That’s why we’ve chosen to highlight two standout events from 2018 where, following previous years’ competitions, where the focus shifted to youth sports. Experiences were shared by Dóra Albert, the general secretary of our association, Viktória Gyömörey, our coordinator, and Ágnes Ganyecz, one of our volunteers.
Ice hockey remained on the agenda in 2018, with our volunteers helping organize the MAC U10 hockey tournament. By this time, Ági had already participated in several events, so she took on the team liaison tasks with experience. “I first volunteered for Sport-Önként in 2017, so by 2018, there was no doubt I’d join again – including at this youth tournament. Players came from multiple countries, and at this young age, the lack of foreign language skills can be a real challenge. For me, this wasn’t a problem, as I worked with two Transylvanian teams. Despite the distance, many parents came along to support them.”
Every event brings its own challenges, but based on feedback from our volunteers, the experiences are always worth it. Even years later, Ági recalled them with a smile. “I still remember those chatty little guys who came to Budapest – their sense of humor often helped get us through tougher moments. The parents were a great help, and the volunteer team itself was incredibly close-knit. The children played with joy, heart, and soul – it was the love of the game that drove them. Many returned the following year, and it was great to see how much they had improved in such a short time.”
The other major youth event of the year was the Junior Women’s Handball World Championship. Though we’ve gained a lot of experience organizing such large events since then, according to Dóri, it was still quite new at the time. “So many teams, a new location in the countryside, and several of our coordinators were abroad at a lacrosse competition during this time. Even so, we didn’t shy away from the challenge – we were very proud of our volunteers for pulling off the event flawlessly. At last year’s EUG, we had several returning volunteers who started back at this tournament and have since become key members of our association. Plus, some of the young players at the Debrecen arena have gone on to achieve great results on national youth teams. And to top it all off, the Hungarian team won the championship.”
Viki also got to take part in the medal ceremony, holding the Hungarian flag as the medals were placed around the girls’ necks.
“This was my second event with Sport-Önként. Before that, my sister and I had volunteered at the CL Final4. We really took on a big challenge – being so far from home at such a young age was definitely tough. Luckily, both at the accommodation and the event, a great team came together, which quickly created new motivation for working together. Although I started out helping with competition management, I got a glimpse into everything, and this event really sparked my interest in the world of sports events. To this day, I still have friendships I made here, and I gained so many valuable experiences.”
Curious about how the past 10 years of Sport-Önként unfolded? Follow our article series – next time, we’ll bring you highlights from 2019!
