PHOTOS: Teenagers crowned the prettiest at the 200th annual Anna Ball in Balatonfüred
Laura Szabó of Budapest was named the belle of the 200th Anna Ball in Balatonfüred. First runner-up was 17-year-old Laura Windisch of Balatonfüred, and second runner-up was 18-year-old Laura Zsoldos, also from Balatonfüred. All three were making their debut at the ball.
Professional jury selected this year’s belle
At the 200th Anna Ball in Balatonfüred, the audience once again selected the 15 most beautiful debutantes, from whom a professional jury chose the winner and her two runners-up. Following tradition, the newly crowned belle and her court made a symbolic walk from the Anna Grand Hotel to the Tagore Promenade, where they laid floral wreaths at Lake Balaton.
The jury included flutist Eszter Horgas, former Anna Ball belle Korinna Kocsis, journalist Ildikó V. Kulcsár, film producer Attila Csáky, Hungarian State Opera director Szilveszter Ókovács, celebrity hairdresser László Hajas, and businessman Lóránd Gömbös.
The honorees greeted visitors at the Kisfaludy Stage on Sunday morning, before taking a carriage ride through the town.
Top prize: A modernised Herend vase with Victoria pattern
According to Blikk, this year’s ball attracted a record number of attendees, with nearly 800 guests, including 35 debutantes, from whom the top three were selected.
“I’m wearing the dress my mother received from my father twenty years ago. There was never a question—I knew I’d wear it to my first ball. I’m deeply surprised and incredibly happy,” said the winner in an interview with balatonfured.hu. Laura Szabó is set to begin her medical studies this September.
“The belle of the ball received, in addition to the golden apple, a modernized Herend vase with the Victoria pattern, while her court received pieces with Rothschild and Apponyi designs, respectively,” the local media outlet added.
This year, admission to the ball cost HUF 145,000 (EUR 365), and for the first time, guests were given access to the Anna Café terrace. Food and drinks were served using a 3,500-piece Herend porcelain set, valued at approximately HUF 150 million (~EUR 378,000).
The ball was opened by Balatonfüred Mayor István Bóka and last year’s belle, Kriszta Szonja Soós, in the Anna Grand Hotel park.
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The honorary patron of the 200th Anna Ball was Dr. Tamás Freund, neuroscientist and president of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences (MTA).
Revolutionary hero honoured at the first Anna Ball
The first Anna Ball was held on 26 July 1825, in Balatonfüred at the Horváth House, hosted by János Fülöp Horváth Szentgyörgyi in honour of his daughter. That evening, the young Anna Krisztina met her future husband, First Lieutenant Ernő Kiss, who later became a martyred general of the 1848-49 Hungarian Revolution.
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