Interviews

Interview with Zaránd Lánczi

Back in the spring of 2020, Folyosó held an interview with Varga student and folk dancer Dániel Lipcsei. Five and a half years later, we continue this interview series. Our guest today is Zaránd János Lánczi, an eleventh-grade Varga student who, with his partner Kevin Budai, won first place in the junior men’s category of the 2025 ICF Kayak-Canoe Maraton World Championship in Győr.

Let’s begin with your championship. Please tell us about it.

It was a marathon world championship. It took place in Győr, Hungary. All types of canoes and kayaks, all ages from juniors to seniors participated. It was beautiful; I really liked the track, because I’m familiar with it, and every year we have the marathon Hungarian championship there.

Which countries finished first, second, and third in your race?

We came in first place, the British team came in second, and South Africa third.

When did you first become interested in kayaking?

I had a friend who was involved in kayaking. At the time I was playing handball and was very bad at it. I don’t really like sports with balls; I’m bad at those sports. My friend told me I should really start kayaking, because I like the water. For the first three or four years nothing happened, and then I had my first competition in 2021. That year wasn’t that good, but in ’22 I won my first Hungarian championship world medal, in K4 2000 meters, and in ’23 I finished I think fifth place in a K1 (one-seater boat) 1000-meter race, so I think that was my career’s beginning. And from that point onward I have been getting better and better.

It’s an interesting trajectory: you went from not being good at a certain kind of sport to being a champion in a different kind of sport.

Yes, and I was pretty bad at kayaking in the beginning.

What are the most challenging aspects of kayaking?

The technique. I don’t think there’s a perfect technique; it depends on the person, the type of water, and your strength, so it’s difficult to learn. And in trainings you have to pay attention to the pace, the coach, the technique, all at once.

Which aspects of kayaking do you consider your greatest strengths, and which parts do you need to work on the most?

I have to work on my technique a lot. I think I’m really good at K1, also in the K2 (two-seater), but not the marathon, because I’m not as quick as the others in speed changes; that’s the thing I need to improve.

That leads to my next question. Do you prefer solo kayaking or kayaking with a partner?

It depends. You can do both. This year I participated in both two-seater and one-seater competitions. Even four-seaters. Even in one competition you can do both.

Can you think of a time when you lost a competition but still felt proud of your accomplishment?

Yes. When you finish not in first place, but still on the podium, it’s great, but how you feel depends on whether you gave it your best. If you gave it your best, you feel great, and if something happened, you feel a bit depressed, but you should get over it and move on.

Your competitions have taken you to different countries. Where have you traveled?

Last year I had my first official international race last year. It was the OHR (Olympic Hopes Regatta) and it took place in Szeged. This year I had some more. The first one was in Portugal, it was the European championship, I think it was June 8 when we won, and then in the summer was the Győr marathon world championship. We took part in some other competitions as well: in ’23 we went to Bratislava, Slovakia. It was a small competition, but it was fun, it was the end of autumn, and we have even visited Ljubljana with my coach and team every year. And we have been to Croatia for training camp.

What can go wrong in the water? Does the boat ever tip over?

Rarely. It’s rare that you fall in the water, because you’re a professional. Of course, mistakes can happen, especially in the marathon races, for instance if someone runs into you and you lose balance. That can happen especially after the running part of the marathon: we get into the boat, and there can be lots of collisions. It happened that the British team came from the right side, next to the riverside, and ran into the water near us, but we just went, because we had the right to go.

And there’s a referee judging these things.

Yes. If someone does something illegal, they get a time penalty.

What are your upcoming competitions and goals?

We don’t know, but I really want to participate in the flatwater competition in a one-seater boat next year, especially the one-thousand meter race. That would be a big dream for me.

What does “flatwater” mean?

It means that you stay in the boat; you don’t run. The distances are shorter: 5000 meters, 2000, 1000, 500, 200 meters. In the Olympic races there are K2 500 meters and K1 1000 meters. These are the most popular and highest ranked types of races. The K4 500-meter race is also very important.

So the type of water is involved in this too.

Yes, flatwater races are usually in water without a current, but marathon races are usually in rivers and other bodies of water with currents.

When you’re in the water in a competition, what’s going through your mind?

Guns ‘n Roses. (Laughs.) Music.

So you’re thinking of a Guns ‘n Roses song as you charge along.

Yes. I also have to pay attention to the rhythm, the pace, my technique.

My final question: How does kayaking affect your approach to learning and life?

I think I have to learn faster, because I have to sleep at some point. I have heard that people who do sports are better at learning. My coach heard a story that someone got injured and couldn’t do training for a year, and his study skills went down.

Do you carry your competitive spirit into your studies and life, or is it mostly on the water that it plays out?

I’m a very energetic person, so I can spend my energy everywhere.

Is there anything you’d like to bring up that I haven’t asked about yet?

In the world championship, in the running part, the other Hungarians did something wrong, and Andris Mózes, a member of the team, said he had got sick, so they stayed behind us, and we went by three boat crews, the Hungarians, the British, and the South African. Something bad happened with our boat, it’s difficult to explain, but on the footboard there’s a strap that keeps your foot in place, and after the sixth running part, in the middle of the race, it stripped. That means you can give only about 80 percent of your power. It was strange, because that night I had dreamed about that. When it happened, I shouted, “I dreamed about that!”

And at the end you and the British were close to each other. Were there moments when you alternated being in front?

No, because after the third and last running part, we really went forward, that was the turning point, and it was clear at that point that we would finish first. After the footstrap stripped, I was worried that we would come in third, but by now it was clear that we were ahead. It’s nice to remember what happened there. It was beautiful. I even cried. Then we got out of the boat, ran to our families, hugged them. We had to do some interviews, and then came the medal ceremony, they played our national anthem, it was beautiful.

And then you went to a restaurant and had a good meal.

Yes.

And now for my real last question! Please tell us about your partner.

He’s a great friend of mine. His name is Kevin Budai. I think the first time we were in a boat together was in late 2022. We know each other well. It’s magical when we’re in a boat, I can feel what Kevin wants to do, and I follow him pretty well. I can sense what he’s about to do: when he’s going to put more effort into it and accelerate, and when he’s taking back the pace to save more energy. It helps that we’ve been kayaking together for so long. As I said, he’s a great friend of mine; we’re always in the same room at national training camp. We talk a lot, and now we usually do some driving together too. So now we do hooligan stuff in addition to kayaking.

That’s important…

Yes, it’s important to keep the friendship connection. We have a great team here in Szolnok; we’re almost like family.

Congratulations on your accomplishments, Zaránd, and best wishes to you, Kevin, and your team!

Top photo courtesy of kajakkenusport.hu; bottom photo courtesy of Zaránd Lánczi.

Interview with Dániel Lipcsei

Each issue of Folyosó will feature an interview with a Varga student. For our first Folyosó interview, we are honored to speak with Dániel Lipcsei, a folk dancer in two ensembles, Rákóczi Néptáncetyüttes—Rákóczifalva and Tisza Táncegyüttes, and a member of Class 11.C at the Varga Katalin Gimnázium. Please scroll down for the full interview!

Let’s start with something recent: your performance of “Szászcsávási táncok” at the 11th National Solo Youth Competition. Could you say something about the particular dance that you performed? Where does it come from? It seems to go through several phases; could you explain the form and the parts?

This dance comes from Szászcsávás, a little town in Transylvania. In this village, Roma (cigány, “gypsy”) and Hungarian people live next to each other, but the Roma are separated to a place, the so-called Cigánysor part of the village (in Transylvania this is common in small villages, but now this seems to be disappearing), so their dance differs from the Hungarians’.* I performed the Roma dance. As you said, there were two parts. The first part is the so-called pontozó. (A bit of history about the pontozó: In lots of villages in that territory we can find pontozó danced by men, but in Szászcsávás only Roma people danced pontozó because the Hungarian men were taken to the army; since no one could teach pontozó to the youth, the Hungarian pontozó disappeared from this village.) The second part is the so-called csingerálás. Officially this is danced in pairs, so when men dance it alone, it is often called sűrű verbunk. This is much faster and physically demanding than pontozó. For the most part, we can find the same motifs in both dance parts, but in the pontozó, at the end of every tune, we can find a closing motif, and then the next tune picks up from there.

Do you see dance as a way to build understanding between the Roma and Hungarian peoples, as well as others?

Yes, definitely, because through learning these dances we can understand each other’s culture. When we learn a Roma dance, we should learn to think about it the way they do. Dance is a language; we learn more than the specific steps and movements. The steps carry a feeling and a way of life.

When did you begin folk dancing seriously, and how did this happen?

If we include learning folk-games, in kindergarten. But if we exclude it, I would say fourth grade. But I started to take it really seriously in seventh grade.

What is a typical practice session like for you, either alone or with one of your groups?

I would start with the group practices. In the beginning we warm up precisely, unless this may lead to injuries. Then we review the previously learned motifs or the choreography needed for the dance. After that we continue learning new motifs or repeat the choreography as many times as possible to make it perfect. A lot of times we change little things in order to get a better result. This goes on for 1.5 to 2 hours. Then we stretch our stressed muscles, stay to talk to each other, and then go home.

When I practice alone, it is a bit different. I shorten the warm-up and stretching parts, which is a bad habit of mine. Usually I learn new types of dances at home; I just rarely review those we learned with the group: for example, when we practice for a performance.

Does your dance group Rákóczi Néptáncegyüttes—Rákóczifalva focus on a particular kind of Hungarian folk dance: for instance, Transylvanian? What can you say about the group and what it does?

The group does not specialize in Transylvanian dances, or in strictly Hungarian ones. Each year we learn two dances. One from Hungary and one from Transylvania, because both are very important for us to learn. They differ stylistically, so it does not get boring, let us say, after six months.

The Hungarian folk dance that I have seen so far is a form of music in itself—with singing during the dance, and percussion created by the dance. Could you say something about the musical aspect of your dancing?

I would say that the music of Hungarian and Transylvanian folk dances are colorful. All of them are different, but we can find similar details in them: for example, the same tunes, same lyrics, and things like that. In different regions we can find really different dance styles and music because of the effects of the neighboring countries. For example, in the northern part of Hungary, dances and music are similar to Slovak ones, and so on with the other parts of the country. Some of them are slower, some of them are faster, but they all are beautiful in their own way. There were tunes during which people do not dance but instead sing while the music is going on. These are really slow and often about sad stories: for example, the death of a loved one or an unrequited love. I think that the most beautiful ones are from Kalotaszeg (a part of Transylvania); these are called hajnali.

Could you say something about a folk dancer or group whom you particularly admire?

The folk dancer I most admire is Szabolcs Kabdebon, whom I have known since fifth grade. We have become really good friends in these years. He is like a second father to me, because I can rely on him whenever I have problems in my private life. He completed the Hungarian Dance University, so he also knows a lot about dance. Also he is the one who taught me the dances of Szászcsávás, and he has already given me a lot of knowledge. To be exact, everything I know about folk dance is from him.

Of all the festivals, competitions, and other events in which you have performed, which ones stand out in your memory, and why?

Obviously the previously mentioned 11th National Solo Youth Competition. This competition had a previous qualification part, and getting into the finals has been my biggest achievement so far in folk dancing. But this is not the only reason why this is really important for me. We spent three days there and it was amazing! With me was my girlfriend, one of our friends, and my teachers (there are five of them because I take part in three folk-dance groups), who are also our friends. We had fun throughout those days.

Please say anything else that you would like about Hungarian folk dancing in general or about your own work and art.

I have only two things to add. I have said a few things about the Roma pontozó but nothing in connection with the Hungarian version. Since there is no Hungarian pontozó in Szászcsávás, I would like to present a Hungarian pontozó from the village Magyarózd (another little town close to Szászcsávás. I am doing this to point out the differences. The main difference is that Hungarians do not have the “bouncy” style that the Roma have. Their movements are more stuck to the ground. This difference applies not only to the pontozó, but to many dances across many regions of Hungary. Also, Roma dances are generally more free, whereas their Hungarian counterparts have stricter rules.

The second thing is that all folk-dance groups differ a bit from each other. They behave somewhat like families. Everyone can speak about their problems and we are always there to help. I have tried other kinds of sports, such as football and basketball, but I never experienced this kind of relationship between the members.

How are you continuing with folk dance during the coronavirus pandemic?

We are not meeting in person, but we still have plans: for instance, online choreography. The teachers send their expectations for the choreography and explain how the dance should be recorded. Then we record the dance individually, send our videos to the teachers, and they will put it all together.

How can we find out about your dance groups and future performances?

You can find and follow them on Facebook. The Rákóczi Néptáncetyüttes—Rákóczifalva and the Tisza Táncegyüttes both have their own pages, with information, announcements, photos, videos, and more.

Thank you, Dániel Lipcsei, for this interview! We wish you the best and look forward to your next performance!

*In this interview, “Roma” refers to the cultural and ethnic group also known as cigány (or in English, “gypsy”). “Hungarian” refers to the cultural and ethnic group known as magyar.

Folyosó

a journal by students of the Varga Katalin Gimnázium

Folyosó

Interview with Zaránd Lánczi

Interview with Dániel Lipcsei

Gábor Áron rézágyúja fel van virágozva

Macsek (részlet)

The Tour of Deception

The Precedent

Sunlight Through Dust

Interviews

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