Krisztina Polgar

About Krisztina Polgar

I am an adrenaline junkie and always have been. Modeling, poker, motherhood, traveling, cooking, and sports – I am passionate about everything I do.

Coming from a small town in Hungary in Eastern Europe there is not much opportunity for you unless you really are determined. I was 14 years old when my mum supported me to join a model agency. It was a very unique thing to do at that time in Eastern Europe, I even remember people making negative comments about it. I, however, enjoyed it, and as a natural next step, I find myself participating in national beauty contests. A whole new world opened up for me and l felt I am capable of much more. I was looking for opportunities to try myself. When I was 17, a national television channel bought the license of Fear Factor and I joined the first season. Of course, I did not know what I was signing up for, but when only two of us remained for the last challenge I started to believe that I can win this game. I remember hanging over a lake, holding onto a helicopter’s landing skid, thinking it is the steering wheel of my first car which I will buy if I won’t fall and win the game. And so I did. I won the game. However, the challenges did not stop there as I won a beauty contest a week later where the first price was a car. I was young and I felt accomplished.

Unfortunately, I had to learn quite quickly that life can throw you down easily. When I was 19, I lost my mum, who was my biggest supporter, in a car accident. I had to make a choice, I either give up everything or I come out stronger from this loss and keep on building my life as I imagined. Thanks to the support of my father and brother, I chose the latter. I dedicated my next beauty contest, “Miss Hungary” to my mum in 2008, and I won the title of “Miss Earth Hungary” and represented my country on the international contest held in the Philippines.

The contest in the Philippines actually opened my eyes to many of the problems humanity is facing, such as poverty, environmental pollution and animal cruelty. Ever since I am a devoted advocate for stopping animal cruelty and reducing plastic usage in our everyday lives. I feel it is on us to teach our kids to become mindful people who care about the environment they live in, who understand the privilege of having access to clean water and air.

After the beauty contest as a chapter in my life, I felt it was time to move on and try something new. Something different than beauty industry, something challenging for my mind. I got interested in semi-professional poker playing. Soon after my first successful games, I got sponsored by an online poker company and so I had the chance to participate in the World Championship of Poker in Las Vegas. This was my first time in the United States.

In my mid-twenties, some big changes happened in my private life as well. I met my future husband and soon my two sons were born. Compared to the world of beauty contests, motherhood allows you to explore a totally different side of feminine power. Just as we got used to our new ‘parental’ life my husband got a job offer in Houston, Texas. We only had a few weeks to decide; stay in Hungary or pack up and start a new life on the other side of the world. And here we are, it has been nearly three years since we moved to Houston.

No decisions are easy. When we moved to Houston, I had to leave family, friends, and my career behind to start a new chapter in my life. I had to start everything from scratch in a new country with new people around me who speaks a different language than my native and once the ‘honeymoon’ period was over I felt homesick. I missed my family, I missed my friends and my old life. I, however, looked at it as an opportunity to redefine myself and this is my new venture right now. And actually, it is working out very well. I feel so lucky to be surrounded by amazing people and a fantastic and vibrate community.

As the kids are older now, I have more time to focus on my career; I have returned to the poker table and to the traveling which comes with it, I started to learn a new language, working on my YouTube channel, and building my own business, my own brand.