08-23 at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ "Athlete of Nation Sarolta Monspart Dies". 24 April 2021.
  3. ^ "Athlete of Nation Sarolta Monspart Dies". 24 April 2021.