Wladár Sándor, the President of the Hungarian Swimming Federation, has spoken out about Milák Kristóf, saying that according to his coach, he still hasn’t completed the necessary work for elite sports. „It saddens me deeply to hear that eight months before the Olympics, he is still searching for direction and motivation, we don’t see him in training, we don’t know where he is,” said the federation’s president.
He added, „Hungarian fans crave success, as we saw in Tokyo. Milák Kristóf owes Hungary that much, and he should honor himself by doing the work. He has a talent that very few athletes possess in their lifetime, perhaps only Egerszegi Krisztina. He just needs to swim six to eight kilometers a day and he will surely stand on top of the podium in Paris. This is his opportunity to follow in the footsteps of Egerszegi and Darnyi, who are icons and role models to this day. He could be that for us. It would be a shame if we pass by him, look back, and say that we really messed this up, and he will regret it for the rest of his life with that God-given talent,” said Wladár Sándor.
Well.. Here and now, with all my love and respect, I declare that Milák Kristóf owes me nothing! I clearly laugh in distress when I hear the president of a federation say that „all he has to do is swim 6-8 kilometers a day,” and I worry about his sound mind.
I feel nothing but gratitude, appreciation, and joy towards Milák Kristóf because of his achievements. He is an Olympic champion, a three-time world champion, a six-time European champion and a three-time youth Olympic champion. Not to mention, he holds the world record in the 200-meter butterfly. Yes, Wladár Sándor was also an Olympic champion swimmer, but it can be stated quite concretely: Wladár Sándor does not represent the entirety of Hungary.
As someone who also does not represent Hungary, I simply speak up as an individual: if Kristóf retires, I will be grateful for everything he has achieved. If Kristóf competes in the Olympics, I will be grateful whether he finishes at two-hundredth place or first. If Milák withdraws from competing further due to the ranting of Wladár Sándor, I will still be grateful to him for his accomplishments, and I will hold the president of the federation responsible for the future decisions of the young swimmer.
Milák Kristóf is 23 years old. Life is ahead of him. And – although this cannot be said by one person alone – Hungary stands behind him.
