Top European Athlete Training In Hudson Valley

PLEASANTVILLE, NY — The No. 1 Hungarian sprint hurdler has recently set up shop on the track of Pleasantville High School, as he trains for the IAAF World Championships in Doha, Qatar, where only 40 chosen athletes (110m hurdles) around the world will be competing. Valdó Szűcs is the fiancée of a long-time resident of Pleasantville and will be moving to the area permanently once they are married.

In the meantime, Szűcs also continues to train with his highly esteemed coach, James Hillier, in the United Kingdom and in his hometown of Zalaegerszeg, Hungary. He is supported by his Hometown Club (Zalaszám-ZAC) and his father is a retired professional Hungarian basketball player who was a two-time champion.

Szűcs is also lending his expertise to a few of the Pleasantville High School hurdlers when in town. The 6-foot, 5-inch Olympic hopeful is amassing a fan club in Pleasantville and receiving positive attention as a new member of the community.

The IAAF World Championship races in which Szűcs will compete will be televised on NBC Sports, live from Doha, Qatar, Sept. 30 at 1 p.m. and Oct. 2 at 1 p.m. and 4 p.m.

Szűcs has won 31 Hungarian Championships, and most recently won the 2019 Hungarian National Indoor Championships and the 2019 Hungarian Outdoor Championships after two years of battling injuries. He is presently in eighth place on the European Rankings list (110m hurdles) and is in the top 20 on the World Rankings (110m hurdles) with the time of 13.41 seconds.

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