“My parents met during the war and then got divorced. I found my mother again after 24 years!”

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– Stefan, I read that you were one of the tallest students in the school.
– Yes. I was 1.95 m, now I am less, because I am getting old. They took me everywhere, even to folk dances. I used to go to play volleyball, basketball. I had an intense sporting activity, even in a town like Jibou. We stayed in handball because we had to do something to beat the people of Zalău. My father was not tall, he was only 1.75 m tall, my mother was 1.70 m tall and she was considered tall.

“That you took the conversation to your parents.” Was my mother Hungarian?
– Yes. My father was the same, except he was born in Zalău. My mother and father met during the war. They divorced when I was two years old. My mother was 20 years old and returned to Hungary. There he stayed.

– Usually children stay with their mothers. You stayed with your father.
– I stayed with my father because she wanted to stay in Budapest. Valeria called her mother. A Romanian came out of two Hungarians, and my nephew now sings to me “We are Romanians!”. I was a player of Hungarian nationality, but I played with honor for Romania! I am proud to have been part of an exceptional team and I don’t know if such a team will be born again.

– I was surprised to learn that you met your mother …
– After 24 years, Ovid! When I became world champion, the Romanian team went to a tournament in Budapest. And in an interview on Hungarian television, the journalist learned that his mother was in Hungary. And I told them I hadn’t seen her in 24 years! I stayed with my father, growing up with my stepmother, an exceptional woman who took care of me.

“And then they met again?”
– I was 26 years old. They found my mother, took her to the hotel, and our entire team said goodbye. It was an emotional moment for me and her. She was young, there were other times, different circumstances. We are still very good friends. After she came to Romania every year, I also went to see her. He died in the meantime. Such was life.

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