From Athens to Athens
2008.07.23
Unique Olympic history exhibition is being held by E.ON and the Hungarian Sports Museum at Roosevelt tér 7-8.
Budapest, July 23, 2008 – An Olympic history exhibition organized by the Hungarian Sports Museum and E.ON has opened 16 days before the beginning of the Beijing Olympic Games. The exhibition uses photos and sports memorabilia to reproduce the greatest and most unforgettable moments of the modern Olympic Games. The exhibition, which can be seen in the lobby of E.ON's company headquarters (Roosevelt tér 7-8, Budapest) from July 23 to August 30, was opened by Gábor Elbert, State Secretary at the Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development, Jenő Kamuti, Secretary General of the Hungarian Olympic Committee, and Konrad Kreuzer, Chairman of the Board of Management of E.ON Hungária.
Nearly 100 items of Olympic memorabilia and 24 composite photographs will be on public display in the lobby of the company's headquarters at Roosevelt tér 7-8 until the end of August. The special thing about the exhibition, which has no admission charge, is that this is the first time it has been possible to see the Museum's collection in an exhibition in this place. The composite photographs on exhibit were made especially for this occasion.
The oldest and most precious piece in the collection is Alfréd Hajós's silver cup decorated with cloisonné and semi-precious stones, which his club, the Budapest Athletic Club, gave him after his victories in Athens. The composite photographs show the greatest Hungarian moments in the modern Olympics in pictures. Among the scenes depicted are the awards ceremony at the 1896 Athens Olympics, the gold medal-winning Hungarian water polo team at the 1956 Melbourne Olympics, and the celebration of Tímea Nagy's victory in 2004.
"The Olympics are more than sports. They are a force that holds the generations together and an idea that evokes values that everyone can identify with, values that belong to every generation. There is an old saying that the future needs the past. We will only be able to succeed in the future if we can learn from the past. E.ON Hungária thinks that when it comes to sports, culture and education, it is not enough just to support the present and future generations. It is also important to preserve the values and achievements of the past and the experiences of generations gone by. The goal of the Olympics exhibition is to recall the achievements of the earlier generations of Hungarian athletes, who serve as examples for the present and future generations of athletes, and to pay tribute to them a few days before the Olympic flame is lit in Beijing. It is a great pleasure for us to be able to have the exhibition in our headquarters. It is open to the public and admission is free, and we hope that as many people as possible will come to see the exhibition and carry on the story of these Olympic heroes, “ Konrad Kreuzer, Chairman of the Board of Directors of E.ON Hungária said.
"This is a very special occasion for the Sports Museum because the collection we've put together has never before been so elaborately exhibited outside the museum. Since we are not able to put on a permanent exhibition in our own building, it is always a great pleasure for us when we can find a home for the collection and we get the opportunity to share these souvenirs and recollections of days past with a wider public," Dr. Lajos Szabó, the director of the Sports Museum, said.
Further information
E.ON Hungária
Communications Department
Ildikó Kovács, Head of Communications
Orsolya Vass, Communications specialist
Telephone: 472-2318 / 472-2313
press@eon-hungaria.com