István Major

István Major (20 May 1949 – 5 May 2014) was a Hungarian high jumper. He won four medals at the European Indoor Championships between 1971 and 1974, as well as a two silver medals at the Universiade. His best Olympic performance was a sixth place in 1972.

Career

He was born in Budapest. His first international achievement was the fifth place at the 1969 European Championships. His first victory came at the 1971 European Indoor Championships in Sofia. All three medalists jumped 2.17, but Major won on countback. In the summer that year he finished fourth at the 1971 European Championships.

He then defended the gold medal at the 1972 European Indoor Championships in Grenoble. His winning result of 2.24 metres was a new championships record, and also his career best jump. In the same year he competed at the Olympic Games, tying for sixth place overall. At the 1973 European Indoor Championships he won his third gold medal in a row, this time with 2.20 metres. In the summer he won a silver medal at the Universiade in Moscow. With a jump of 2.18 metres he equalled the winning result of Vladimír Malý, however Major lost on countback. At the 1974 European Indoor Championships he again jumped 2.20 metres, but this time it was only enough for a silver medal behind Soviet's Kęstutis Šapka. At the 1974 European Championships he took his second fourth place in a row, losing the bronze medal to Vladimír Malý on countback.