Momcsilló Tapavicza
Encyclopedia
Momčilo Tapavica was a native Serb
tennis
player, weightlifter, wrestler and architect
who in his youth competed under the flag of Kingdom of Hungary
whose citizen he was at the time, at the 1896 Summer Olympics
in Athens
.
Tapavica is the first Serb to win an Olympic medal. He won a bronze medal
in the singles tennis tournament. In the first round, he defeated D. Frangopoulos
of Greece
. The second round gave him a bye. Dionysios Kasdaglis
of Egypt
beat Tapavica in the semifinal, and with no playoff for third place he shared bronze medal honors with the Greek Konstantinos Paspatis
. Tapavica was the only participant for the Kingdom of Hungary in the 1896 Olympic Tennis competition, he participated at 23 years and 177 days old.
Tapavica began to practise sports in Novi Sad, continuing his practise in Budapest where he studied architecture and civil engineering at the Higher Technical School.
At the Olympics Tapavica won a bronze medal
in the singles tennis tournament. In the first round, he defeated D. Frangopoulos
of Greece
. The second round gave him a bye. Dionysios Kasdaglis
of Egypt
beat Tapavica in the semifinal, and with no playoff for third place he shared bronze medal honors with the Greek Konstantinos Paspatis
.
Tapavica did not compete in the doubles tournament.
He finished last of the six competitors in the two-handed weightlifting event, now known as the clean and jerk
. The weight Tapavica lifted is unknown, but was less than 90.0 kilograms.
In the wrestling competition, Tapavica was defeated in the first round by Stephanos Christopoulos
. The two were nearly evenly matched, but Tapavica tired first and conceded.
Having returned from Budapest to Novi Sad in 1904 he joined the rowing club “Danubijus”.
Working as architect, Momčilo Tapavica designed the building of Matica Srpska
in Novi Sad
, the buildings of the German Consulate and National Bank in Cetinje
, and the building of Boka Hotel in Herceg Novi
, which was destroyed in the earthquake of 1977.
Serbs
The Serbs are a South Slavic ethnic group of the Balkans and southern Central Europe. Serbs are located mainly in Serbia, Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina, and form a sizable minority in Croatia, the Republic of Macedonia and Slovenia. Likewise, Serbs are an officially recognized minority in...
tennis
Tennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
player, weightlifter, wrestler and architect
Architect
An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...
who in his youth competed under the flag of Kingdom of Hungary
Kingdom of Hungary
The Kingdom of Hungary comprised present-day Hungary, Slovakia and Croatia , Transylvania , Carpatho Ruthenia , Vojvodina , Burgenland , and other smaller territories surrounding present-day Hungary's borders...
whose citizen he was at the time, at the 1896 Summer Olympics
1896 Summer Olympics
The 1896 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the I Olympiad, was a multi-sport event celebrated in Athens, Greece, from April 6 to April 15, 1896. It was the first international Olympic Games held in the Modern era...
in Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
.
Tapavica is the first Serb to win an Olympic medal. He won a bronze medal
Bronze medal
A bronze medal is a medal awarded to the third place finisher of contests such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, etc. The practice of awarding bronze third place medals began at the 1904 Olympic Games in St...
in the singles tennis tournament. In the first round, he defeated D. Frangopoulos
D. Frangopoulos
D. Frangopoulos was a Greek tennis player. He competed at the 1896 Summer Olympics in Athens.Frangopoulos was defeated in the first round of the singles tournament by Momcsilló Tapavicza of Hungary. This put him in a six-way tie for eighth place in the field of thirteen players. He did not...
of Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
. The second round gave him a bye. Dionysios Kasdaglis
Dionysios Kasdaglis
Dionysios Kasdaglis was a Greek-Egyptian tennis player. He competed in the 1896 Summer Olympics in Athens.-Career:Kasdaglis, the only competitor from Egypt, made it to the finals in both the singles and doubles events...
of Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
beat Tapavica in the semifinal, and with no playoff for third place he shared bronze medal honors with the Greek Konstantinos Paspatis
Konstantinos Paspatis
Konstantinos Paspatis was a Greek tennis player. He competed at the 1896 Summer Olympics in Athens. Born in Liverpool, England 5 June 1878 and died in Athens 14 March 1903....
. Tapavica was the only participant for the Kingdom of Hungary in the 1896 Olympic Tennis competition, he participated at 23 years and 177 days old.
Sports career
At the Olympics Tapavica won a bronze medal
Bronze medal
A bronze medal is a medal awarded to the third place finisher of contests such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, etc. The practice of awarding bronze third place medals began at the 1904 Olympic Games in St...
in the singles tennis tournament. In the first round, he defeated D. Frangopoulos
D. Frangopoulos
D. Frangopoulos was a Greek tennis player. He competed at the 1896 Summer Olympics in Athens.Frangopoulos was defeated in the first round of the singles tournament by Momcsilló Tapavicza of Hungary. This put him in a six-way tie for eighth place in the field of thirteen players. He did not...
of Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
. The second round gave him a bye. Dionysios Kasdaglis
Dionysios Kasdaglis
Dionysios Kasdaglis was a Greek-Egyptian tennis player. He competed in the 1896 Summer Olympics in Athens.-Career:Kasdaglis, the only competitor from Egypt, made it to the finals in both the singles and doubles events...
of Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
beat Tapavica in the semifinal, and with no playoff for third place he shared bronze medal honors with the Greek Konstantinos Paspatis
Konstantinos Paspatis
Konstantinos Paspatis was a Greek tennis player. He competed at the 1896 Summer Olympics in Athens. Born in Liverpool, England 5 June 1878 and died in Athens 14 March 1903....
.
Tapavica did not compete in the doubles tournament.
He finished last of the six competitors in the two-handed weightlifting event, now known as the clean and jerk
Clean and jerk
The clean and jerk is one of the two Olympic weightlifting events .The clean portion of the lift refers to the lifter explosively pulling the weight from the floor to a racked position across deltoids and clavicles...
. The weight Tapavica lifted is unknown, but was less than 90.0 kilograms.
In the wrestling competition, Tapavica was defeated in the first round by Stephanos Christopoulos
Stephanos Christopoulos
Stephanos Christopoulos was a Greek wrestler. He was a member of Gymnastiki Etaireia Patron, that merged in 1923 with Panachaikos Gymnastikos syllogos to become Panachaiki Gymnastiki Enosi.Christopoulos competed at the 1896 Summer Olympics in Athens...
. The two were nearly evenly matched, but Tapavica tired first and conceded.
Having returned from Budapest to Novi Sad in 1904 he joined the rowing club “Danubijus”.
Architecture achievements
In 1908, Tapavica went to Montenegro, where he designed several buildings. During the First World War, he lived in Morocco, but later returned to Novi Sad, where he run his own architectural design company. He died in 1949 and was buried in cemetery in Pula.Working as architect, Momčilo Tapavica designed the building of Matica Srpska
Matica srpska
The Matica srpska is the oldest cultural-scientific institution of Serbia. Matica srpska was founded in 1826 in Budapest and moved to Novi Sad in 1864....
in Novi Sad
Novi Sad
Novi Sad is the capital of the northern Serbian province of Vojvodina, and the administrative centre of the South Bačka District. The city is located in the southern part of Pannonian Plain on the Danube river....
, the buildings of the German Consulate and National Bank in Cetinje
Cetinje
Cetinje , Цетиње / Cetinje , Italian: Cettigne, Greek: Κετίγνη, Ketígni) is a town and Old Royal Capital of Montenegro. It is also a historical and the secondary capital of Montenegro , with the official residence of the President of Montenegro...
, and the building of Boka Hotel in Herceg Novi
Herceg Novi
Herceg Novi is a coastal town in Montenegro located at the entrance to the Bay of Kotor and at the foot of Mount Orjen. It is the administrative center of the Herceg Novi Municipality with around 33,000 inhabitants...
, which was destroyed in the earthquake of 1977.
See also
- Hungary at the 1896 Summer OlympicsHungary at the 1896 Summer OlympicsHungary competed at the 1896 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece.Austrian and Hungarian results at early Olympic Games are generally kept separate despite the union of the two nations as Austria-Hungary at the time....
- Tennis at the 1896 Summer OlympicsTennis at the 1896 Summer OlympicsAt the 1896 Summer Olympics, two tennis events were contested, both for men. They were begun on 8 April and continued on 9 April, 10 April, and 11 April. 13 competitors from 6 nations, including 7 Greeks, took part in the tennis competition...