Remembering Marian Cozma In Bucharest

The cooperation of Hungarian and Romanian nationals we have seen in the beginning of the year, when handball player Marian Cozma was murdered in Veszprém, was unprecedented. The sad and bloody event could have provided a breeding ground for intensifying the differences, stirring up hate, but love and cooperation prevailed in the people: mourning has forged the two nations together, because this time all of us had to suffer a common loss. For Marian was loved by at least as many people on this side of the Hungarian-Romanian border as on the other side. Petre Cozma, the father of the sportsman also had a great role in establishing peace; in his huge loss, even in the deepest time of mourning, he looked at the Hungarians, the people of Veszprém, and all those who loved his son so much, as friends.

– I still say that my son had two homes, Romania and Hungary. In your country they loved my son at least as much as they love Hungarian sportsmen, if not even more. I still call his fellows ‘my sons’ – Petre Cozma told honvedelem.hu. He arrived to Bucharest with the Hungarian delegation but went to his son in the cemetery already on Saturday evening.

– There you are! This is what… this is what has remained of my son! Of course, my first thought was that I would take revenge personally! But fortunately, there were some people around me who immediately tried to calm me down, and they have convinced me that I should leave the search for the criminals to those whose job it is. And it is good that I did so, for the detectives are still doing a successful job and keep identifying people who had something to do with the death of my son. But I’m not angry with the Hungarians, on the contrary! Even today I see many candles, Hungarian ribbons in the cemetery, left by my son’s grave by people who loved him. The other day I personally met a girl in the cemetery. It turned out that she was from Veszprém… I invited her to my family for a conversation. This is what keeps the strength in us… the love of my grandchild, my two daughters, and You – said the broken giant, who meant all his son’s supporters by that.

Of course, the father was also present in Dinamo Stadium when the members of the Romanian and the Hungarian government, and senior officials responsible for sports, as well as politicians from both countries inaugurated the memorial plaque of Marian Cozma.

– All of us remember that the father carried the load of this stupefying grief with an exceptional strength of mind, humanity. My respect and appreciation for the human firmness, strength of mind the Cozma family has proven and is proving concerning the loss of their child – Imre Szekeres recalled the days following the news of Marian Cozma’s death. – The memories of Veszprém and the inhabitants of the town of the days of the tragedy are also heartrending. Thousands of people lit candles at the scene of the murder, they were burning for weeks, and the flames of remembrance could not go out. And one week later, the team that lost its pillar, its strongest bastion, won a match in the Champions League – as a tribute to the memory of Marian Cozma – against one of its rivals in the group. Then the team and six thousand supporters from Veszprém were crying together…

Marian Cozma grew up here, in the team of Dinamo Bucharest, this is where he became an excellent handball player. He got into the national team from here, and later he transferred to Veszprém from here. The memorial plaque has been unveiled in the place where the world-famous sportsman was raised, trained, where the groundwork was laid for his career. And where new talents are trained as well, who, if they stop at this memorial plaque for a moment, will take strength from the talent and diligence of Marian Cozma. For Marian Cozma has become a role model, who, despite his young age, had so many successes that would be enough for a lifetime – Imre Szekeres recalled the achievements of the young sportsman in his address.

The event was attended by Vasile Blaga, Minister of the Interior of the Romanian Republic, Elizabeta Lipa, Chairperson of Dinamo Sports Club, Colita Eugen, Deputy Chair of Dinamo Sports Club, Ovidiu Semen, the head of the handball section of Dinamo Handball Associaton, and – from the Hungarian side – Minister of Defence Imre Szekeres, Oszkár Füzes, Hungary’s Ambassador to Bucharest, MoD Chief of Defence Staff General László Tömböl, János Debreczenyi, the mayor of Veszprém, and László Diósi, the CEO of OTP Bank Romania.