Great Olympians

Biographies - KOV

Đani Kovač

B. 1939-02-13, Fremantle, Australia, lived in Zagreb, Croatia, represented Yugoslavia
Athletics - Track & Field

	1960	1964	HP
Men's 400 metres Hurdles		R1:dnf	0.00024
Men's 4x400 metres Relay	SF:6th		13
			13.00024

Jože Kovač

B. 1961-09-23, Ljubljana, Slovenia, represented Yugoslavia
Ice Hockey

	1984	HP
Men's Team	R1:6th	26
		26

Aleksander "Aleksa" Kovačević

B. 1910-02-01, Grabovica, Croatia, then part of Hungary, represented Yugoslavia; D. 1979-08-22
Athletics - Track and Field

	1936	HP
Men's Shot Put	11th	96
		96

Dušan Kovačević

B. 1960-04-08, from Beograd, Serbia, represented Yugoslavia
Rowing

	1980	HP
Men's Coxed Fours	10th	75
		75

Predrag Kovačević

represented Yugoslavia
Art Competitions

	1948	HP
Architecture - Unknown Event	AC	0.880
		0.880

Radomir Kovačević

B. 1954-03-20, Drvar, Bosnia & Herzegovina, represented Yugoslavia; D. 2006-06-14
Judo (1 bronze)

	1976	1980	1984	HP
Men's Heavyweight (+93 kg)	Rep2			2930
Men's Heavyweight (+95 kg)		bronze	fifth	2930
Men's Open Class	R2			31.12
				2961.12

Ivan Kovachev

B. 1943-05-18, Sofia, Bulgaria; D. 2012-02
Aquatics - Water Polo

	1972	HP
Men's Team	11th	32
		32

Nikola Dimitrov Kovachev

B. 1934-06-04, Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria; D. 2009-11-26
Football (1 bronze)

	1956	1960	HP
Men's Team	bronze	QF	1567
			1567

Petar (Nikolov?) Kovachev

B. 1922-07-10, represented Bulgaria
Cross-Country Skiing

	1952	HP
Men's 18 km	60th	0.00000001
Men's 4x10 km Relay	dnf	6.4
		6.40000001

Dragan Kovačić

B. 1939-10-05, Prelošćica, Croatia, represented Yugoslavia
Basketball

	1964	HP
Men's Team	7th	200
		200

Zdravko-Ćiro Kovačić

B. 1925-07-06, Šibenik, Croatia, represented Yugoslavia; D. 2015-04-01
Aquatics - Water Polo (2 silver)

	1948	1952	1956	HP
Men's Team	R2:3rd	silver	silver	4045.5
				4045.5

Hungary
Swimming (1 gold, 1 bronze)

1996 2000 2004 HP

100 m Breast stroke 7th fifth 10th 1500

200 m Breast stroke bronze gold fifth 12450

200 m Individual Medley - - fourth 1600

4 x 100 m Medley Relay - 11th 13th 22.4

15572.4

	1996	2000	2004	HP
100 m Breast stroke	7th	fifth	10th	1500
200 m Breast stroke	bronze	gold	fifth	12450
200 m Individual Medley	-	-	fourth	1600
4 x 100 m Medley Relay	-	11th	13th	22.4
				15572.4

Andrei Kovacs

B. 1921-11-23, Baia Mare, Romania
Alpine Skiing

	1952	HP
Men's Slalom	R1:77th	0.000000000004
		0.000000000004

Kovács-Tóth Annamária

B. 1945-09-14, Budapest, Hungary
Athletics (1 bronze)

	1968	HP
Women's Pentathlon	bronze	3840
Women's 4x100 m Relay	R1:5th	32.5
		3872.5

Kovács Antal

B. 1972-05-28, Paks, Hungary
Judo (1 gold)

	1992	1996	2000	2004	HP
Men's Half Heavyweight (-95 kg)	gold				10851.965
Men's Half Heavyweight (-100 kg)		fifth	R2	R1	10851.965
					10851.965

Kovács Attila

B. 1939-12-30, Budapest, Hungary; D. 2010-11-10
Fencing

	1964	HP
Men's Sabre, Individual	ElR1	65.94
Men's Sabre, Team	fifth	250
		315.94

Kovács Csaba

B. 1932-12-08, Budapest, Hungary; D. 2002-01-27
Rowing

	1952	1956	1960	HP
Men's Coxless Fours		Rep:2nd		664.2
Men's Coxed Fours			sixth
Men's Eights	2Rep:2nd
				664.2

Kovács Dezső

B. 1903-02-25, Debrecen, Hungary; D. 1992-07-22
Polo

	1936	HP
Men's Team	fourth	800
		800

Kovács Edit (1)

B. 1951-07-15, Budapest, Hungary
Aquatics - Swimming

	1968	1972	HP
Women's 100 metres Freestyle	SF:20th	R1:36th	1.00064
Women's 4x100 m Freestyle Relay	fifth	fourth	650
Women's 4x100 m Medley Relay	8th		64
			715.00064

Kovács Edit (2)

B. 1954-06-09, Veszprém, Hungary
Fencing (3 bronze)

	1976	1980	1984	1988	HP
Women's Foil, Individual				16th	8
Women's Foil, Team	bronze	bronze		bronze	2112
					2120

Ernst Kovács

Olympic Competitor nr 6218

1912-07-09-13:35 - Waterpolo - semifinal, match one - won (Q)
1912-07-13-19:50 - Waterpolo - final - lost (Qc)
1912-07-14-20:00 - Waterpolo - consolation round three A - lost (Qc)
1912-07-15-13:00 - Waterpolo - consolation round three B - lost (800)

As the losing finalist, Austria was allowed to play both Sweden and Belgium for a medal, but lost both those matches.

Kovács Ferenc

B. 1934-01-07, Budapest, Hungary; D. 2018-05-30
Football (1 bronze)

	1960	HP
Men's Team	bronze	1280
		1280

Kovács Gyula

B. 1917-08-28, Homokmégy, Hungary; D. 1986-10-11
Greco-Roman Wrestling

	1948	1952	1956	HP
Men's Light−Heavyweight (-87 kg)	fourth	fourth	9th	5040
				5040

Kovács Ilona

B. 1960-07-03, Budapest, Hungary
Basketball

	1980	HP
Women's Team	fourth	800
		800

Kovács Imre

B. 1921-11-26, Budapest, Hungary; D. 1996-03-09
Football (1 gold)

	1952	HP
Men's Team	(gold)	26.38
		26.38

Iosif Kovacs

B. 1921-11-13, Timișoara, Romania; D. 2003
Football

	1952	HP
Men's Team	QR	0.595
		0.595

Kovács István (1)

B. 1950-06-27, Nádudvar, Hungary
Freestyle Wrestling (1 bronze)

	1972	1976	1980	HP
Men's Middleweight (-82 kg)	13th	sixth	bronze	4838.4
				4838.4

Kovács István (2)

B. 1970-08-17, Budapest, Hungary
Boxing (1 gold, 1 bronze)

	1992	1996	HP
Flyweight (-50.8 kg)	bronze		12720
Bantamweight (-53.5 kg)		gold	12720
			12720

Joseph Mathias "Joe" Kovacs

B. 1989-06-28, Bethlehem, Penn., USA
Track & Field Athletics (2 silver)

	2016	2021	HP
Men's Shot Put	silver	silver	12000
			12000

The podium for the shot put in 2021 was entirely the same as in 2016, including bronze medalist Tom Walsh of New Zealand.

Kovács József (1)

B. 1911-03-14, Budapest, Hungary; D. 1990-08-18
Athletics - Track and Field

	1936	HP
Men's 400 metres Hurdles	SF:5th	195
Men's 4x100 metres Relay	R1:3rd	68
Men's 4x400 metres Relay	sixth	160
		423

Kovács József (2)

B. 1926-03-03, Nyíregyháza, Hungary; D. 1987-03-29
Athletics - Track & Field (1 silver)

	1952	1956	1960	HP
Men's 5000 metres	R1:14th			0.000068
Men's 10000 metres		silver	15th	4010
				4010.000068

Kovács József (3)

B. 1929, Csongrád, Hungary; D. 1991
Freestyle Wrestling & Greco-Roman Wrestling

	1952	HP
FR Men's Heavyweight (+87 kg)	9th	240
GR Men's Heavyweight (+87 kg)	9th	240
		480

Kovács József (4)

B. 1949-04-08, Balatonielle, Hungary
Football (1 silver)

	1972	HP
Men's Team	(silver)	164
		164

Kovács Judit

B. 1956-01-07, Budapest, Hungary
Archery

	1980	1984	1988	1992	1996	HP
Women's Individual	12th			16th	45th	68.0000125
Women's Team				14th		4
						72.0000125

Kovács Kálmán

B. 1911-03-03, Szeged, Hungary
Football

	1936	HP
Men's Team	R1	26.38
		26.38

Kovács Katalin

B. 1976-02-29, Budapest, Hungary
Sprint Canoeing (3 gold, 5 silver)

2000 2004 2008 2012 HP

K1 500 m fourth 1600

K2 500 m silver gold gold silver 23400

K4 500 m silver silver silver gold 11500

36500

	2000	2004	2008	2012	HP
K1 500 m			fourth		1600
K2 500 m	silver	gold	gold	silver	23400
K4 500 m	silver	silver	silver	gold	11500
					36500

Kovács Lajos

B. 1936-02-22, Székesfehérvá, Hungary; D. 1997-11-08
Athletics - Track & Field

	1960	HP
Men's 800 metres	QF:6th	0.364
Men's 1500 metres	R1:5th	17.2
		17.564

László "Leslie" Kovacs

B. 1925-12-08, represented Australia; D. 1968-11-24
Fencing

	1956	HP
Men's Sabre, Team	R1:4th	82
		82

Miklós Kovács = Mór Kóczán

Olympic Competitor nr 3748

1908-07-15-11:40? - Athletics (track & field) - Javelin Throw, freestyle, pool five - AC (8.528)
1908-07-16-10:20? - Athletics (track & field) - Discus Throw, freestyle, qualifying, pool two - AC (2.402)
1908-07-16-16:00? - Athletics (track & field) - Shot Put, qualifying, pool four - AC (28.64)
1908-07-18-14:40 - Athletics (track & field) - Discus Throw, Greek style, qualifying - AC (9.949)
1912-07-06-13:00? - Athletics (track & field) - Javelin Throw, qualifying - third (Q)
1912-07-06-15:00? - Athletics (track & field) - Javelin Throw, final - third (2560)
1912 J2 40
1924 JT 0.384

He competed for Czechoslovakia in 1924, so he should be classed as Slovakian, so as not to have to change nationalities

Kovács Miklós

B. 1934-04-19, Nyípazony, Hungary; D. 1977-02-05
Shooting

	1956	HP
Men's Running Target	fourth	2400
		2400

Kovács Nándor

B. 1881-05-16, Budapest, Hungary; D. 1945-01-04
Athletics - Track & Field & Gymnastics

	1906	1908	1912	HP
Men's 110 m Hurdles	R1:ac	R1:2nd		51.287
Men's 400 m Hurdles		SF:3rd		121.5
Men's Long Jump			26th	0.096
Men's Team combined, Swedish system	sixth			120
				292.883

Olympic Competitor nr 2408

1906-04-22-17:00 - Gymnastics - Team combined, Swedish system, day one
1906-04-23-15:00 - Gymnastics - Team combined, Swedish system, day two - sixth (120)
1906-04-30-16:30 - Athletics - 110 m Hurdles round one - AC (47.93)
1908-07-20-16:45 - Athletics (track & field) - 400 m Hurdles, round one - first (Q) (ran alone)
1908-07-21-15:30 - Athletics (track & field) - 110 m Hurdles, round one - second (3.357)
1908-07-21-16:00 - Athletics (track & field) - 400 m Hurdles, semifinals - third (121.5)
1912-07-12-14:00 - Athletics (track & field) - Long Jump, qualifying - 26th (0.096)

Kovács Pál

B. 1912-07-17, Debrecen, Hungary
Fencing (6 gold, 1 bronze)

1936 1948 1952 1956 1960 HP

Sabre, individual - bronze gold sixth - 15000

Sabre, team gold gold gold gold gold 16000

31000

	1936	1948	1952	1956	1960	HP
Sabre, individual	-	bronze	gold	sixth	-	15000
Sabre, team	gold	gold	gold	gold	gold	16000
						31000

Member of the Hungarian Sabre team that won gold at Berlin, London, Helsinki, Melbourne and Rome. He won individual gold in '52, bronze in '48. He was World sabre champion in 1937 and 1953. He later became president of the Hungarian Fencing Federation.

Kovács Péter (1)

B. 1955-04-08, Budapest, Hungary
Handball

	1976	1980	1984	1988	HP
Men's Team	sixth	fourth		fourth	2112
					2112

Kovács Péter (2)

B. 1959-09-28, Heves, Hungary
Gymnastics (1 bronze)

	1980	HP
Men's Individual combined	11th	64
Men's Team combined	bronze	640
Men's Floor Exercises	fifth	250
		954

Kovács Tamás

B. 1943-03-20, Budapest, Hungary
Fencing (2 bronze)

	1968	1972	1976	HP
Men's Sabre, Individual	Bar2	sixth	SF:5th	916.66
Men's Sabre, Team	bronze	bronze	fourth	1848
				2764.66

Kovács Zsolt

B. 1962-11-11, Budapest, Hungary
Biathlon

	1984	1988	HP
Men's 10 km Sprint	33rd	48th	0.00256256
Men's 20 kilometres	45th	54th	0.00001016
Men's 4 x 7.5 km Relay	14th		4
			4.000266416

Kovács Zsuzsa

B. 1945-11-13, Hódmezővásárhely, Hungary
Aquatics - Swimming

	1964	HP
Women's 200 metres Breaststroke	R1:23rd	0.32
Women's 4x100 metres Medley Relay	FI:dnf	64
		64.32

Kovácsi Aladár

B. 1932-12-11, Budapest, Hungary; D. 2010-04-08
Modern Pentathlon (1 gold)

	1952	HP
Men's Individual	12th	50
Men's Team	gold	1600
		1650

Kovacsics Miklós

B. 1953-04-20, Pécs, Hungary; D. 2005-02-02
Handball

	1980	HP
Men's Team	fourth	800
		800

Štefan Kovalčík

B. 1921-05-23, Kežmarok, Slovakia, represented Czechoslovakia; D. 1973-10-22
Cross-Country Skiing

	1948	1952	HP
Men's 18 km	63rd	dnf	-
Men's 4x10 km Relay	8th	8th	128
			128

Pyotr Petrovich Kovalenko

B. 1942-10-10, Sortavala, Kareliya, Russia, represented the Soviet Union; D. 1993
Ski Jumping

	1964	HP
Men's Normal Hill	12th	40
Men's Large Hill	20th	1
		41

Serhiy Ivanovych Kovalenko

B. 1947-08-11, Dalian, China, represented the Soviet Union; D. 2004-11-18 in Kyiv
Basketball (1 gold, 1 bronze)

	1968	1972	HP
Men's Team	bronze	gold	4480
			4480

He played for a club in Kyiv, and Kyiv is also where he died, so I shall consider him Ukrainian.

Vitaly Aleksandrovich Kovalenko

B. 1934-03-17, Moskva, Russia, represented the Soviet Union
Volleyball (1 gold)

	1964	HP
Men's Team	gold	3200
		3200

Vladimir Nikolayevich Kovalyov

B. 1953-02-02, Moskva, Russia, represented the Soviet Union
Figure Skating (1 silver)

	1972	1976	1980	HP
Men's Singles	8th	silver	dnf	6390
				6390

Tauno Into Kovanen

B. 1917-06-20, Kuru, Finland; D. 1986-02-09
Greco-Roman Wrestling (1 bronze)

	1952	HP
GR Men's Heavyweight (+87 kg)	bronze	3840
		3840

Jiří Kovář

represented Czechoslovakia
Aquatics - Swimming

	1948	HP
Men's 100 metres Backstroke	R1:21st	0.96
		0.96

Karel Kovář

B. 1942-12-10, Třebič, Czechia, represented Czechoslovakia
Rowing

	1968	HP
Men's Coxed Pairs	Rep:6th	4.1
		4.1

Kővári Károly

B. 1912-06-21, Wien, Austria, represented Hungary; D. 1978-04-20
Nordic Combined & Alpine Skiing

	1936	1948	HP
Men's Nordic Combined	dnf		0.00000064
Men's Alpine Combined	27th	46th	0.0600048
Men's Downhill		65th	0.00000000075
			0.06000544075

Petr Kovářík

B. 1945-05-21, Kolín, Czechia, represented Czechoslovakia
Shooting

	1972	1976	HP
Small-Bore Rifle, Three Positions	fourth	20th	1601
			1601

Marie Kovářová

B. 1927-05-11, Luleč, Czechia, represented Czechoslovakia
Gymnastics (1 gold)

	1948	HP
Women's Team All-Around	gold	3200
		3200

Kövesdi Géza

Olympic Competitor nr 4458

1908-07-22-10:30 - Athletics (track & field) - Long Jump, qualifying - AC (0.161)

Kövessi Margit

B. 1907-09-01, Banska Stiavnica, Slovakia, then part of Hungary, lived in Budapest, represented Hungary
Gymnastics

	1928	HP
Women's Team Combined	fourth	800
		800

Vladimir Aleksandrovich Kovin

B. 1954-06-20, Gorky (now Nizhny Novgorod), Russia, represented the Soviet Union
Ice Hockey (1 gold)

	1984	HP
Men's Team	gold	3200
		3200

Kövi-Zalai Mária

B. 1924-10-20, Târgu Mureș, Romania, represented Hungary
Gymnastics (Artistic) & Rhytmic Gymnastics (2 silver, 1 bronze)

	1948	1952	HP
Women's Individual All-Around		14th	16
Women's Team All-Around	silver	silver	3000
Women's Floor Exercise		13th	6.4
Women's Horse Vault		9th	40
Women's Uneven Bars		12th	10
Women's Balance Beam		33rd	-
Women's Team with Portable Apparatus		bronze	640
			3712.4

Valentyna Ivanivna Kovpan

B. 1950-02-28, Kirovohrad, Ukraine, represented the Soviet Union; D. 2006-05-12
Archery (1 silver)

	1976	HP
Women's Individual	silver	6000
		6000

Irina Kovrova

competed in 1984 as

Irina Kuleshova

B. 1962-01-04, Moskva, Russia, represented the Soviet Union
Speed Skating

	1980	1984	HP
Women's 500 metres	10th	fourth	1700
Women's 1000 metres	20th		1
			1701

Yuriy Oleksandrovych Kovshov

B. 1951-09-05, Kushka, Turkmenistan, represented the Soviet Union
Equestrianism - Dressage (1 gold, 1 silver)

	1980	1984	1988	HP
Individual	silver		28th	5000.032
Team	gold		fourth	2500
				7500.032

Ukrainian-language Wikipedia has a comprehensive article about this athlete. He was the son of a Ukrainian in the Soviet military, stationed in Turkmenistan at the time of Yuriy's birth. Stationed in Toshkent, Uzbekistan, later, that is where Yuriy learnt his horsemanship. By 1988 he was back in Kyiv however, and Ukraine is where he spent the rest of his life, training Ukrainian equestianists, including his own grandson. Yuriy himself represented Ukraine at the World equestrian games of 2002 and 2006. He should be classed Ukrainian without doubt.

Written 2000-11-29 - last modified 2023-12-23

This page is part of the site "Full Olympians" by Herman De Wael. See here for a full Introduction.