Mikl�s Martin is a Hungarian water polo player who competed in the 1952 and 1956 Summer Olympics. He was born in Budapest. Martin was part of the Hungarian team which won the gold medals in the 1952 and the 1956 tournaments. He played two matches, including the "Blood in the Water" semi-final match against the Soviet Union, and scored five goals. His name is often left out of the 1956 Olympics because he defected to the United States immediately after the games, along with numerous fellow Olympians, and the communist party of Hungary at the time omitted him. In all, the U.S. State Department granted asylum to 34 of the Hungarian athletes. In June 2012, the magazine Sports Illustrated published a detailed account of the Hungarian defections that resulted from the Soviet Union's involvement in Hungary. The magazine itself played a key role in facilitating a secret plan to bring defecting Olympians to the United States. When the Hungarian delegation touched down in Darwin, Australia, Martin, one of the only athletes who read English, found a newspaper in the transit lounge and shared its reports. He became one of the primary spokespeople for the group. 

June 29th, 1931 in Budapest  /  Died:   Mar 26th, 2019 - aged 87