Pál Schmitt facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Pál Schmitt
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Schmitt in 2011
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| 4th President of Hungary | |
| In office 6 August 2010 – 2 April 2012 |
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| Prime Minister | Viktor Orbán |
| Preceded by | László Sólyom |
| Succeeded by | János Áder |
| Speaker of the National Assembly | |
| In office 14 May 2010 – 5 August 2010 |
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| Preceded by | Béla Katona |
| Succeeded by | László Kövér |
| Vice-President of the European Parliament | |
| In office 14 July 2009 – 13 May 2010 |
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| President | Jerzy Buzek |
| Preceded by | Manuel António dos Santos |
| Succeeded by | László Tőkés |
| Member of the National Assembly | |
| In office 14 May 2010 – 5 August 2010 |
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| Member of the European Parliament for Hungary |
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| In office 14 July 2009 – 13 May 2010 |
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| Personal details | |
| Born | 13 May 1942 Budapest, Kingdom of Hungary |
| Political party | Fidesz (2003–present) |
| Spouse |
Katalin Makray
(m. 1966) |
| Children | 3, including Petra |
| Signature |  |
| Olympic medal record | ||
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| Men's fencing | ||
Representing  Hungary |
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| Gold | 1968 Mexico City | Team Épée |
| Gold | 1972 Munich | Team Épée |
Pál Schmitt (born 13 May 1942) is a Hungarian fencer and politician. He was the President of Hungary from 2010 until 2012. He resigned after a problem with his university paper.
Before becoming president, Schmitt was a very good fencer. He won two gold medals at the Summer Olympics. Later, he worked as an ambassador in the 1990s. He was also a Vice-President of the European Parliament from 2009 to 2010. In 2010, he became the Speaker of the National Assembly of Hungary for a short time. Then, he was elected President of Hungary. He officially became president on 6 August 2010. On 2 April 2012, he announced he was stepping down as president. This happened because of a controversy about his university paper from 1992.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Pál Schmitt was born in Budapest on 13 May 1942. He came from a middle-class family. He finished high school in 1960. Later, he studied domestic trade at Karl Marx University of Economics. He finished his studies there in 1965.
Olympic Fencing Career
Schmitt started fencing in 1955. He became a very successful fencer. He won two Hungarian Championship titles by himself. He was part of the Hungarian National Fencing Team 130 times. This was between 1965 and 1977.
He won gold medals in team épée fencing at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics. He also won another gold medal at the 1972 Munich Olympics. He won team and individual World Championships in fencing too. He also earned several second and third-place finishes. His active fencing career ended in 1977.
After his fencing career, he worked with the International Olympic Committee (IOC). He was the Chief of Protocol for the IOC. He also led the World Olympians Association from 1999 to 2007.
Political Journey
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From 1983 to 1989, Schmitt was the general secretary of the Hungarian Olympic Committee. He also worked as an under-secretary of sports. This was from 1981 to 1990. In 1989, he became president of the Hungarian Olympic Committee. This happened after communism ended in Hungary.
Later, he became a diplomat. He served as Hungary's ambassador to Spain from 1993 to 1997. He was also ambassador to Switzerland from 1999 to 2002. While in Spain, he also worked for Andorra starting in 1995.
In 2002, he tried to become the mayor of Budapest. He ran as an independent candidate. However, he did not win. In 2003, he became a deputy president of the Fidesz political party. He led the Fidesz party list in the 2009 European elections in Hungary. He was then elected as a Member of the European Parliament. He also became a Vice-President of the European Parliament on 14 July 2009. After the 2010 Hungarian election, he became the Speaker of the National Assembly of Hungary.
Becoming President of Hungary
In the 2010 Hungarian presidential election, Pál Schmitt was elected President of Hungary. The National Assembly of Hungary chose him. He started his term on 6 August 2010. He took over from László Sólyom.
Schmitt was supported by the Fidesz and Christian Democratic People's parties. He received 263 out of 322 votes. The other candidate, András Balogh, received 59 votes.
Schmitt had been a high-ranking member of Fidesz. He was also the speaker of the Hungarian Parliament. He said he wanted to work well with the government. He believed it was important for the president and prime minister to get along. He also wanted to be more involved in making new laws. This included helping to write a new constitution for the country. After becoming president, Schmitt left all his previous jobs.
A new constitution was written in 2010. It was finished by 11 April 2011. The Parliament approved it on 18 April. Schmitt signed this new constitution into law on 25 April. It officially started on 1 January 2012.
Schmitt said he wanted to be "a man of the people." He also wanted to support the government's work. He even said "we, the government" in an interview with Time magazine. This showed how much he supported the government. He also said that preserving the Hungarian language was a major goal. He wanted to make it a law.
By the end of 2010, Schmitt had signed almost 100 bills into law. He did not send any back to Parliament. He also did not ask the Constitutional Court to review any of them.
University Paper Controversy and Resignation
In 1992, Pál Schmitt completed his university paper for a PhD degree. This was at the University of Physical Education. In 2012, a Hungarian magazine said that Schmitt had copied parts of his paper. They said he copied from a Bulgarian sport expert's work. The magazine claimed Schmitt's paper was almost a direct translation of this other work.
Schmitt's office denied the accusation. They said Schmitt and the Bulgarian expert were friends. They said they had worked together using the same information. However, more copied parts were found. These included pages from a German sport sociologist.
Semmelweis University started an investigation. A committee looked into the matter. On 27 March, the committee said that parts of Schmitt's paper were indeed copied. They found "unusually large" sections that were word-for-word translations. The committee blamed the university for not checking the sources properly. But a minority report from one committee member said Schmitt's degree should be taken away. On 29 March 2012, the university decided to take away his degree.
On 2 April 2012, Schmitt announced he would resign as president. He said the debate about his paper had divided the country. He still said his conscience was clear. He also said he would complete another PhD program. Later, in May 2013, Schmitt officially gave up his doctorate. This was after another committee said his paper did not meet the requirements. In 2014, Schmitt said he would not pursue another PhD. Instead, he would write a book about sports and the environment.
After Being President
In October 2015, Schmitt became the chairman of a new group. This group was called the EU's Sports Diplomacy Advisory Group. It was set up to help with sports and international relations.
In January 2016, Schmitt was chosen to lead the committee for Budapest's bid to host the 2024 Summer Olympics and 2024 Summer Paralympics. This committee worked to promote Budapest as a host city. It included 23 members from sports, business, and public life. They worked together to guide the bidding process.
In June 2020, the Hungarian Olympic Committee re-elected Krisztián Kulcsár. Schmitt was also appointed to the executive body. He became a representative for the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
In January 2021, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Hungarian government said they would vaccinate Olympic athletes. This was for athletes who might qualify for the next Summer and Winter Olympic games. Schmitt said that athletes and coaches should get vaccinated quickly. This would help Hungarian athletes prepare for the Tokyo Olympic Games.
International Olympic Committee (IOC) Work
Schmitt became an official with the IOC in 1983. He was the Vice-Chairman of the IOC Athletes' Commission until 1988. He was also part of many other IOC committees. These committees worked on preparing for the Olympic Games. They also dealt with topics like the Olympic Movement and the Olympic Order. From 1991 to 1999, he was a member of the Executive Board. He was also Vice-President of the IOC from 1995 to 1999.
After he resigned as President of Hungary in 2012, the IOC removed him from his position as Chief of Protocol. However, he remained a member of the IOC.
In 2017, he attended several IOC events. He met with IOC President Thomas Bach. Schmitt also said he would run for a spot on the IOC Executive Board again. He was 75 years old at the time. In September 2017, the IOC elected new members. They also re-elected 16 members whose terms were ending. Pál Schmitt was one of those re-elected members.
In May 2018, Schmitt met with IOC President Bach again. This was during a visit to the IOC headquarters. He also joined President Bach at the World Wrestling Championships in Budapest in October 2018.
In 2023, he became an honorary member of the IOC. This means he is still connected to the IOC but in a special, non-voting role.
Images for kids
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Schmitt in 2011
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Pál Schmitt's signature
See also
In Spanish: Pál Schmitt para niños
