Community, work, setting an example – Szabadics Group motivates young people with world champion athletes

The University of Pannonia's Circular Economy University Centre in Nagykanizsa and the Szabadics Group. The cooperation between the higher education institution and the construction company goes back a year. This time, they hosted the students with the aim of giving them the opportunity to meet and talk, and then to paddle together with Levente Kurucz, the world champion kayaker born in Nagykanizsa.

An inspiring encounter for young people

The organisers had two goals in mind: they wanted to encourage students to exercise regularly by highlighting Levente Kurucz's exemplary career. The other goal is to talk about the pressures faced by young elite athletes, about what it means to perform well every day in their studies as well as in training, Izabella Luca Varga told our portal. The marketing and communications officer of the Szabadics Group added that students can get useful advice from a world champion on why finding and maintaining balance is key amid the many expectations placed on them.

The road from the boating lake in Nagykanizsa to the World Championship gold medal

At this special meeting, Szabadics Roland, the construction company's chief operating officer, first talked about Levente Kurucz's career path from the boating lake in Nagykanizsa to the gold medal at the World Championships in Milan. Then the students asked questions of the athlete preparing for the Olympics.

„To this day, I still get goose bumps when I think about becoming a world champion in an Olympic event. I am particularly proud that only a handful of people in Hungary, just four in total, have won a world championship title in this event. At the same time, it is a huge responsibility, because many people look up to me as a role model, which makes it even more important for me to set a good example both on and off the track.”

Failure as a motivating force

Levente Kurucz prepared for the selection process on his own, but the competition did not go according to plan. He revealed that the failure motivated him and encouraged him to work even harder. He analysed what might have been behind his weaker-than-expected performance, changed coaches, and then won the K-2 500 in Szeged with Bence Nádas, followed by World Cup and World Championship gold medals.

No results without teamwork

Competing in pairs brought many new experiences for him:

„It taught me to adapt to my teammates and quickly solve any problems that arise. I realised that it's not enough to focus on my own performance, but that I need to think as part of a team: a shared rhythm, shared technique, shared goal.”

The world champion is greatly inspired by the fact that so many people in his hometown cheer him on and support him on his journey. In addition to their trust, the city of Nagykanizsa, the Szabadics Group and Tuxera also provide him with a solid foundation for his preparations. His big goal is the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles. The first major milestone in this direction was the world championship gold medal.

Levente Kurucz added that both kayaking and construction are fields that do not tolerate shortcuts or skipping steps: form is built up step by step during training, and a building will only be stable and durable if it is built on strong foundations, with precise execution and teamwork. Sport also teaches us that we must perform even when we are tired or have just failed, and that we must get up and carry on. 

Close to my heart

„We consider it a matter close to our hearts to support Levente Kurucz in his preparations, and we are particularly proud of our shared roots in Nagykanizsa. As a large company, we feel it is our duty to support talented young people. Levente not only enhances the reputation of our city and our country, but also serves as an authentic role model for younger generations,” Roland Szabadics told our portal. The Szabadics Group's chief operating officer added that they would like to use their cooperation to support the community, especially the young people of Nagykanizsa. They are planning further meetings to motivate students to take up sport and exercise regularly. They will use examples to demonstrate the possibilities of combining learning and sport, the importance and methods of dealing with failure, and how hard work pays off. The world champion is also motivated by the task: