It’s been over a month since we reported that Hungarian national team coach Csaba Sos was getting worried about world record holder Kristof Milak‘s physical conditioning and things haven’t seemed to change.
The Hungarian coaching staff has given an unofficial deadline of the end of January for Milak to get back to serious training for the 23-year-old protege to have any hope of retaining his title as Olympic champion in the men’s 200m butterfly.
Sándor Wladár , the president of the Hungarian Swimming Association, said recently, “the fact that, eight months before the Olympics, I still hear that he is looking for a way and motivation, that we don’t see him in training, we don’t know where he is, fills me with deep sadness. (Origo Sport)
“If Kristóf decides what he wants by the end of January, that is, he starts training then, I think, he can catch up and this may even be enough for an Olympic victory.” (Origo Sport)
Milak withdrew from the 2023 World Championships due to mental and physical fatigue, but he reportedly returned to training in September and was slated to return to competition at October’s World Cup stop in Budapest. However, he pulled out of the meet just a few days before it began with his trainer, Balazs Virth, saying he wasn’t in shape yet.
Related:
- Preparation Issues Cited in Milak’s Shrinkage of 2023 Worlds Event Lineup
- Milak Pulls Out of 2023 Worlds: ‘I’ve Hit Rock Bottom’
- Milak Ready for 2023 World Cup, Paris 2024, and Beyond: ‘I’m Back’
- Milak Withdraws From World Cup Stop in Budapest
Wladár said that Milak ‘owes it to Hungary’ to keep working hard as the butterfly ace ‘has a talent very few athletes have been given in their lifetime.’
He also stated, “He [Milak] only has to swim six to eight kilometers a day, and then he will definitely stand on top of the podium in Paris.”
In Milak’s absence on the international racing scene, contenders to the tune of Japan’s Tomoru Honda, Taiwan’s Kuan-Hung Wang and Canada’s Ilya Kharun have stepped up.
The trio currently rank 1-3 in the 200m fly worldwide this season, with Honda’s season-best of 1:53.15 produced for gold at last year’s Asian Games.
Milak’s World Record remains at the 1:50.34 he produced at the 2022 World Championships on his home soil. Honda’s personal best checks in at the 1:52.70 he logged in December of that same year. Milak, on his A-game, is still far and away the best 200m flyer on the planet.
Frenchman Leon Marchand was the quickest 200m fly performer of 2023, capturing a new lifetime best of 1:52.43 national record en route to 2023 World Championships gold. Poland’s Krzysztof Chmielewski is another viable candidate for Paris 2024 gold, with the USC Trojan showing no signs of slowing down with fewer than 200 days to go until the Olympics.
We’ll continue to follow the story of Kristof Milak and if the 200m fly king can get back on track to potentially wear the crown once again.
Just for this https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SQmQ2B1QfSU he deserves to get paid for the next 5 generations
How much are you chipping in?
ISL as benchmark
Man, these guys keep doing him dirty in their interviews..
no shot against Kharun, Heilman, Honda, Marchand, or the polish dude (I aint spelling that). Even if he returns he won’t medal
Depands on him. He could easily win both.
Hungarian coaches and leadership keep putting undue pressure on Milak.
They should have given him support in 2022 after Budapest and should have not kept pressuring him to keep training.
I blame it all on them. They’re responsible for the whole Milak situation.
This is simply uninformed and incorrect. The coaches and leadership have given him everything he’s requested and shown incredible patience, over more than a few years, often standing waiting at the pool as he’s treated training as optional and subject to his whim. He’s an incredible talent and no-one wants to see that go to waste but the reality is that the Hungarian nation pays him to train and prepare for the Olympics, he takes the money but doesn’t show. Not a great example to the kids.
Sorry but over more than a few years is also incorrect and simply not true. Happened in the past that’s true but not often. He got his money for his medals that’s true. The nation pays him? Not. Only who’s paying tax, nobody else and it’s less than half of the population. Honved has some sponsors e.g because of him and gets a lot of money thru the leadership. Mainly why? Because of him. Paying it what happened in the past not what will happen in the future. And of course he has some personal sponsors. That’s correct, informed and true.
What’s uninformed and untrue is that “undue pressure was put on him to train”. Not sure how informed you are about his training attendance but “not often” is a naive understatement say dating back to 2019. Now it seems he could still perform while his coaches spent a lot of wasted hours waiting for him by the side of the pool. We can split hairs on the nations funding but the whole population pays VAT or AFA for example. I’m not going to dive into the finances of Honved but for your consideration they get substantial government funding for results which include Kristofs, but it’s still funded by government money, he gets payments from the federation, tax funded money, all… Read more »
For example I live here and know something. And you not. You are a troll and yelous. Funny 🙂
Not a fan of the Hungarian swimming leadership selling him out in the media. They are more likely to be fostering resentment than motivation with this ‘strategy.’
Why does he need help? He may be burned out and done..he owes Hungary nothing..hope he doesn’t read all the crap being said..He has done it all! I wish swimswam wouldn’t even post stuff like this.
Talent like that can resume training later than the coaches prefer to believe. Sjostrom in 2021 hadn’t broken her elbow yet
But Milak has already been out of training since at least last summer whereas Sjostrom was in peak pre-Olympic form when she got hurt. Oh, and Milak swims one of the most taxing races in the sport (Sjostrom came back for the 50)
On your last point, I mean…to be fair in 2008 Phelps had just broken his wrist at this point. And he did ok in the 200 fly that year. At least one or two other events, too lol.
Granted, your first point is absolutely right. This is REAL late in the game to not have an aerobic base built.
Phelps in 2008 hadn’t lost an iota of motivation.
Milak has lost tons of motivation.
Massive difference.
Phelps was also still training, albeit exclusively with a kickboard.
You are right. 200 fly is a race you can’t fake it until you make it. The piano will get you on the last 50 if you aren’t in shape.
Milak is a powerhouse, a superstar. Is going to win gold in at least the 200 Fly believe you me.
As of now he might extend his break to go enjoy the carnaval do Rio in February…but after that is going to be fully commuted into getting that Second gold medal for sure