The Medical School team from Pécs finished second at the 53rd Medical Cup, held on their home turf from 9 to 11 April. Students from Budapest, Szeged, and Debrecen travelled to Pécs for the largest sporting event of the medical, dentistry, pharmacy, and health science faculties in Hungary. In addition to the matches, concerts, parties, and community programmes awaited the young people at various venues throughout Pécs over the three days.
The Medical Cup has been held every year since 1972; more than 400 athletes compete in the sports event, and thousands of fans cheer on their university’s team. Each year, the host is one of the four medical universities: Semmelweis University, the University of Debrecen, the University of Szeged, or the University of Pécs. In 2024, the teams gathered in Debrecen, from where the Mecsekalja team brought the Medical Cup home, last year Szeged hosted the competition, and the Pécs team won the bronze medal, while this year, playing on home turf, they took the second place on the podium.
“The Medical Cup is about so much more than just results and rankings. The values reflected in sports are the same ones that are fundamental to the medical profession: perseverance, discipline, teamwork, and mutual respect. These are the qualities that make us not only better athletes, but also better professionals and better people. Of course, it feels good to win, but the real value lies in the journey we take along the way. Shared experiences, the atmosphere of cheering, memorable matches, or a gesture of sportsmanship all contribute to making this event truly special,” says Dr. Miklós Nyitrai, dean of the Medical School in Pécs.
The teams competed in five sports—handball, basketball, football, water polo, and volleyball—in both women’s and men’s categories. The atmosphere was electric again this year, making for a truly community-building experience. The POTE fans, wearing their T-shirts with bull heads on, cheered on the teams with incredible passion and perseverance.
“The atmosphere was fantastic all three days; we did our best to drown out everyone else with our cheering. I hope our athletes felt how much we were rooting for them, and that it really boosted their performance. This is the third Medical Cup I have attended, I would not miss it for the world! You can really experience the sense of belonging and the power of community here, and that feeling stays with you for a long time,” said a third-year fan from Pécs.
The event series kicked off with evening opening parties, and on the second day, the sports competitions began early in the morning, with teams playing round-robin matches. The competition lasted until late afternoon, and after a short break, the parties continued until dawn. The third day featured the final matches and finals, followed by the announcement of results by sport and category, preceded by the cheerleaders’ performance. Based on the overall results, POTE finished second.
“As expected, the universities of Pécs and Budapest battled it out for the first place. While Semmelweis University secured five victories, we managed to win three matches, which was enough for the second place. One reason for this is that the teams from the capital arrived with exceptionally strong lineups, and, on the other hand, the other universities were unable to weaken – with one or two losses – their position. Overall, I have to say that the result was fair. The trophy for the second place shines just as brightly,” said Tamás Téczely, chairman of the Medical Cup Committee, in his assessment.
He highlighted the women’s and men’s handball teams, as well as the men’s football team, who became the champions of the 53rd Medical Cup. He was pleased to note that the partner universities highly praised the organisation of the event, considered it to be of high quality, and appreciated the innovations as well. He added that the app received the greatest acclaim for tracking the results, allowing users to follow the matches live, and providing information about the cup and other details.
He considered the preparation a success; the coaches had drawn up a plan for it before the season began, and the work proceeded according to that. The sports facilities were available twice a week, mainly in the evenings, where intensive training sessions took place. These were supplemented by gym workouts, which were provided free of charge to the team members. Some players took this opportunity several times a week. In the case of certain sports where county sports associations organised championships, the Medical Cup teams were also entered, so they could also prepare for the competition through a series of matches. This focused preparation continued uninterrupted throughout both semesters.
“In 2023, our committee developed a hierarchical organisational and task pyramid centred around the motto ‘learning – sports – health.’ This strategy formed the basis for our organised preparation, to which the task of hosting the cup was added this year. I feel the strategy proved successful, which included several incentive elements: in addition to free access to the gym for a limited number of participants, we provided massage services, the injured players received rehabilitation treatments, and we also contributed to the purchase of their training shoes. The introduction of the sports scholarship, along with performance-based support for the teams, were the most motivating factors. It helped a great deal in maintaining a focus on success that we also provided significant financial support to the teams that won the Medical Cup to participate in a sports event abroad,” he added.
As he said, an important evaluation phase will follow the competition. What can already be said, and is certainly encouraging, is that, together with the members of the cheerleading team, they were able to provide regular and organised sports opportunities for nearly two hundred students.
The results of the 53rd Medical Cup based on total points:
- Semmelweis University, 37 points
- University of Pécs, 29 points
- University of Szeged, 17 points
- University of Debrecen, 16 points
The detailed results of the matches can be found at medikuskupa.hu.
We warmly congratulate the Pécs team on their outstanding performance!
Photos:
Photo:
Kerekes Fotó és Film