Meskó Csaba: Thermal Baths - Our Budapest (Budapest, 1999)

nicipality of Budapest for the construction of a competitive indoor swimming pool, the first of its kind in Hungary. Thus the National Sports Swimming Fool, built to plans by Alfréd Hajós, Hungary’s first Olympic swimming champion (1896), opened in 1930 with a swimming pool measuring 33.33 metres by 18 and a learners’ pool measuring 16 metres by 16.

The lightness of the hall roof arching above the pools, the natural lighting, and the efficient heating and ventilation are in themselves remarkable architectural achievements. The swimming pool, which is now under official protection as part of the country’s architectural heritage, was the first indoor swimming pool in Europe qualified to house official competitions. Its opening gave a great impetus to Hungary’s competitive swimming helping it to achieve its outstanding results.

The complex has undergone continuous development. In 1950, to plans by Fái Csonka, a fifty-metre, open-air pool was built for competitive events, which was surrounded with terraces and supplemented with an auxiliary diving pool for springboard and highboard events in the years to follow. In 1958 a 33.33 metre by 25, open-air competitive pool was also added. While the establishment primarily is a base for athletes, it is a popular venue of

The famous hall

of Alfréd Hajós Sports Swimming Pool

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