Those who exercise instead of relaxing

They say that an enterpreneurial approach and a sporting mentality complement each other well. The conclusion is shared by Kornél Bódy, founder and CEO of Plasticor Ltd in Veszprém who, although approaching his sixth decade, still feels bad when he can't move. When it's cold, he skis, snowboards, and plays ice hockey. In milder weather he enjoys orienteering, and in summer he plays tennis, sails, and goes horseback riding. In his spare time he also enjoys basketball, jogging and playing tarot. Meanwhile, whether It is twenty below zero or forty above, he goes everywhere by bicycle.

His father was a surveyor, but when he first met his future wife at a party, his fate was sealed: from then on, he had to "follow" his partner, who was also a physical education teacher, on the slopes, horseback riding, tennis, rowing, kayaking, canoeing, and car racing. Sometimes they skated on the ice, other times they rode in the saddle of their horse or cut through the waves on the deck of their small boat. After all this, is it any wonder that Kornél's son was already skiing in the Bükk at the age of four, and two years later, he was sailing on Lake Mályi near Miskolc.

– recalls Kornél Bódy, who flirted with a career as a physical education teacher in his youth and later won eight Hungarian championship titles in the field of athletics, and thirty years ago at the European Championships in Schwerin, stormy winds prevented him from finishing on the podium. He has not been motivated by success on domestic and international waters for some time now (...he is second in the 2024 rankings, while last year he came third in the big boat championship), but he is still hungry for a good result, which he hopes to achieve with the sail he is developing together with a Hungarian sail designer.

reveals the enterpreneur, who had previously gone running and cycling in the areas near their home in Betekints Valley, and who usually competes against much younger people in order to "check off" as many long distances as possible at events.

– he adds, then I learn that he once took part in a golf tournament in Zirc, which didn't really interest him, so he ran home from there. From the slopes of the Bakony Hills, in a region unknown to him, he made his way to our county seat without a map or compass, and only recognized his surroundings based on the sky. It has been more than ten years since he became an orienteer. At first, he worked for the now defunct Veszprém Bridge and Orienteering SE, because he was as enthusiastic about card games as his father and grandfather, and their tarot table, where he plays with his friends, is slowly turning into a quarter-century-old tradition. He currently plays for the local Honvéd SE team, and competes frequently in their colors in the spring and fall, when winter sports and sailing take a back seat to running.

Besides orienteering, ice hockey is his other great passion, which he became closely involved with two decades ago when he was invited to a training session by a group of friends. He was hooked from the very first game they played together, and just like back then, they still take their games seriously when they take to the field for three-minute shifts. At first, he didn't wear any protective gear, but then he made up for this shortcoming, even though they take care of each other on the ice: they don't push each other onto the boards, and if someone does fall, they stop the game immediately. "Of course," it's still considered a violation, though not to the same extent as it used to be, since he stopped practicing Kyokushin karate, which captivated him after the turn of the millennium. After reaching the blue belt, Kornél Bódy had no excess weight: in full-contact combat sports, he took direct hits and kicks that were not cushioned by any protective padding, so when he suffered his seventh broken bone, he decided that Far Eastern martial arts really weren't for him.

he interrupts with a smile. They play basketball at a level that is entertaining for them and their friends. As the team's manager, he admits that as a basketball player he is just an "amateur tourist," and his teammates find it difficult to play against him because of his normal height, but thanks to his speed, he still manages to score points.

 – says the patented inventor with multiple degrees, and I ask him how he finds the time to do so much alongside his billion-dollar company, Plasticor Ltd.

– he notes. Kornél Bódy, once a manager at a multinational company, had an idea and in 2004 he started his own business, which manufactures injection-molded plastic products. Once he embarked on the project,  for twenty years, he got up every morning at dawn and worked until six in the evening, but he devoted his evenings and weekends to his family: so there is no question that he lived exclusively for his work and hobbies. His kids were not just known from photographs, as he spent a lot of quality time with them in his limited free time. As a result, they all became athletic "beginners." Daughter Blanka, a former sailor, currently snowboards, plays tennis, and plays volleyball in the capital, which she also taught as a student at medical school. Son Döme used to ride a bike, and Gyuri still plays basketball, but they also enjoy sailing and snowboarding. They are also crazy about surfing. – 

– notes the executive, who practiced gymnastics for four years in high school, and was a county champion, and also skied competitively for five years, winning several downhill competitions, and already has a trophy in golf from a minor competition.

However healthy regular exercise may be, he still needs to take care of himself, as he has already undergone several operations. However, he believes that if he had not exercised, his illnesses would have taken a heavy toll on him. This way, he can remain active.

Kornél Bódy, who is missing half of his pancreas, his gallbladder, and has had two deep vein thromboses, does his job with dignity, because he simply does not feel good if he cannot do some kind of sport. Family vacations are also filled with active relaxation; instead of lounging around, they climb Scotland's highest mountain. Even though he has a company car, he goes almost everywhere by bicycle, regardless of the weather. Although he suffers from four types of autoimmune diseases, one of which causes his fingers to freeze below 11 degrees Celsius, he doesn't care; he just puts gloves on his hands.

– he stresses, then mentions that attention deficit hyperactivity disorder also interferes with his life to some extent, but perhaps that is precisely why he has so much energy these days. When organizational development specialists arrived at Plasticor Ltd ten years ago to help the company develop dynamically, the consultants sent them away for a month's rest, far from their "fourth kid." He did not go to a sunny place to relax, but to Irkutsk in Siberia, where even at the end of spring the thermometer registered only a few degrees above zero. But that didn't stop him from climbing mountains in one of the coldest places on Earth, compete in orienteering competitions, playing tennis every day, and celebrating the Buryat Samán festival in the two-degree-Celsius waters of Lake Baikal.

Kornél Bódy, who speaks several languages and plays five instruments, believes that when people exercise, they maintain their bodies, organisms, and minds properly. This is why he was able to "come back" so well and so quickly from his various surgeries—or rather, to "keep his illnesses in check" because he is constantly on the move. He decided that as long as his strength allowed, sports would always be a part of his life. For him, this means different experiences, a broader worldview, and opportunities for personal development. He has already decided that when he retires, he and his wife will try their hands at folk dancing. His high school teacher wife is unlikely to object, as she also exercises regularly and is already used to her husband's "whims." Incidentally, he also met his wife on a ski slope, just as his parents had met.

Author: Ferenc Király