Item 20.13-23 - David and Vera Bakonyi

Oral history interview with David and Vera Bakonyi on the late Peter Bakonyi (Vera's husband and David's father). Peter Bakonyi was born in 1933 in Budapest, Hungary. He met his wife Vera at a high school function. While in Budapest, he trained for the modern pentathlon event (fencing, swimming, horseback riding, shooting and cross country running) and played volleyball all while attending law school. He and Vera immigrated to Canada in 1957 as refugees and wed in Vancouver in 1959. He began solely training in fencing and switched his career path to real estate. Peter was a 6x Canadian Fencing Champion, 18x British Columbia Champion and attended the 1968 Olympic Games after being prevented from attending both the 1960 and 1964 games. He was also a founder of the Canadian Maccabiah Games team. He competed in the Maccabiah Games until his death in 1997. Vera and David discuss the legacy they've established in Peter's honour, such as the creation of the Peter Bakonyi World Cup (formerly Challenge Peter Bakonyi).