View source for Imre Pulai

{{short description|Hungarian sprint canoeist (born 1967)}}
{{western name order|Pulai Imre}}
{{MedalTableTop}}
{{MedalSport | Men's [[canoe sprint]]}}
{{MedalCountry | {{HUN}}}}
{{MedalCount|total=yes
|[[Olympic Games]]|1|0|1
|[[ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships|World Championships]]|4|2|2
|[[Canoe Sprint European Championships|European Championships]]|1|0|1
}}
{{MedalOlympic}}
{{MedalGold|[[2000 Summer Olympics|2000 Sydney]]|[[Canoeing at the 2000 Summer Olympics – Men's C-2 500 metres|C-2 500 m]]}}
{{MedalBronze|[[1996 Summer Olympics|1996 Atlanta]]|[[Canoeing at the 1996 Summer Olympics – Men's C-1 500 metres|C-1 500 m]]}}
{{MedalWorldChampionships}}
{{MedalGold|[[1993 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships|1993 Copenhagen]]|C-4 1000 m}}
{{MedalGold|[[1994 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships|1994 Mexico City]]|C-4 1000 m}}
{{MedalGold|[[1995 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships|1995 Duisburg]]|C-1 1000 m}}
{{MedalGold|[[2003 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships|2003 Gainesville]]|C-4 1000 m}}
{{MedalSilver|[[1994 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships|1994 Mexico City]]|C-1 500 m}}
{{MedalSilver|[[1999 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships|1999 Milan]]|C-2 500 m}}
{{MedalBronze|[[1995 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships|1995 Duisburg]]|C-1 500 m}}
{{MedalBronze|[[2003 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships|2003 Gainesville]]|C-4 500 m}}
{{MedalBottom}}

'''Imre Pulai''' (born November 14, 1967, in [[Budapest]]) is a [[Hungary|Hungarian]] [[canoe racing|sprint canoeist]], who won two Olympic medals in the [[sprint canoe|Canadian canoeing]] event, including a gold medal at the [[2000 Summer Olympics]] with teammate [[Ferenc Novák]].

As a twenty-year-old, Pulai reached the [[Canoeing at the 1988 Summer Olympics – Men's C-1 1000 metres|C-1 1000 m]] final at the [[1988 Summer Olympics]] in [[Seoul]], finishing in sixth place. However, it was not until [[1993 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships|five years later]] that he won the first of his four [[ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships|world championship]] gold medals - in the C-4 1000 m in [[Copenhagen]]. In [[1994 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships|1994]], he retained that title and a [[1995 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships|year later]], he was individual world champion, ending [[Ivans Klementjevs]]'s run of five straight victories in [[Duisburg]]. That achievement earned him the title of 1995 Hungarian Sportsman of the Year. At the [[1996 Summer Olympics]] in [[Atlanta]], he won the [[Canoeing at the 1996 Summer Olympics – Men's C-1 500 metres|C-1 500 m]] bronze medal.

After Atlanta, his career took another dip until he teamed up with [[Ferenc Novák]] in the C-2. In [[1999 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships|1999]], their first season together, the pair were world silver medalists and went on to win the [[Canoeing at the 2000 Summer Olympics – Men's C-2 500 metres|C-2 500 m]] gold medal at the [[2000 Summer Olympics]] in [[Sydney]]. When the two were paired up, they became known as "The Monster and the Little Guy" because of the size differential between them (Pulai was {{convert|6|ft|6.5|in|m|abbr=on}} and weighed {{convert|214|lb|kg}} while Novák was {{convert|5|ft|8|in|m|abbr=on}} and weighed {{convert|170|lb|kg}}.).

In [[2003 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships|2003]] Pulai won his fourth world championship gold in the C-4 1000 m at [[Gainesville, Georgia]], [[United States]] and he won also his second bronze medal in the C-4 500 m event. Most assumed that would be the final medal of his long career, but in 2006 he made a comeback at the 2006 European Championships, held in [[Račice (Litoměřice District)|Račice]], Czech Republic, winning a C-4 500 m bronze medal. At the age of thirty-eight he was the second-oldest male competitor.

Pulai is nicknamed "Sumák".

In February 2008, Pulai met with the [[International Luge Federation]] in [[Berlin]] to help promote [[luge]] in his native [[Hungary]] which Pulai started competing in 2005. At the [[FIL European Luge Championships 2010]] in [[Sigulda]], he finished 34th in the men's singles event.

==Awards==

* Hungarian canoer of the Year (1): 1994
* [[Hungarian Sportspeople of the Year|Hungarian Sportman of the Year]] (1) - votes of sports journalists: 1995

;Orders and special awards
* [[File:HUN Cross of Merit of the Hungarian Rep (civil) Silver BAR.svg|60px|Ribbon]]  [[Order of Merit of the Republic of Hungary|Cross of Merit of the Republic of Hungary]] – Silver Cross (1996)
* [[File:HUN Order of Merit of the Hungarian Rep (civil) 4class BAR.svg|60px|Ribbon]]  Order of Merit of the Republic of Hungary – Officer's Cross (2000)

==References==

*{{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140116114409/http://www.fil-luge.org/filext/athlet/erfolge_en.asp?p_id=100864 |date=January 16, 2014 |title=FIL-Luge.org profile. }}
* [http://www.fil-luge.org/News-Detail.155.0.html?&tx_ttnews%5BpS%5D=1201820400&tx_ttnews%5BpL%5D=2505599&tx_ttnews%5Barc%5D=1&tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D=2947&tx_ttnews%5BbackPid%5D=157&cHash=38a09d848b Olympic champion in canoeing Imre Pulai tries luge.] at the [[Fédération Internationale de Luge de Course]] (19 February 2008 article accessed 8 December 2009.)
* {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100105013709/http://canoeicf.com/site/canoeint/if/downloads/result/Pages%201-41%20from%20Medal%20Winners%20ICF%20updated%202007-2.pdf?MenuID=Results%2F1107%2F0%2CMedal%5Fwinners%5Fsince%5F1936%2F1510%2F0 |date=2010-01-05 |title=ICF medalists for Olympic and World Championships – Part 1: flatwater (now sprint): 1936–2007 }}
* {{Webarchive |url=https://www.webcitation.org/5l9vPO85Y?url=http://www.canoeicf.com/site/canoeint/if/downloads/result/Pages%2042-83%20from%20Medal%20Winners%20ICF%20updated%202007.pdf?MenuID=Results%2F1107%2F0%2CMedal%5Fwinners%5Fsince%5F1936%2F1510%2F0 |date=2009-11-09 |title=ICF medalists for Olympic and World Championships – Part 2: rest of flatwater (now sprint) and remaining canoeing disciplines: 1936–2007}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20130328111618/http://kataca.hu/sport/kajakkenu/pulai/ Kataca.hu Profile] {{in lang|hu}}
* {{cite Sports-Reference|url=https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/pu/imre-pulai-1.html |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100909033437/http://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/pu/imre-pulai-1.html |archivedate=2010-09-09 }}
* Wallechinsky, David and Jaime Loucky (2008). "Canoeing: Men's Canadian Pairs 500 Meters". In ''The Complete Book of the Olympics: 2008 Edition''. London: Aurum Press Limited. p.&nbsp;482.

==External links==
* {{FIL|imre-pulai|Imre Pulai|archive=20190804111848}}

{{s-start}}
{{s-ach|aw}}
{{succession box
|before=[[Norbert Rózsa]]
|title=[[Hungarian Sportsman of The Year]]
|years=1995
|after=[[István Kovács (boxer)|István Kovács]]
}}
{{s-end}}

{{Footer Olympic Champions C-2 500 m}}
{{Footer World Champions Canoe Sprint C-1 1000 m Men}}
{{Footer World Champions Canoe Sprint C-4 1000 m Men}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pulai, Imre}}
[[Category:1967 births]]
[[Category:Canoeists at the 1988 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Canoeists at the 1992 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Canoeists at the 1996 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Canoeists at the 2000 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Hungarian male canoeists]]
[[Category:Hungarian male lugers]]
[[Category:ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships medalists in Canadian]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 1996 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 2000 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Olympic bronze medalists for Hungary]]
[[Category:Olympic canoeists for Hungary]]
[[Category:Olympic gold medalists for Hungary]]
[[Category:Olympic medalists in canoeing]]
[[Category:Canoeists from Budapest]]
[[Category:20th-century Hungarian sportsmen]]