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|
| Rita
KESZTHELYI |
| Sport |
Water Polo |
| NOC |
Hungary
|
| Gender | Women |
| Born | 10 Dec 1991
in Budapest, HUN |
| Height | 1.78 m |
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Further Personal Information |
Residence |
Budapest, HUN |
Sport Specific Information |
Club / Team |
UVSE : Budapest, HUN |
General Interest |
Awards and honours |
She was presented with the Top Scorer Award at the 2020 European Championships in Budapest, Hungary, after she scored 28 goals. (wp2020budapest.com, 26 Jan 2020)
She was named on the All-Star team at the world championships in 2015, 2017 and 2019. (fina.org, 28 Jul 2017; waterpoloworld.com, 07 Aug 2015)
She was voted Hungarian Female Player of the Year six times. (vlv.hu 20 Dec 2016; vizipolo.hu, 15 Dec 2015; waterpolo.hu, 10 Dec 2014; sport.hir24.hu, 26 Dec 2013; delmagyar.hu, 02 Jan 2012; jochapress.hu, 09 May 2019)
She was named on the All-Star team at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. (24.hu, 19 Aug 2016)
She was named Most Valuable Player [MVP] of the 2014/15 OB 1 league in Hungary. (waterpolo.hu, 23 May 2015)
She named on the All-Star team at the 2014 World Cup in Khanty-Mansiysk, Russian Federation. (FINA, 17 Aug 2014)
In 2012 she received the Silver Cross of Merit of Hungary [civil division]. (sport.hir24.hu, 17 Sep 2012)
She received the 2009 Ivan Szalay Award, given to the best junior player of the year in Hungary. (vlv.hu, 29 Apr 2009) |
Sport Specific Information |
Name of coach |
Marton Benczur [club], HUN; Attila Biro [national], HUN |
Handedness |
Right |
When and where did you begin this sport? |
She took up water polo at age 10. |
International Debut |
Year |
2009 |
Further Personal Information |
Occupation |
Athlete |
Languages |
English, Hungarian |
Higher education |
Marketing, Sports Management - Budapest Business School: Hungary |
International Debut |
Competing for |
Hungary |
General Interest |
Nicknames |
Ri (Facebook profile, 11 Jun 2015) |
Famous relatives |
Her father Tibor has represented Hungary in water polo, and competed at the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul. (SportsDeskOnline, 13 Aug 2018; waterpolo.hu, 30 Dec 2014) |
Sport Specific Information |
Why this sport? |
She followed her father into the sport. "My parents never said it was mandatory for my brother and I to be water polo players. Initially the only goal was not to sit idle at home after school, but to play sports. The number one consideration was to learn to swim well. Then during a training camp I was asked to play water polo. I went to swimming and water polo training at the same time, but then my parents reasoned with me of how many more options there was in water polo." |
General Interest |
Hero / Idol |
Hungarian water polo players Daniel Varga and Denes Varga. (bomalapitvany.hu, 21 Mar 2015) |
Sport Specific Information |
Preferred position / style / stance / technique |
Driver, Wing |
Further Personal Information |
Family |
Husband Peter Nagy |
General Interest |
Other information |
TRAINING WITH BOYS
From age 14 she began to regularly train with the boys team [U18] as the sport was still less popular with girls at the time. "When I started water polo there were far fewer girls playing the sport. Until I was 20, I regularly attended training sessions [with the boys], playing very often in their teams. I thank them a lot, because they were quickly accepted me. They never made me realise that I was 'just' a girl. They contributed greatly to my development." (origo.hu, 28 Dec 2020) |
Memorable sporting achievement |
Winning bronze at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. (origo.hu, 07 Aug 2021) |
Olympic Games |
| Rank |
Year |
Venue |
Event |
Result |
| 3 |
2021 |
Tokyo, JPN |
Team |
|
| 4 |
2016 |
Rio de Janeiro, BRA |
Team |
|
| 4 |
2012 |
London, ENG |
Team |
|
World Championship |
| Rank |
Year |
Venue |
Event |
Result |
| 2 |
2024 |
Doha, QAT |
Team |
|
| 6 |
2023 |
Fukuoka, JPN |
Team |
|
| 2 |
2022 |
Budapest, HUN |
Team |
|
| 4 |
2019 |
Gwangju, KOR |
Team |
|
| 5 |
2017 |
Budapest, HUN |
Team |
|
| 9 |
2015 |
Kazan, RUS |
Team |
|
| 3 |
2013 |
Barcelona, ESP |
Team |
|
| 9 |
2011 |
Shanghai, CHN |
Team |
|
| 7 |
2009 |
Rome, ITA |
Team |
|
World Cup |
| Rank |
Year |
Venue |
Event |
Result |
| 4 |
2023 |
Long Beach, CA, USA |
Team |
|
| 5 |
2014 |
Khanty-Mansiysk, RUS |
Team |
|
European Championship |
| Rank |
Year |
Venue |
Event |
Result |
| 5 |
2024 |
Eindhoven, NED |
Team |
|
| 3 |
2020 |
Budapest, HUN |
Team |
|
| 4 |
2018 |
Barcelona, ESP |
Team |
|
| 1 |
2016 |
Belgrade, SRB |
Team |
|
| 3 |
2014 |
Budapest, HUN |
Team |
|
| 3 |
2012 |
Eindhoven, NED |
Team |
|
| 5 |
2010 |
Zagreb, CRO |
Team |
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