Born in Hungary and playing football since a small child, I still vividly remember a television replay of the 1953 match of the century at Wembley Stadium, in which England’s team, undefeated for nearly a century, faced the Golden Squad from the Continent. The match was not only the start of modern football, but also one of the defining moments of my childhood and my life-long involvement as a player, a bettor and a fan of football.
During high school, I was known for my strong analytic abilities, which won me a number of math competitions and chess tournaments. That didn’t impress the girls, however. Nevertheless, I grew up to become a normal person, and graduated with an MSc degree in electrical engineering. While attending university, I frequented the local race track between trivial lectures and demanding but friendly football matches. This is where I developed an appreciation for the intricacies of percentages, statistics, systems and betting.
Entering my adult life, I decided to put challenge right at my footsteps and emigrated to Canada. Part of the culture shock for me was that North Americans not only played football differently, but also called the game I loved ‘soccer’. Moreover, up North this was a girls’ sport at the time, which struck me as quite odd.
While still playing in casual soccer matches and closely following the international football scene, I started to concentrate my betting on horse racing. It was this adventure that allowed me to hone my analysis skills as they pertain to statistics, systems and betting. Later, through trial and error and with the help of a computer, I perfected a structured method for developing betting systems that not only show great results using past data but hold up in real time, as well. The culmination of this work is the Soccer-Systems website.
Naturally, I have credits in the serious adult world, as well, most notably in hardware development, and technical and project management for the high-technology industry. Recently I was heavily involved in starting up a new Waldorf school, and have also worked as a high-school science and computer teacher. Moreover, my wife is a Waldorf class (grades) teacher, and we are also - you guessed it - Waldorf parents. I have been studying Rudolf Steiner's anthroposophy for many years and am making an effort to lead a balanced, environmentally conscious and spiritually fulfilling life. This includes regular exercise and rest, a vegan diet, getting involved in artistic activities, reading, intellectual endeavours as highlighted above, contemplating and talking about the meaning of life and one's values, as well as reflecting on our place in the world.
I plan to contribute to Wikipedia especially on the subjects touched upon above, namely: football (soccer), horse racing, betting, systems development, computers and the internet, as well as Rudolf Steiner, anthroposophy, the Waldorf movement, spirituality and the environment.
Eclectic for life? You bet! :)
--Peter 21:07, 12 August 2005 (UTC)