György Pásztor

György Pásztor (: 2 March 192322 August 2022) was a Hungarian ice hockey player and sports administrator. He won four Hungarian championships as a player, and was a member of the Hungary men's national team. He later served as president of the Hungarian Ice Sports Association, helped establish the Hungarian Ice Hockey Federation, and was a member of the Hungarian Olympic Committee. He was a delegate to the International Ice Hockey Federation, and was chairman of its medical committee for 12 years, overseeing tests for doping in sport. He was inducted into both the IIHF Hall of Fame, and the Hungarian Ice Hockey Hall of Fame. He was made an officer of the Hungarian Order of Merit in 2003, and was referred to as "Mr. Hockey" in Hungary.

Early life and education Pásztor was born on 2 March 1923, in Törökbálint, Hungary. He learned how to skate by gliding around frozen ponds as a youth, and improvised his skates by strapping blades to the bottom of his shoes. He began playing ice hockey in 1933 at age 10, while attending Fasori Gimnázium in Budapest. He practiced with the school for 90 minutes every day at the City Park Ice Rink. He won the high school championship with Fasori in 1937, and later graduated in 1941. and was a player-coach for several seasons.

International hockey service Pásztor was the first person to represent Hungary at the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) meetings, and served as his country's delegate from 1959 to 1982. and was also known as "Gyuri bacsi" (Uncle Gyuri). He was the first Hungarian so honored by the IIHF, and was later joined by countrymen László Schell and Gábor Ocskay. In 1998, he received the Hungarian Order of Merit of Sport. He attended its inauguration at the City Park Ice Rink, on 24 February 2012. Pásztor was also an honorary president of the Hungarian Ice Hockey Association.

Personal life Pásztor was born to a family of pharmacists, including his brother. and is a graduate of the Hungarian Academy of Applied Arts, a member of the Costume Designers Guild, and is associated with The Gersh Agency.

Pásztor died on 22 August 2022, at age 99.