According to available sources, swimming emerged as an organized sport in Novi Bečej in 1934. The local historian Lazar Mečkić, in his book Novi Bečej i Vranjevo kroz istoriju od najstarijih dana do 1941 (published by Radnički dom “Jovan Veselinov Žarko,” Novi Bečej, 1989), writes on page 335:
"Swimming as an organized sport only appeared in 1934, when in the summer, the water polo club Jedinstvo was formed. Its founder was Kelemen, a radio technician who had moved to Novi Bečej from Senta that year, where he had been one of the best water polo players. Upon arrival, he quickly initiated the founding of a water polo club. His efforts were fruitful, and Novi Bečej successfully organized a swimming and water polo competition that year. The competition featured swimmers and water polo players from Vojvodina from Veliki Bečkerek (present-day Zrenjanin), SAK from Senta, and Jedinstvo from Novi Bečej. The competition venue was an improvised pool created with two barges behind a floating bathhouse. Vojvodina from Veliki Bečkerek won the event, followed by athletes from Senta, with Jedinstvo primarily participating and placing second or third in some long-distance swimming events. However, this effort was short-lived, and Novi Bečej saw no organized swimming until 1939."
In Swimming and Water Polo in Novi Bečej (self-published by the author, 2012), on page 16, Dr. Sava Ivanić notes that the club was actually founded a year later:
"The first swimming and water polo club in Novi Bečej, Jedinstvo, was officially established in August 1935. The club was founded by swimming and water polo enthusiasts, with the main initiators being Oto Kinezl, a pharmacist, Imre Kelemen, a radio technician and merchant, and the Sauer brothers, who were students. By the end of July, the club organized its first match in Novi Bečej. The only surviving documents include a poster informing citizens of the event and a photograph of Novi Bečej swimmers. The match was between athletes from Senta and Novi Bečej."
There remains some debate as to whether the club was founded in 1934 or 1935, as there is no material evidence, but it is more likely that it was founded in 1934, given that in 1935 Novi Bečej swimmers participated in several competitions which only an organized club could have managed.
The first official competition in Novi Bečej took place on August 25, 1935, as Dr. Sava Ivanić confirms, contradicting Mečkić’s account of 1934. Laslo Taboroši also mentions this date in his monograph 75 Years of Water Polo in Senta (published by Water Polo Club "Senta," 2005). In this competition, Vojvodina from Veliki Bečkerek took first place with 77.5 points, followed by SAK with 43.5 points, and Jedinstvo with 13 points.
Novi Bečej swimmers were very active that year. On August 11, they participated in a swimming competition in Veliki Bečkerek organized by the local Vojvodina. Alongside the hosts and Novi Bečej's Jedinstvo, SAK from Senta and BUSK from Belgrade also participated. A water polo match was held at this event as well, with SAK defeating Jedinstvo 12:1 (6:0).
A week later, on August 18, 1935, 14 swimmers from Jedinstvo Novi Bečej competed in the annual Senta championship organized by SAK. Taboroši describes the event on page 28 of 75 Years of Water Polo in Senta: “The competition took place in an area bordered by a Tisa river beach, a boat station, the quay, and two large barges. Besides numerous local teams, Novi Bečej’s Jedinstvo fielded 14 athletes, with Palić’s Sport and Sombor’s Sport also participating.”
With the dissolution of FK Jedinstvo in early 1935, its swimming section also ceased to operate. However, in 1936, Novi Bečej swimmers established a new section within the very active youth club FK Banat, which included many former players from the defunct FK Jedinstvo.4 Under the name Banat, Novi Bečej swimmers competed in Senta’s open championship for the Lederer Cup on September 7, 1936, with Novi Bečej’s Dr. Šafranj serving as a jury member, as noted by Laslo Taboroši in 75 Years of Water Polo in Senta.
Dr. Sava Ivanić meticulously documented the individual results from Jedinstvo's 1935 and 1936 swimming and water polo competitions in his book Swimming and Water Polo in Novi Bečej, and so they are merely listed here.
For the following two years, 1937 and 1938, there is no record of organized performances by Novi Bečej swimmers, though they likely participated individually in swimming matches in the very active locales of Veliki Bečkerek and Senta.
4 Lazar Mečkić: Ninety Years of Football in Novi Bečej (1899-1989), Radnički dom “Jovan Veselinov Žarko,” Novi Bečej, 1989, p. 63.
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