Birtalan, Stefan

Stefan Birtalan ( Ştefan Birtalan ; Hungarian Birtalan István ; born September 25, 1948, Jibou , Romania ) ^[1] is a former Romanian handball player , coach and statesman in the field of sports.

Birtalan, who is one of the representatives of the Hungarian minority of Romania , ^[2] was named one of the best players of his time and was recognized as the Player of the Year in the World in 1974, 1976 and 1977. ^[3]

He spent the main part of his club career in Bucharest “Steaua”, winning 15 Championships in Romania and 2 Romanian Cups, and also received the title of champion in the EHF Champions League in 1977. Among his other successes should be noted victories in two World Championships in 1970 and 1974. At the last of these championships, Birtalan was also recognized as the top scorer with 43 goals.

Birtalan took part in three Olympics and visited the podium in each of the cases: in 1972 he was awarded a bronze medal, playing in one of the matches of the tournament. Four years later, he won a silver medal, scoring 32 goals in five games. In 1980, he also performed on the Romanian team, whose players again won bronze medals. He played all six matches and scored 23 goals. ^[one]