This year’s French Open was headlined by Iga Swiatek and Novak Djokovic triumphing in the singles tournaments but at the same time, another trophy presentation took place.
Attended by only a handful of people which included Henri Leconte and Hungarian Olympic swimming champion Daniel Gyurta, the event was conducted in honor of József Asboth. A Hungarian tennis player who in 1947 became the first Eastern European player to win a Grand Slam title at the French Open. Asboth also reached the semi-finals of Wimbledon in 1948 which is remarkably still the best-ever performance by a Hungarian man at the event.
Sadly, he never received a trophy for his French Open triumph as the tournament didn’t start that tradition until 1981. However, this year the FFT made a silver plaque in his honour with the words ‘in memory of Jozsef Asboth, Vainqueur Simple Homme, Internationaux de France 1947.‘ The gesture occurred almost 40 years after he died in 1986.
Accepting the award was Andras Ruszanov on behalf of the Asboth family. He acts as an ambassador for the tennis star and his sporting legacy. Speaking to Ubitennis, Ruszanov sheds light on Asboth’s story which he described as being marred by history, politics and bad luck. As a player, he was only allowed to leave Hungary on the condition he didn’t defect to another country. One extraordinary example was when King Gustav V of Sweden helped persuade the Hungarian regime to let him play at Wimbledon in one year.
During the late 1940s and early 1950s, Asboth was restricted from travelling to Western countries and was also prohibited from going into business with Fred Perry who offered him a job. Instead, he was instructed to coach in the Soviet Union until the fall of his regime in 1956. Eventually, he went to Belgium to with work with the national tennis federation before going to Munich, Germany. He refused to return home until Soviet troops left his country which unfortunately didn’t happen until after he passed away at the age of 69.
Here is the story of Hungary’s first and only Grand Slam champion in men’s tennis.
UBITENNIS: How did the trophy ceremony in Paris come about this year? Was it triggered by a campaign?
RUSZANOV: I have been representing the Asbóth family for about 10 years. From the very first moment, I was always guided by the goal of preserving for posterity the memory of Hungary’s first and so far only male singles Grand Slam champion. This could be the name of a tournament, street, stadium, award or even a website named after the legendary champion, such as asbothjozsef.hu, which we created in tribute to him with photos from the family archive.
On the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the birth of József Asbóth (1917- 2017), Monika Seles presented the commemorative plaque of the Hungarian Tennis Federation and Hungarian Sports Journalist Association.
In 1947, the French Open winner received no recognition other than a congratulatory handshake. From 1981 the Musketeers’ Cup was awarded to the champions after the suggestion of the late Philippe Chatrier, the president of the French and International Tennis Federation. In 2017, the idea arose that some symbolic version of the Musketeers’ Cup could serve as an eternal memory for both the Asbóth family and the Hungarian sports society to nurture and preserve József Asbóth and his sports legacy.
Both the former and current leadership of the Hungarian Tennis Federation felt the weight and importance of this mission, and the request was heard by the leadership of the French Tennis Federation – led by President Gilles Moretton. Thus, at this year’s Roland Garros, during a private ceremony in the president’s box, in the presence of President Moretton and some French legendary players such as Henri Leconte, Patrick Proisy, and the showman Mansour Bahrami, I was able to receive the award on behalf of the Asbóth family from the two-time Grand Slam champion, Hall of Famer Amélie Mauresmo, who serves as the tournament director of French Open. The Hungarian sports diplomacy was represented by the Olympic champion Dániel Gyurta on behalf of the Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs, and the sports media was represented by György Szöllősi, vice president of AIPS Europe (European Sports Journalists Association).
This current recognition was the ‘fruit’ of several years of work, and the silver plaque that has just been handed over has the Musketeer’s Cup for the men’s singles champion in engraved form.
UBITENNIS: Was it true that Jozsef was only allowed to leave Hungary on a guarantee he would not defect to another country?
Yes, Asbóth’s entire career was cut in two by history, politics and bad luck. He played in a total of 10 Grand Slams, but 8 years passed between his 2nd and 3rd major. In his heyday – between the ages of 22 and 30 – he could not participate in a single Grand Slam, because of World War II and its consequences. Then he managed to win the 4th Grand Slam tournament of his life at the age of almost 30. Then the ordeals came again…
In 1948, Asbóth was seeded number 2 in Paris (which is still a record for a Hungarian male player) in the main draw. However, he could not defend his title, as his mother passed away the day before the start of the tournament, so Asbóth withdrew and flew home to Hungary.
His appearance at the next Slam, in Wimbledon, was also in jeopardy, as the communist leadership in his country did not look favourably on his performances in foreign tournaments. One of his great admirers, King Gustav V of Sweden had to give a personal guarantee to the Hungarian communist government that Asbóth would return to his country and not emigrate abroad. Thanks to the intervention of Sweden’s longest-reigning monarch, the Hungarian top player was able to attend Wimbledon and so far achieved the greatest success of a Hungarian male tennis player.
He reached the semi-final for the first time in Wimbledon and according to the unanimous opinion of the experts, Asbóth played the most spectacular tennis of all the players. He even captivated the legendary Harry Hopman, who patted Asbóth on the shoulder and said: “Listen here, mate, grass is your element”. Unfortunately, in the quarter-final match, Asbóth’s ankle was injured in such a way that the next day it was so swollen that he could barely walk, nonetheless, he played with all the more heart and energy (he lost the 2nd set 14-12!).
A healthy Asbóth would have had a real chance not only to reach the final but even to win the title. After his loss in the semi, despite the painful defeat and injury, he praised his opponent and did not make excuses!
Then the Communist Party leadership did not allow him to travel to Paris until 1954, and never to Australia or the States.
UBITENNIS: During the time of his playing career Hungary was going through oppression from the soviet union communist regime. How did he manage to cope with this?
RUSZANOV: Politics had an impact on his entire career, this is especially true for the years following World War II, to the beginning of communist rule, where they governed according to Stalinist practice. The economy was nationalized, and the communist rule serving the interests of the Soviet empire began in political life.
Asbóth and some of his fellow tennis players also took part in the post-war debris clean-up, and from the 1948s onwards, his travels to the West were restricted by the communist dictatorship. Instead of foreign tournaments, he was sent to Moscow to train and instruct Soviet coaches. But it also happened that the president of neighbouring Romania had to stand as the doubles partner of Petru Groza on the tennis court of the president’s private mansion, on a party order. And it happened that the president’s bodyguard was sitting in the chair umpire’s seat with a rifle in his hand.
Fred Perry, with whom he maintained an excellent friendship and whose clothing bearing his name appeared in 1952, offered Asbóth to join his company, but the Hungarian Communist Party did not agree to this.
After the defeat of the 1956 revolution, Asbóth retired from active play and accepted the invitation of the Belgian federation, or better said he could have accepted, since this also had to be approved by the party leadership. In Belgium, he became the head of the youth development program, and later he was asked to become head coach by the Iphitos tennis club in Munich.
He made a promise that he would not return to his country as long as Soviet troops were stationed in Hungary. Unfortunately, he could not live to see them leave, as he died on September 11, 1986, in Germany.
Embed from Getty ImagesUBITENNIS: How is his legacy viewed back home? Do many Hungarian players nowadays speak about him?
RUSZANOV: In Hungary, soccer is considered a national sport, and the legendary Ferenc Puskás, the captain of the national team known as the ‘Golden Magyar’ (unbeaten for 4 years in the 50s and beat England in the match of the century in 1953), is the best-known Hungarian athlete in the world and the FIFA Goal of the Year award also bears his name. The other fact is that in Hungary, the Olympic and World Championships are incredibly respected, so the names of the Olympic and World Champion athletes are almost always classified in the category of Hall of Fame in the country.
Unfortunately, József Asbóth was successful in an era when tennis did not enjoy such support, even though from the end of the 1940s the matches were played in front of a sold-out crowd. Largely thanks to József Asbóth, and Zsuzsa Körmöczy (1958 Roland Garros champion).
At the beginning of the 21st century, Asbóth’s successes have faded a bit, but on the one hand, with the appearance of the new Hungarian tennis generation, his name is being heard more and more. As the manager of the Asbóth sports legacy, I will do everything in my power to make his name known to as many Hungarians as possible.
Asbóth’s name inevitably always comes up, even in connection with Roland Garros or Wimbledon, because to this day he achieved the greatest individual success in Hungarian men’s tennis at these two Grand Slam events! I hope that this current recognition will also promote the renaissance of the Asbóth cult!
UBITENNIS: Are there any other stories of interest about him that you can share?
RUSZANOV: On July 6, 1938, in Budapest, after winning Wimbledon, Don Budge, who was on the European tour, and the then unknown 20-year-old Hungarian talent, József Asbóth, faced each other in an exhibition match. Asbóth played brilliantly and so well that American world number one gave up the match in the 3rd set with Asbóth’s lead, claiming that he had to catch the train to Prague. (At that time, Budge already won his 5th Grand Slam in a row, and a few weeks later he also triumphed at the US Open.)
József Asbóth has also a 1-0 H2H record against Roy Emerson, the male tennis player who has won the most Grand Slam titles of all time (16 singles and 12 doubles). Emerson played for the first time at Roland Garros at the age of 17, and in the first round, he faced the then almost 37-year-old Asbóth. Being a rookie from Australia, he did not know the former champion, ran into the dressing room and asked Ken Rosewall what he knew about Asbóth. Rosewall just said “I’m sorry” and held out his right hand and said “five fingers, that’s about how many games you’re going to win in three sets.”
When Emerson went out on the court before the match, he met an elegant gentleman in long pants. He thought he was the referee, so he introduced himself to him, to which he replied, “I’m József Asbóth”. During the warm-up, Asbóth did not foul a single ball and he played with so much feeling that his strokes almost spoke. Emerson sensed that he was in great trouble. The match began, and Asbóth toyed with the Australian as he wanted. He drove it from one side to the other, Emerson ran around like a chased wild animal. He was covered in sweat and grimy from head to toe, and Asbóth’s long pants didn’t even show a crease. Rosewall laughed himself to death in the stands. Emerson was in good shape, but after two sets he started to get very tired after Asbóth constantly controlled the game.
After the lost match Emerson asked who the hell is this guy? And Rosewall said, “Well, go out and look at the list of champions on the wall of the stadium”. Seeing that Asbóth won in 1947, Emerson didn’t feel so bad anymore.
UBITENNIS: Finally, what other tennis achievements did he produce outside of the Grand Slams?
RUSZANOV: Between April 1 and September 16, 1940, Asbóth participated in 11 tournaments, of which he won 9 (Genoa, Taormina, Palermo, Budapest, Wiesbaden, Gödöllő, Budapest, Milan and Merano).
In 1947, Asbóh participated in 12 tournaments, 3 domestic and 9 international best tournaments, of which he played in the final 8 times, of which he won 5 times (San Remo, Nice, Paris and twice in Budapest).
In 1948, he started in 11 competitions, and we find his name in 7 finals, of which he won the trophy 5 times. After Beaulieu, Cannes and Nice, he did not find a winner in Monte-Carlo (the predecessor of today’s Monte-Carlo Masters).
He won 24 matches in the Davis Cup and in 1949 he was able to play in the semifinals with the Hungarian team.
Among Asbóth’s mentors, we also find a name who is a defining figure in the history of tennis, one of the (perhaps the best) musketeers, the legendary Henri Cochet. The Hungarian player’s entire career was influenced by the French champion, which is why, like Cochet, he always wore a short-sleeved white shirt and long white pants throughout his career.
