The Lehigh Valley sports community lost a legend last week when legendary Liberty soccer coach, Kalman Sarkozy Sr., passed away at the age of 74 following a battle with cancer.

Sarkozy was a hall of fame coach, guiding Liberty’s boys’ program for 23 years (1980-2003), amassing 342 wins and three District 11 titles. He stepped down from the head coaching role at Liberty in 2003, but stayed on as an assistant until 2016.

The Hungarian born Sarkozy, who immigrated to the United States in 1956, will go down as one of the most influential members of the soccer community. He was a talented player for the Hurricanes during his high school tenure, as the team went 30-0 during his time, where he named a two-time MVP for Liberty. He then went on to play professionally in New York and Philadelphia.

Following his playing days, he went on to coach various club teams in the area, helped start Liberty’s girls’ program, assisted as co-director with the Lehigh Valley Summer League for 30 years and ultimately became one of Liberty’s greatest coaches in school history.

He was a member of Liberty’s Sport Hall of Fame and the PIAA Soccer Hall of Fame.

Sarkozy is survived by his wife Harriet; daughter Erika Sarkozy Barron and her husband Joseph of Bethlehem; son Kalman Sarkozy, Jr. of Bethlehem; grandchildren Julius and Olivia Sarkozy, John and Kalman Barron; brother Sandor Sarkozy of Florida. Kalman was predeceased by his siblings William, Julius, Rudolf and Jozsef Sarkozy, and Vilma Desaknay.