There are few faster women on the world water polo stage than Hungary’s 2020 Olympic bronze medallist and triple World Championship silver medallist Vanya Valyi. The Ferencvaros club player answered these searching questions for Scoring Goals.
Tell us about your younger years and how you reached the international stage.
"Wow, I really have to go way back for that! In my childhood, everything revolved around water polo. I started when I was five years old, first in Eger, playing with boys, and later I joined a girls’ team. At 15, I moved to Dunaujvaros – 220km away from my family – and that’s where I started playing more seriously. I was still a junior, but I was already part of the senior team.
"I played my first international matches as a youth player, so I was really young. I feel that everything came quite early in my life, but that allowed me to gain a lot of experience quickly. Now, at 26, I’ve already played in countless international matches — including a European Super Cup victory, and last year we reached the Champions League Final Four with Ferencvaros. Naturally, the goal is to reach at least the Final Four again this year — and then we’ll see what comes next,” Vanda Valyi said
Tell us what it was like to join the national team for the first time, and how your role has evolved since then.
"I was first invited to the senior national team in April 2015, when Andras Meresz was the head coach. I played my first games at the World League in France, and after the 2017 World Championships held in Budapest, I became a permanent member of the squad under Attila Biro.
"There was a tougher period too: In 2018, I got mononucleosis, so I had to miss the preparation for the European Championships. My first truly major international event was the 2019 World Championships in Gwangju.
"As a junior, I participated in many world tournaments, often playing in older age categories. As a senior, I’ve won three World Championship silver medals — and each final was a completely different experience.”
You have three World Championship silver medals. What do they mean to you, and how did it feel to lose those finals?
"Each silver medal was different, but all three are special to me.
"The 2022 final in Budapest was the first — playing a World Championship final in front of a home crowd is unforgettable. The second place in Doha in 2024 was a huge validation because after a more difficult period, we proved that we were back among the world’s elite. The 2025 final came with a young, new team — everything felt very natural all the way to the final.
"Of course, it hurts that all three were silver, but playing in three World Championship finals is still an incredible achievement. The gold will come one day — I’m sure of it,” she said.
Which clubs did you play for before joining Ferencvaros, and how has your career evolved since?
"I started in Eger, then moved to Dunaujvaros at 15, where I also played as a senior. I won both the Hungarian Cup and an international cup there. In 2020, I signed with Ferencvaros, where I still play, and last year I won my first national championship title. I spent the 2022–23 season in Italy, playing for Padova — it was an amazing experience — a new country, a new playing culture, a new language.”
"It was a great decision (to go). I got to know a completely different playing culture, learned Italian, and developed a lot. After a year, I came home because my family, university, and the national team are all here — and even though playing abroad was a fantastic experience, Hungary still feels like home to me,” Valyi said.
Do you know how many matches you’ve played for the Hungarian national team so far?
"In the summer, it was around 150, but by now it’s probably somewhere between 175 and 200. I hope to reach my 200th next year.”
When do you think the team’s big breakthrough — the gold medal — will come?
"Honestly? I feel that any of our teams could have already won it. Before each final, I truly believed we could do it. You have to learn how to win finals — we’ve lost quite a few, not only at World Championships, but in World Cups, as well. Our goal now is to take another mental step forward — to play the last match with the same faith and focus as we do on the road leading up to it,” she said.
What happened at the 2024 Paris Olympics?
"Objectively speaking, fifth place was a fair result. We had strong opponents in the group, and everything came down to tiny details — just a few situations at the ends of matches. This time, those moments didn’t go our way.
"We lost the quarterfinal by a single goal — I think that was our best game, but unfortunately, that’s how it turned out. It hurt, of course, but overall, it was a realistic result.”
You’re known for your speed — did you ever compete as a swimmer?
"Yes, as a child I occasionally took part in swimming competitions, although I was never a ’real’ swimmer. Alongside water polo training, I sometimes joined swimming sessions, mostly to work on my technique.
"Many swimmers didn’t like that I came from water polo — I didn’t show up for 6am practices, yet I was still fast. I swam without goggles, because water polo players never use them — so I always stood out a bit.
"My speed, I think, is partly genetic and partly due to my background — I went to a sports school and tried many different sports as a kid. Lots of movement, good reflexes, fast-twitch muscles — all of that together makes me quick,” Valyi said.
Have there ever been games where you didn’t get to the ball first at the start?
"Of course — it’s happened, though rarely. Sometimes it comes down to a hair: the referee’s motion, the timing of the whistle. Sometimes I start too early and they restart it, sometimes the opponent just gets the better jump. But most of the time, I’m the one who gets there first.”
It seems like everyone in your family has some connection to water polo. Is it a kind of family legacy?
"My brother and sister both played water polo, but our parents didn’t — my dad played football, and my mom loves swimming. She was the one who wanted all of us to choose a sport connected to water.
"My brother eventually quit, but my sister stayed in the sport as both a coach and a referee. So yes, the love of water is definitely something we all share,” Valyi said.
How do you see your future, and what goals have you set for yourself in water polo?
"I’m not planning too far ahead — I’ve learned that life always has its own plans. My goal is to keep playing as long as I can perform at the highest physical and mental level.
"I want to continue competing in many international tournaments and achieve success both with Ferencvaros and with the national team. The next big goal is the 2026 European Championships — it’s too early to talk about the 2028 Olympics, as a lot can happen before then. With my club, I want to win the Hungarian Cup in December, then the national championship in (northern) spring, and bring home a medal from the Champions League Final Four.”
What do you enjoy doing outside of water polo?
"I don’t have much free time. We train about eight hours a day, and I’m also attending university, so there’s not much time left at the end of the day.
"When I do have free time, I spend it with my family and friends. I love being in nature, hiking, and reading — although when I actually have time to water my plants and read, my family knows, ’Okay, she really has some time off now’.”
What do you think about the new water polo rules?
"I’m not the type to overanalyse things, but overall, I think the changes have been good for the game. The VAR and challenge systems help clarify many situations, making the sport fairer.
"It’s true that sometimes the matches stop for too long, but they’re trying to speed up the process. My sister is actually doing research on this — and she’s right: the third and fourth quarters have become much more important than before.
"Overall, I don’t feel the game has changed drastically — rather, the entire field has become faster and more responsive. You just have to adapt — like in every other area of life,” Valyi said.