Laszlo Bellak
Laszlo " Laci " Bellak ( born February 11, 1911 in Budapest, † September 20, 2006 in Miami, Florida) was a Hungarian and American table tennis player. He won the late 1920s and in the 1930s at the World Championships a total of seven gold medals.
Hungary
As a 13 -year-old Bellak began with the table tennis sport. Simultaneously with Miklós Szabados and his friend Victor Barna, he increased his skill level. In professional circles, this trio was also known as the Three Musketeers. With the club Nemzeti Sport Club in 1928, he won the Hungarian championship team.
In 1928 he was nominated for the World Cup in Stockholm. Here he reached the final, which he lost to his compatriot Zoltán Mechlovits in singles. With Sándor Glancz he came in a double semi-finals, with the Hungarian team he won gold. Bellak took from 1928 to 1938 at ten world championships. He was once in the Mixed and six times with the team world champion. Silver he won three times in singles, three in doubles, once in the Mixed and twice with the team of Hungary.
Bellak garnished his game like with public appeal shows. Critics felt that this prevented even greater success. In a team with Miklos Szabados and Victor Barna, often with Sándor Glancz, he organized show tournaments around the world to help the table tennis sport more popular.
USA
1938 moved Bellak because of his Jewish origin in the United States. Here he had won in 1937 and 1938, the open championships in singles. In the following years he won an additional 23 titles in American championships.
During the Second World War he joined as a volunteer for five years of the U.S. Army, which mainly put him in India and Burma.
International success he still scored at Senior World Championships. Here he won two gold medals in doubles, namely in 1982 with Christian Juhl (Denmark) in the age group Ü70 and 1992 with Jenkins (England ) in the class Ü80.
Other activities
In 1950 he founded the company Bellak Color Corporation, who worked in the field of lithography. In 1979 he left this company to participate increasingly in seniors tournaments. In 1990 he wrote the book Table Tennis -How A New Sport Was Born - The History of the Hungarian Team Winning 73 Gold Medals.
Awards
Bellak was taken up by several organizations in the respective Hall of Fame:
Achievements
- World Championships 1928 in Stockholm Two single, double with Sándor Glancz semi-final victory with the team
- Double with Sándor Glancz second place, mixed with Magda Gál Place 2
- Two single, double with Sándor Glancz semi-final victory with the team
- Mixed with Marta Komaromi (Hungary ) semi-finals, victory with the team
- Double with Sándor Glancz second place, second place team
- Single number two, mixed with Kathleen Berry ( England) semifinal, victory with the team
- Double with István Kelen semi-final, victory with the team
- Third place with the team
- Second place with the team
- Double second place with Victor Barna, victory in the Mixed with Wendy Woodhead (England), victory with the team
- Ü80: double with Jenkins (England)
- Victory with Nemzeti Sport Club
Results from the ITTF database