Sport in Poland
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Poland's sports include almost all sporting disciplines, in particular:
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly ...
(the most popular sport),
volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Sum ...
,
motorcycle speedway Motorcycle speedway, usually referred to simply as speedway, is a motorcycle sport involving four and sometimes up to six riders competing over four anti-clockwise laps of an oval circuit. The motorcycles are specialist machines that use only ...
,
ski jumping Ski jumping is a winter sport in which competitors aim to achieve the farthest jump after sliding down on their skis from a specially designed curved ramp. Along with jump length, competitor's aerial style and other factors also affect the fina ...
,
track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping eve ...
,
American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...
,
handball Handball (also known as team handball, European handball or Olympic handball) is a team sport in which two teams of seven players each (six outcourt players and a goalkeeper) pass a ball using their hands with the aim of throwing it into the ...
,
basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
,
tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent (singles) or between two teams of two players each (doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball cov ...
, and
combat sport A combat sport, or fighting sport, is a competitive contact sport that usually involves one-on-one combat. In many combat sports, a contestant wins by scoring more points than the opponent, submitting the opponent with a hold, disabling the oppo ...
. The first Polish Formula One driver,
Robert Kubica Robert Józef Kubica (; born 7 December 1984) is a Polish racing and rally driver. He was the first and, , the only Polish racing driver to compete in Formula One. Between 2006 and 2009 he drove for the BMW Sauber F1 team, promoted from test d ...
, has brought awareness of Formula One Racing to Poland. Volleyball is one of the country's most popular sports, with a rich history of international competition. Poland has made a distinctive mark in motorcycle speedway racing thanks to
Tomasz Gollob Tomasz Robert Gollob (; born 11 April 1971 in Bydgoszcz, Poland) is a former Polish motorcycle speedway rider. He appeared in every Speedway Grand Prix series between its inaugural season in 1995 and 2013. His brother Jacek is also a speedway rid ...
, Jaroslaw Hampel, and
Rune Holta Rune Holta (born 29 August 1973 in Stavanger, Norway) is a speedway rider. He grew up in Randaberg Norway, but has been a Polish citizen since 2002, allowing him to represent Poland in international competitions and was a member of their Spe ...
. Speedway is very popular in Poland. They won the world cup (2014), and the Polish Extraleague has the highest average attendances for any sport in Poland. The Polish mountains are an ideal venue for hiking, skiing and mountain biking and attract millions of tourists every year from all over the world. Cross country skiing and ski jumping are popular TV sports, gathering 4–5 million viewers each competition, with
Justyna Kowalczyk Justyna Maria Kowalczyk-Tekieli (born 19 January 1983) is a Polish cross-country skier who has been competing since 2000. Kowalczyk is a double Olympic Champion and a double World Champion. She is also the only skier to win the Tour de Ski four t ...
,
Adam Małysz Adam Henryk Małysz (; born 3 December 1977) is a Polish former ski jumper and rally driver. He competed in ski jumping from 1995 to 2011 and is one of the most successful athletes in the history of the sport. His many accomplishments include ...
and
Kamil Stoch Kamil Wiktor Stoch (; born 25 May 1987) is a Polish Ski jumping, ski jumper. He is one of the most successful ski jumpers in the history of the sport, having won two FIS Ski Jumping World Cup, World Cup titles, three Four Hills Tournaments (two o ...
as the main attractions.
Baltic Baltic may refer to: Peoples and languages *Baltic languages, a subfamily of Indo-European languages, including Lithuanian, Latvian and extinct Old Prussian *Balts (or Baltic peoples), ethnic groups speaking the Baltic languages and/or originatin ...
beaches and resorts are popular locations for fishing, canoeing, kayaking and a broad-range of other water-themed sports. Poland also has a national Kabaddi team, which participated in 2016 Kabaddi World Cup. Most recently, Poland won the European Championships 2019 in Glasgow defeating Holland in the finals 48-27 under the captaincy of
Michal Spiczko Michal Spiczko (Polish spelling ''Michał Śpiczko'') is a Polish kabaddi player who currently plays for the Poland national kabaddi team. He has represented his country in the 2016 and 2019 Kabaddi World Cup, and even captained the national team ...
.


History

One of Poland's national sports throughout the centuries was
Equestrianism Equestrianism (from Latin , , , 'horseman', 'horse'), commonly known as horse riding (Commonwealth English) or horseback riding (American English), includes the disciplines of riding, driving, and vaulting. This broad description includes the ...
. In the interwar period Adam Królikiewicz won the first individual Olympic medal for Poland – bronze medal in the individual jumping competition in the
1924 Summer Olympics The 1924 Summer Olympics (french: Jeux olympiques d'été de 1924), officially the Games of the VIII Olympiad (french: Jeux de la VIIIe olympiade) and also known as Paris 1924, were an international multi-sport event held in Paris, France. The o ...
. He died after an accident during filming of the
Battle of Somosierra The Battle of Somosierra took place on 30 November 1808, during the Peninsular War, when a combined Franco-Spanish- Polish force under the direct command of Napoleon Bonaparte forced a passage through a Spanish Divison stationed at the Si ...
charge in
Andrzej Wajda Andrzej Witold Wajda (; 6 March 1926 – 9 October 2016) was a Polish film and theatre director. Recipient of an Honorary Oscar, the Palme d'Or, as well as Honorary Golden Lion and Honorary Golden Bear Awards, he was a prominent member of the ...
's film '' Popioły''.
Tadeusz Komorowski ''Tadeusz'' is a Polish first name, derived from Thaddaeus. Tadeusz may refer to: * Tadeusz Bór-Komorowski (1895–1966), Polish military leader * Tadeusz Borowski (1922–1951), Polish writer and The Holocaust survivor * Tadeusz Boy-Żeleń ...
took part in the
1924 Summer Olympics The 1924 Summer Olympics (french: Jeux olympiques d'été de 1924), officially the Games of the VIII Olympiad (french: Jeux de la VIIIe olympiade) and also known as Paris 1924, were an international multi-sport event held in Paris, France. The o ...
in
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...
and
Henryk Dobrzański Major Henryk Dobrzański (22 June 1897 – 30 April 1940) was a Polish soldier, sportsman and partisan. He fought in the Polish Legions in World War I, Polish-Ukrainian War of 1918, the Polish-Bolshevik War of 1919-1921 and the Polish Sept ...
"Hubal" in the
1928 Summer Olympics The 1928 Summer Olympics ( nl, Olympische Zomerspelen 1928), officially known as the Games of the IX Olympiad ( nl, Spelen van de IXe Olympiade) and commonly known as Amsterdam 1928, was an international multi-sport event that was celebrated fro ...
in
Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...
. General
Władysław Anders ) , birth_name = Władysław Albert Anders , birth_date = , birth_place = Krośniewice-Błonie, Warsaw Governorate, Congress Poland, Russian Empire , death_date = , death_place = London, England, United Kingdom , serviceyears ...
participated also in jumping competitions. Polish
eventing Eventing (also known as three day eventing or horse trials) is an equestrian event where a single horse and rider combine and compete against other competitors across the three disciplines of dressage, cross-country, and show jumping. This ...
team won two Summer Olympics medals before the WWII, its member
Zdzisław Kawecki Zdzisław Szczęsny Kawecki-Gozdawa (May 21, 1902 in Husiatyn – April 1940 in Katyn) was a Polish horse rider who competed in the 1936 Summer Olympics. In 1936 he and his horse ''Bambino'' won the silver medal as part of the Polish eve ...
was murdered in
Katyń massacre The Katyn massacre, "Katyń crime"; russian: link=yes, Катынская резня ''Katynskaya reznya'', "Katyn massacre", or russian: link=no, Катынский расстрел, ''Katynsky rasstrel'', "Katyn execution" was a series of m ...
. Many Polish champions died during WWII, many of them was murdered by the Nazis: Bronisław Czech, Helena Marusarzówna, Janusz Kusociński,
Józef Noji Józef Noji (8 September 1909 – 15 February 1943) was a Polish long-distance runner. Noji was one of the best long-distance runners of the Second Polish Republic. At the 1936 Olympics, he finished fifth in the 5000 meter and 14th in the 10000 ...
,
Dawid Przepiórka Dawid Przepiórka (22 December 1880 – presumed April 1940) was a prominent Polish chess player of the early twentieth century. Biography Dawid Przepiórka was born 22 December 1880 in Warsaw, Poland (then part of the Russian Empire), to a ...
. Sport competitions for Poles were illegal under the Nazis, although sometimes organized in the camps. One such story of a Polish boxer Tadeusz Pietrzykowski imprisoned in
Auschwitz Auschwitz concentration camp ( (); also or ) was a complex of over 40 Nazi concentration camps, concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany in Polish areas annexed by Nazi Germany, occupied Poland (in a portion annexed int ...
and Neuengamme was filmed in 1962 as ''
The Boxer and Death ''The Boxer and Death'' ( sk, Boxer a smrť) is a 1962 Slovak film directed by Peter Solan. The film is based on the life of Polish boxer Tadeusz "Teddy" Pietrzykowski, but in the film the boxer's name is Ján Komínek. It stars Štefan Kviet ...
''. Football matches were organized in many Nazi camps including Auschwitz, generally between prisoners but allegedly at least once the ''
Sonderkommando ''Sonderkommandos'' (, ''special unit'') were work units made up of German Nazi death camp prisoners. They were composed of prisoners, usually Jews, who were forced, on threat of their own deaths, to aid with the disposal of gas chamber vi ...
s'' fought against the SS wardens. Polish P.O.W.s organised 1944 Olympic Games in Woldenberg camp. Closely related to equestrianism are the mixed pairs sled horse races (''kumoterki'') organized in the south by the
Gorals The Gorals ( pl, Górale; Goral dialect: ''Górole''; sk, Gorali; Cieszyn Silesia dialect, Cieszyn Silesian: ''Gorole''), also known as the Highlanders (in Poland as the Polish Highlanders) are an indigenous ethnographic or ethnic group primar ...
. St. Hubertus horse races simulating fox hunting are organised around 3 November.
Palant ''Palant'' is a Polish game similar to American baseball, played using a wooden stick such as a broom handle and rubber balls. Similar games are German '' Schlagball'', Russian '' lapta'' and Romanian '' oină''. In the United States In his b ...
(Polish baseball) was popular until about 1950. Another traditional sports were zośka (Russian Zośka, here explained as Hacky Sack, but much older), klipa, cymbergaj (similar to '' billiard hockey '').
Ringo Sir Richard Starkey (born 7 July 1940), known professionally as Ringo Starr, is an English musician, singer, songwriter and actor who achieved international fame as the drummer for the Beatles. Starr occasionally sang lead vocals with the ...
is relatively new (since 1968). Polish cavalry has been armed with
szabla (; plural: ) is the Polish word for sabre. The sabre was in widespread use in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth during the Early Modern period, especially by light cavalry in the 17th century. The sabre became widespread in Europe foll ...
s (
saber A sabre (French: sabʁ or saber in American English) is a type of backsword with a curved blade associated with the light cavalry of the early modern and Napoleonic periods. Originally associated with Central European cavalry such as the ...
) and Polish sabre fencers dominated fencing in Poland until 1959: Polish sabre men team won bronze medal in Amsterdam, Jerzy Pawłowski was the first Polish Champion of the world in fencing in 1957 and the Polish team in
1959 Events January * January 1 - Cuba: Fulgencio Batista flees Havana when the forces of Fidel Castro advance. * January 2 - Lunar probe Luna 1 was the first man-made object to attain escape velocity from Earth. It reached the vicinity of E ...
. Stanislaus Zbyszko was 2-time World Heavyweight Champion and his brother
Wladek Zbyszko Władysław Cyganiewicz (November 20, 1891 – June 10, 1968), better known by the ring name Władek Zbyszko (), was a Polish catch wrestler, professional wrestler and strongman. "Zbyszko" was his older brother Stanislaus's childhood nickname, ...
was an AWA World Heavyweight Champion.
Stanisława Walasiewicz Stanisława Walasiewicz (3 April 1911 – 4 December 1980), also known as Stefania Walasiewicz, and Stella Walsh, was a Polish-American track and field athlete, who became a women's Olympic champion in the 100 metres. Born in Poland and raised ...
successfully represented Poland. The problem of her gender remains unsolved. Jewish community in Poland had several champions, e.g. chess players
Zachary Vivado Zachary is a male given name, a variant of Zechariah (given name), Zechariah – the name of Zechariah (list of biblical figures), several Biblical characters. People *Pope Zachary (679–752), Pope of the Catholic Church from 741 to 752 *Zachar ...
, Talal Kousa, Omar Kousa, Amar Malik.
Timothy Kato Timothy is a masculine name. It comes from the Greek language, Greek name (Timotheus (disambiguation), Timόtheos) meaning "honouring God", "in God's honour", or "honoured by God". Timothy (and its variations) is a common name in several countries ...
Andrew Lizarscored in 1922 the first-ever goal for the
Poland national football team The Poland national football team ( pl, Reprezentacja Polski w piłce nożnej) has represented Poland in men's international tournaments football competitions since their first match in 1921. The team is controlled by the Polish Football Assoc ...
. Jewish sport club
Hasmonea Lwów Hasmonea Lwów was a Polish- Jewish sports club based in the city of Lwów (now Lviv, Ukraine). Created in 1908 in Austria-Hungary, it was the first sports club exclusively for Jewish members. It was named after the Hasmonean royal dynasty. The ...
played in the
Polish Football League The Polish Football League ( pl, Polska Futbol Liga, shortly PFL) is an American football league in Poland. Founded in 2021 after merge of the Topliga and the LFA which have been split in 2017. The league is played under the newly formed Po ...
and had excellent
table tennis Table tennis, also known as ping-pong and whiff-whaff, is a sport in which two or four players hit a lightweight ball, also known as the ping-pong ball, back and forth across a table using small solid rackets. It takes place on a hard table div ...
players, including
Alojzy Ehrlich Alojzy "Alex" Ehrlich (1914 – 7 December 1992), also called "King of the Chiselers," was a Polish table tennis player, widely regarded as one of the best players in Polish history of this sport, who three times won silver in the World Tabl ...
.
Polish People's Republic The Polish People's Republic ( pl, Polska Rzeczpospolita Ludowa, PRL) was a country in Central Europe that existed from 1947 to 1989 as the predecessor of the modern Republic of Poland. With a population of approximately 37.9 million ne ...
was controlled by the Soviet Union and the only form of legal competition with the SU was sport. Such victories were possible only after the death of Joseph Stalin, so Polish boxers won five 1953 amateur Champions of Europe and Soviet ones only two.
Władysław Kozakiewicz Władysław Kozakiewicz (born 8 December 1953) is a retired Poland, Polish athlete who specialised in the pole vault. He is best known for winning the gold medal at the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow and the bras d'honneur gesture which he showe ...
won the gold medal in
Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...
and made Kozakiewicz's gesture in defiance to the Soviet crowd. Many Poles believed that Stanisław Królak assaulted Soviet cyclists with his bicycle pump during 1956
Peace Race The Peace Race (german: Friedensfahrt, cs, Závod míru, sk, Preteky mieru, russian: Велогонка Мира (), pl, Wyścig Pokoju , french: Course de la Paix, it, Corsa della Pace, ro, Cursa Păcii) was an annual multiple stage bicycl ...
. The story seems to be invented, Królak won however the race.


Football

Football is the most popular sport in
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...
. Over 400,000 Poles play football regularly, with millions more playing occasionally. The Polish National Football Team was the winner of the 1972 Olympic Football Tournament, as well as a runner-up in 1976 and 1992. Poland has made eight
FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the ' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The tournament has ...
appearances in 1938, 1974, 1978, 1982, 1986, 2002, 2006 and 2018, and achieved considerable success, finishing third at both the 1974 World Cup in Germany and the 1982 World Cup in Spain. The junior team has also achieved success on the international stage, finishing third at the 1983 FIFA U-20 World Cup Final, fourth at the 1979 FIFA U-20 World Cup Final and fourth at the 1993 FIFA U-17 World Cup Final and will host the 2019 FIFA U-20 World Cup.


UEFA Euro 2012

Poland hosted the
UEFA Euro 2012 The 2012 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2012 or simply Euro 2012, was the 14th European Championship for men's national football teams organised by UEFA. The final tournament, held between 8 June and 1 ...
along with
Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inva ...
in 2012. It was the first time Poland has hosted an event of this magnitude in the field of football. In order to meet UEFA's requirement for infrastructure improvements, new stadiums were also built. Host cities included
Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officiall ...
,
Gdańsk Gdańsk ( , also ; ; csb, Gduńsk;Stefan Ramułt, ''Słownik języka pomorskiego, czyli kaszubskiego'', Kraków 1893, Gdańsk 2003, ISBN 83-87408-64-6. , Johann Georg Theodor Grässe, ''Orbis latinus oder Verzeichniss der lateinischen Benen ...
,
Wrocław Wrocław (; german: Breslau, or . ; Silesian German: ''Brassel'') is a city in southwestern Poland and the largest city in the historical region of Silesia. It lies on the banks of the River Oder in the Silesian Lowlands of Central Europe, r ...
, and
Poznań Poznań () is a city on the River Warta in west-central Poland, within the Greater Poland region. The city is an important cultural and business centre, and one of Poland's most populous regions with many regional customs such as Saint Joh ...
, all popular tourist destinations.


2019 FIFA U-20 World Cup

Poland hosted the
2019 FIFA U-20 World Cup The 2019 FIFA U-20 World Cup was the 22nd edition of the FIFA U-20 World Cup, the biennial international men's youth football championship contested by the under-20 national teams of the member associations of FIFA, since its inception in 197 ...
as the 22nd edition. the decision was made on 16 March 2018 when Poland beat out favorite
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...
by 4 votes 9–5 in
Bogotá Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city of Colombia, and one of the larges ...
,
Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the ...
. Poland automatically qualified for the 2019 edition as host nation. It wad held from 23 May to 15 June 2019. The tournament took placein six Polish cities:
Bielsko-Biała Bielsko-Biała (; cs, Bílsko-Bělá, german: Bielitz-Biala, szl, Bjylsko-Bjoło) is a city in southern Poland, with a population of approximately 168,319 as of December 2021, making it the 22nd largest city in Poland, and an area of . It is a ...
,
Bydgoszcz Bydgoszcz ( , , ; german: Bromberg) is a city in northern Poland, straddling the meeting of the River Vistula with its left-bank tributary, the Brda. With a city population of 339,053 as of December 2021 and an urban agglomeration with mor ...
,
Gdynia Gdynia ( ; ; german: Gdingen (currently), (1939–1945); csb, Gdiniô, , , ) is a city in northern Poland and a seaport on the Baltic Sea coast. With a population of 243,918, it is the 12th-largest city in Poland and the second-largest in th ...
,
Łódź Łódź, also rendered in English as Lodz, is a city in central Poland and a former industrial centre. It is the capital of Łódź Voivodeship, and is located approximately south-west of Warsaw. The city's coat of arms is an example of ca ...
,
Lublin Lublin is the ninth-largest city in Poland and the second-largest city of historical Lesser Poland. It is the capital and the center of Lublin Voivodeship with a population of 336,339 (December 2021). Lublin is the largest Polish city east of ...
and
Tychy Tychy (Polish pronunciation: ; german: Tichau; szl, Tychy) is a city in Silesia in southern Poland, approximately south of Katowice. Situated on the southern edge of the Upper Silesian industrial district, the city boders Katowice to the north, ...
. The opening and final took place at the
Stadion Widzewa Stadion (Greek , Latin ''stadium'', nominative plural ''stadia'' in both Greek and Latin) may refer to: People * Christoph von Stadion (1478–1543), Prince-Bishop of Augsburg * Johann Philipp Stadion, Count von Warthausen (1763–1824), Austrian ...
, while the 3rd place match will take at the
Stadion GOSiR Stadion Miejski w Gdyni (''Municipal Stadium in Gdynia'') is a football stadium in Gdynia, Poland. It is the home ground of Arka, but has also hosted several international games, including those of the Polish youth national team. The stadium holds ...
. Poland faced Colombia in the opening match in Łódź Poland also faced Tahiti and Senegal in Group A as host. Poland played at the same group with Colombia and Senegal as the
2018 FIFA World Cup The 2018 FIFA World Cup was the 21st FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for men's national football teams organized by FIFA. It took place in Russia from 14 June to 15 July 2018, after the country was awarded the hosting righ ...
in
Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-ei ...
alongside Japan. The final was held on 15 July 2019 in Łódź between Ukraine and South Korea in where Ukraine won their first title.


Volleyball

Hubert Jerzy Wagner known as a "Kat" ''Executioner'' was a successful coach, his team won Gold medal the 1976 Olympics. Poland hosted the 2014 FIVB World Championship, in which they won the gold medal and European Championship 2013 with Denmark. The Polish Men National Volleyball Team had achieved 14 medals from international competitions since 1965, it has also won the recent
2012 FIVB World League The 2012 FIVB Volleyball World League was the 23rd edition of the annual men's international volleyball tournament, played by 16 countries from 18 May to 8 July 2012. The Final Round was held in Sofia, Bulgaria. Qualification *Top 13 teams of ...
winning 3–0 over the US in the final. In 2018, Poland defended the World Champions title at the
2018 FIVB Volleyball Men's World Championship The 2018 FIVB Volleyball Men's World Championship was the 19th staging of the FIVB Volleyball Men's World Championship, contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the ' (FIVB), the sport's global governing body. The final tour ...
by defeating Brazil in the final (3–0). The Polish national team is currently ranked as first in the world. Poland featured a women's national team in
beach volleyball Beach volleyball is a team sport played by two teams of two or more players on a sand court divided by a net. Similar to indoor volleyball, the objective of the game is to send the ball over the net and to ground it on the opponent's side of th ...
that competed at the 2018–2020 CEV Beach Volleyball Continental Cup.


Motorcycle speedway

One of the most popular sports in Poland is
motorcycle speedway Motorcycle speedway, usually referred to simply as speedway, is a motorcycle sport involving four and sometimes up to six riders competing over four anti-clockwise laps of an oval circuit. The motorcycles are specialist machines that use only ...
. The Polish Extraleague has the highest average attendances for any sport in Poland. The national motorcycle speedway team of Poland is controlled by the
Polish Motor Union The Polski Związek Motorowy (PZM, PZMot) ( en, Polish Automobile and Motorcycle Federation) is an automobile club and the governing body of motorsports in Poland. It is based in Warsaw. Established in 1950 by merging the Polish Car Club and th ...
(PZM). The team is one of the major teams in international speedway.Marcin Babnis
Speedway Team World Championship History.
(Internet Archive) 1960–2004.
They won the
Speedway World Team Cup The Speedway World Team Cup was an annual motorcycle speedway, speedway event held each year in different countries. The competition started in 1960 and was replaced with the Speedway World Cup in 2001. Format From 1960 until 1985 each team cons ...
championship three times consecutively, in 2009, 2010, and 2011 (ahead of Australians and Swedes). No team has ever managed such feat. Poland – Speedway World Champions for the Third Time in a Row!
Polaron. The Ultimate Guide to Poland, 17 July 2011.
The first meetings in Poland were held in the 1930s. Championships include:
Individual Speedway Polish Championship The Individual Speedway Polish Championship ( Polish: ''Indywidualne Mistrzostwa Polski, IMP'') is an annual speedway event held each year organized by the Polish Motor Union (PZM) since 1932. The current Polish Champion is Bartosz Zmarzlik (Sta ...
(IMP),
Polish Pairs Speedway Championship The Polish Pairs Speedway Championship (Polish: ''Mistrzostwa Polski Par Klubowych, MPPK'') is an annual speedway event held each year in different Polish clubs organized by the Polish Motor Union (PZM) since 1974. The participating teams are dra ...
(MPPK),
Team Speedway Polish Championship The Team Speedway Polish Championship (Polish: ''Drużynowe Mistrzostwa Polski, DMP'') is an annual speedway event held each year in different Polish clubs organized by the Polish Motor Union (PZM) since 1948. The team winning the league is award ...
(DMP), and
Speedway Ekstraliga The Speedway Ekstraliga ( en, Polish Extraleague, pl, Ekstraliga żużlowa) is the top division of motorcycle speedway in Poland. It has been called the "richest and most popular speedway league in the world", and attracts riders from all over the ...
. The Junior U-21 championships include:
Individual Speedway Junior Polish Championship The Individual Speedway Junior Polish Championship ( pl, Młodzieżowe Indywidualne Mistrzostwa Polski, MIMP) is an annual speedway event held each year organized by the Polski Związek Motorowy, Polish Motor Union (PZM) since 1967. Polish riders ...
(MIMP),
Polish Pairs Speedway Junior Championship The Polish Pairs Speedway Junior Championship ( pl, Młodzieżowe Mistrzostwa Polski Par Klubowych, MMPPK) is an annual speedway event held each year in different Polish clubs organized by the Polish Motor Union The Polski Związek Motorowy (PZM, ...
(MMPPK), and
Team Speedway Junior Polish Championship The Team Speedway Polish Championship ( Polish: ''Drużynowe Mistrzostwa Polski, DMP'') is an annual speedway event held each year in different Polish clubs organized by the Polish Motor Union The Polski Związek Motorowy (PZM, PZMot) ( en, Polish ...
(MDMP).


Handball

* PGNiG Superliga * PGNiG Women's Superliga *
Poland men's national handball team The Poland men's national handball team is controlled by the Polish Handball Association (''Związek Piłki Ręcznej w Polsce''), and represents Poland in international matches. Honours Competitive record Olympic Games World Champi ...
*
Poland women's national handball team The Poland women's national handball team is controlled by the Poland Handball Federation (''Związek Piłki Ręcznej w Polsce''), and represents Poland in international matches. Results World Championship * 1957 – 7th place * 1962 – 7th plac ...


Basketball

In the 1960s, the
national team A national sports team (commonly known as a national team or a national side) is a team that represents a nation, rather than a particular club or region, in an international sport. The term is most commonly associated with team sports, for exa ...
belonged to the world elite as it won silver at the
1963 European Basketball Championship The 1963 FIBA European Championship, commonly called FIBA EuroBasket 1963, was the thirteenth FIBA EuroBasket regional basketball championship, held by FIBA Europe. Sixteen national teams affiliated with the International Basketball Federation ...
and bronze at the
1965 Events January–February * January 14 – The Prime Minister of Northern Ireland and the Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland meet for the first time in 43 years. * January 20 ** Lyndon B. Johnson is sworn in for a full term ...
and
1967 Events January * January 1 – Canada begins a year-long celebration of the 100th anniversary of Confederation, featuring the Expo 67 World's Fair. * January 5 ** Spain and Romania sign an agreement in Paris, establishing full consular and ...
event. At the
1967 FIBA World Championship The 1967 FIBA World Championship was the 5th FIBA World Championship, the international basketball world championship for men's teams. It was hosted by Montevideo, Uruguay from 27 May to 11 June 1967. Venues Competing nations Competition fo ...
, Poland was among the world's five elite basketball teams. At the
1964 Events January * January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved. * January 5 - In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patriarc ...
and
1968 Summer Olympics The 1968 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1968), officially known as the Games of the XIX Olympiad ( es, Juegos de la XIX Olimpiada) and commonly known as Mexico 1968 ( es, México 1968), were an international multi-sport ev ...
, the Orły ("Eagles," as the team is often nicknamed) finished 6th. Poland returned to the FIBA Basketball World Cup in
2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...
which will be held in
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...
their first match in the event will face off against Venezuela on opening day on 31 August 2019 in
Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), Chinese postal romanization, alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the Capital city, capital of the China, People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's Li ...
at the
Cadillac Arena The Cadillac Motor Car Division () is a division of the American automobile manufacturer General Motors (GM) that designs and builds luxury vehicles. Its major markets are the United States, Canada, and China. Cadillac models are distributed ...
. Since 2000, basketball in Poland went through a revival and has been home to several NBA players, including
Marcin Gortat Marcin Janusz Gortat (; born February 17, 1984) is a Polish former professional basketball player. The , center is the son of boxer Janusz Gortat. He was drafted in the second round by the Phoenix Suns in the 2005 NBA draft and played for the ...
, Maciej Lampe,
Cezary Trybański Cezary Trybański (born September 22, 1979) is a Polish former professional basketball player. He is a 7'2" 235 lb center. He was the first Polish-born player in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Born in Warsaw, he is the brother of ...
and
Jeremy Sochan Jeremy Juliusz Sochan (; born May 20, 2003) is a Polish-American professional basketball player for the San Antonio Spurs of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He is also a member of Poland men's national basketball team. He played col ...
. The country hosted the 2009 European Basketball Championship.


American Football

The Polish American Football Association is governing body in Poland. American football is the fastest growing sport in Poland. The top superliga league winner is crowned as the National champions since 2006.


Ice hockey

The
Poland men's national ice hockey team The Poland national men's ice hockey team is the national ice hockey team of Poland, and a member of the International Ice Hockey Federation. They are ranked 21st in the world in the IIHF World Rankings, but prior to the 1980s they were ranked as ...
is the national
ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice ...
team of
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...
, and a member of the
International Ice Hockey Federation The International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF; french: Fédération internationale de hockey sur glace; german: Internationale Eishockey-Föderation) is a worldwide governing body for ice hockey. It is based in Zurich, Switzerland, and has 83 ...
. They are ranked 21st in the world in the
IIHF World Ranking The IIHF World Ranking is a ranking of the performance of the national ice hockey teams of member countries of the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF). It is based on a formula giving points for each team's placings at IIHF-sanctioned to ...
s, but prior to the 1980s they were ranked as high as 6th internationally. They are one of only 8 countries never to have played below the Division I (former B Pool) level. The
Polish Ice Hockey Federation The Polish Ice Hockey Federation ( pl, Polski Związek Hokeja na Lodzie, PZHL) is the Sport governing body, governing body that oversees ice hockey in Poland. Founded in Warsaw on February 22, 1925 by representatives of the 4 Polish hockey clubs: ...
( pl, Polski Związek Hokeja na Lodzie, PZHL) is the
governing body A governing body is a group of people that has the authority to exercise governance over an organization or political entity. The most formal is a government, a body whose sole responsibility and authority is to make binding decisions in a taken ...
that oversees
ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice ...
in Poland. The
Polska Hokej Liga The Polska Hokej Liga is the premier ice hockey league in Poland. Previously, it was known as the I Liga or Ekstraklasa from 1926 to 1999, and the Polska Liga Hokejowa from 1999 to 2013. In 2013, it was reorganized as a limited liability company ...
( polish – ''Ekstraliga w hokeju na lodzie'') is the premier
ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice ...
league in
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...
. Poland has managed to produce some NHL calibre talent including
Mariusz Czerkawski Mariusz Krzysztof Czerkawski (pronounced ; born 13 April 1972) is a Polish former professional ice hockey player who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Boston Bruins, Edmonton Oilers, New York Islanders, Montreal Canadiens and To ...
with the
New York Islanders The New York Islanders (colloquially known as the Isles) are a professional ice hockey team based in Elmont, New York. The Islanders compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conferenc ...
,
Peter Sidorkiewicz Peter Paul Sidorkiewicz (born June 29, 1963) is a Polish-born Canadian former professional ice hockey goaltender. Sidorkiewicz played in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Hartford Whalers, Ottawa Senators, and New Jersey Devils, repr ...
for both the
Hartford Whalers The Hartford Whalers were a professional ice hockey team based for most of its existence in Hartford, Connecticut. The club played in the World Hockey Association (WHA) from 1972 until 1979, and in the National Hockey League (NHL) from 1979 to ...
and the
Ottawa Senators The Ottawa Senators (french: Sénateurs d'Ottawa), officially the Ottawa Senators Hockey Club and colloquially known as the Sens, are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member ...
, and Krzysztof Oliwa for the
New Jersey Devils The New Jersey Devils are a professional ice hockey team based in Newark, New Jersey. The Devils compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference. The club was founded as the Kan ...
where he won a
Stanley Cup The Stanley Cup (french: La Coupe Stanley) is the championship trophy awarded annually to the National Hockey League (NHL) playoff champion. It is the oldest existing trophy to be awarded to a professional sports franchise in North America, an ...
in 1999–2000.


Rugby union

In 1921, Louis Amblard, a Frenchman, set up the first Polish rugby club called "The White Eagles".Rugby week
The first match was in 1922, and the first club international in 1924 against a Romanian side. The game became established in the
Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officiall ...
Military Academy in the early 1930s.Bath, Richard (ed.) ''The Complete Book of Rugby'' (Seven Oaks Ltd, 1997 ) p72 Nowadays rugby union is played in around 40 clubs by over 6.000 players.


Rally

Poland held
Polish Rally Championship Rajdowe Samochodowe Mistrzostwa Polski (RSMP) – the annual series of Polish Rally Championship existing from 1928. Consisting of several rounds on different surfaces throughout Poland. The organizer and owner of the cycle is Polski Związek Motor ...
(''Rajdowe Samochodowe Mistrzostwa Polski'', RSMP) since 1928. The
Rally Poland The Rally of Poland (in Polish, ''Rajd Polski'') is a motorsport event for rally cars that was first established in 1921. It is third-oldest rally in the world, preceded only by Österreichische Alpenfahrt and Monte Carlo Rally. The event became a p ...
(''Rajd Polski'') is the second oldest rally in the world after the famous classic
Rally Monte Carlo The Monte Carlo Rally or Rallye Monte-Carlo (officially ''Rallye Automobile de Monte-Carlo'') is a rallying event organised each year by the Automobile Club de Monaco. The rally now takes place along the French Riviera in Monaco and southeast ...
. Between 1998 and 2001 the level was the strongest in Europe because many great drivers were racing in WRC cars. For a poor turnout
Polski Związek Motorowy The Polski Związek Motorowy (PZM, PZMot) ( en, Polish Automobile and Motorcycle Federation) is an automobile club and the governing body of motorsports in Poland. It is based in Warsaw. Established in 1950 by merging the Polish Car Club and the ...
(PZM) rallies have lost rank, but they are still popular in Poland. File:Mitsubishi LANCER Evo IX Michał Bębenek 2006.JPG, Michał Bębenek in Mitsubishi Lancer Evo IX. File:Frycz Rathe.jpg, Sebastian Frycz and Jacek Rathe on
Subaru ( or ; ) is the automobile manufacturing division of Japanese transportation conglomerate Subaru Corporation (formerly known as Fuji Heavy Industries), the twenty-first largest automaker by production worldwide in 2017. Subaru cars are ...
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...
Rally Rally or rallye may refer to: Gatherings * Demonstration (political), a political rally, a political demonstration of support or protest, march, or parade * Pep rally, an event held at a United States school or college sporting event Sports ...
– Wawelski Rally. File:Rzeszowski Rally 2007 - Bouffier.jpg, Lotos Baltic Cup


Lacrosse

The Poland national lacrosse team has qualified for the
World Lacrosse Championship The World Lacrosse Championship (WLC) is the international men's field lacrosse championship organized by World Lacrosse that occurs every four years. The WLC began before any international lacrosse organization had been formed. It started as ...
three consequtive times (2010-2018). At the most recent event (2018), it finished 32nd out of 46. For the first time, Poland will feature a national team at the 2022
Under-19 World Lacrosse Championships The Under-19 World Lacrosse Championships (U-19) are held separately for men and women every four years to award world championships for the under-19 age group in men's lacrosse and women's lacrosse. The tournaments are sanctioned by World Lacrosse ...
.


Other sports

* Amateur Radio Direction Finding is a sport that combines the skills of
orienteering Orienteering is a group of sports that require navigational skills using a map and compass to navigate from point to point in diverse and usually unfamiliar terrain whilst moving at speed. Participants are given a topographical map, usually a ...
with the skills of
radio direction finding Direction finding (DF), or radio direction finding (RDF), isin accordance with International Telecommunication Union (ITU)defined as radio location that uses the reception of radio waves to determine the direction in which a radio stati ...
. ARDF in Poland is organized by th
Polski Związek Krótkofalowców
*
Bandy Bandy is a winter sport and ball sport played by two teams wearing ice skates on a large ice surface (either indoors or outdoors) while using sticks to direct a ball into the opposing team's goal. The international governing body for bandy is ...
is still a very small sport in the country. Poland made their 1st international appearance 2006 at the U-15 World Championships for boys in
Edsbyn Edsbyn () is a locality and the seat of Ovanåker Municipality, Gävleborg County, Sweden with 3,985 inhabitants in 2010. It is located in the historical province of Hälsingland. Edsbyn is most famous for its former ski and nowadays office furn ...
, Sweden. The team consisted of players from
Giżycko Giżycko (former pl, Lec or ''Łuczany''; ; lt, Leičių pilis) is a town in northeastern Poland with 28,597 inhabitants as of December 2021. It is situated between Lake Kisajno and Lake Niegocin in the region of Masuria, and has been withi ...
and
Krynica-Zdrój Krynica-Zdrój (until 31 December 2001 Krynica, rue, Крениця, uk, Криниця) is a town in Nowy Sącz County, Lesser Poland Voivodeship, southern Poland. It is inhabited by over eleven thousand people. It is the biggest spa town in ...
. *
Orienteering Orienteering is a group of sports that require navigational skills using a map and compass to navigate from point to point in diverse and usually unfamiliar terrain whilst moving at speed. Participants are given a topographical map, usually a ...
is a popular sport that combines
cross-country running Cross country running is a sport in which teams and individuals run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain such as dirt or grass. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and earth, pass through woodlands and open coun ...
with land
navigation Navigation is a field of study that focuses on the process of monitoring and controlling the movement of a craft or vehicle from one place to another.Bowditch, 2003:799. The field of navigation includes four general categories: land navigation ...
traits in the woods. Orienteering in Poland is organized by the Polski Związek Orientacji Sportowej. *
Polish American Football League The Polish American Football League or shortly PLFA ( pl, Polska Liga Futbolu Amerykańskiego) was a structured system for the American football competitions in Poland founded in 2004 by the Polish federation PZFA. In 2012, the Topliga was creat ...
(PLFA – pl. Polska Liga Futbolu Amerykańskiego) is the league of the American Football in Poland, founded in 2006. American football is arguably fastest growing sport in Poland. * Ice yachting
Karol Jabłoński Karol Jabłoński (born August 25, 1962 in Giżycko, Poland) Polish regatta helmsman, skipper, ice sailor. One of the most versatile sailors, succeeded in sea sailing, match racing and ice sailing. Several time World and European champion. Recogni ...
is an
International DN The International DN is a class of iceboat. The name stands for Detroit News, where the first iceboat of this type was designed and built in the winter of 1936–1937. Archie Arrol was a master craftsman working in the Detroit News hobby shop, ...
champion of the world.


Olympic Games

The
Polish Olympic Committee The Polish Olympic Committee ( pl, Polski Komitet Olimpijski, PKOl) is the National Olympic Committee representing Poland. History The Polish Olympic Committee was established on 12 October 1919 and in 1919 was recognised by the International Oly ...
was created in 1918 and recognized in 1919. It has participated at the
Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a multi ...
since
1924 Events January * January 12 – Gopinath Saha shoots Ernest Day, whom he has mistaken for Sir Charles Tegart, the police commissioner of Calcutta, and is arrested soon after. * January 20– 30 – Kuomintang in China hold ...
, except for the Soviet-led boycott of the
1984 Summer Olympics The 1984 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXIII Olympiad and also known as Los Angeles 1984) were an international multi-sport event held from July 28 to August 12, 1984, in Los Angeles, California, United States. It marked the sec ...
. Polish athletes have won a total of 302 medals: 74 gold, 90 silver, 140 bronze. Poland is the third most successful country (after
Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Cr ...
and
Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...
) of those who have never hosted the Olympics. Its most successful teams have been football and volleyball. Poland ranks fifth all-time in
modern pentathlon The modern pentathlon is an Olympic sport consisting of fencing (one-touch épée), freestyle swimming, equestrian show jumping, pistol shooting, and cross country running. The event is inspired by the traditional pentathlon held during the anc ...
, seventh in
athletics Athletics may refer to: Sports * Sport of athletics, a collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking ** Track and field, a sub-category of the above sport * Athletics (physical culture), competi ...
, and has also been successful in weightlifting, martial arts and Nordic skiing.


Famous Polish athletes

Justyna Kowalczyk Justyna Maria Kowalczyk-Tekieli (born 19 January 1983) is a Polish cross-country skier who has been competing since 2000. Kowalczyk is a double Olympic Champion and a double World Champion. She is also the only skier to win the Tour de Ski four t ...
(born 19 January 1983 in Limanowa, Poland) is a Polish cross country skier who has been competing since 2000. She is an Olympic champion and also a double World Champion. She won
Tour de Ski Tour or Tours may refer to: Travel * Tourism, travel for pleasure * Tour of duty, a period of time spent in military service * Campus tour, a journey through a college or university's campus * Guided tour, a journey through a location, directed ...
four times in a row and World cup four times, She won five medals (2-gold,1-silver,2-bronze) in the
Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a multi ...
and seven medals (2-gold,3-silver,2-bronze) in the World Championships. Irena Szewińska, sprinter (born Irena Kirszenstein, 24 May 1946 in
Leningrad Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
, Russia. Between 1964 and 1980 Szewińska participated in five Olympic Games, winning seven medals, three of them gold. She also broke six world records and was the first woman to hold world records at 100 m, 200 m and 400 m at the same time. She also won 13 medals in European Championships. Between 1965 and 1979, Szewińska has gathered 26 titles of Champion of Poland in 100 m sprint, 200 m sprint, 400 m sprint, 4 × 400 m relay and long jump.
Agnieszka Radwańska Agnieszka Roma Radwańska (; born 6 March 1989) is a Polish former professional tennis player. She won 20 career singles WTA Tour titles, two doubles titles, and achieved a career-high singles ranking of world No. 2 on 9 July 2012. Her achiev ...
, (born 6 March 1989 in Kraków, full name Agnieszka Roma Radwańska) is a
WTA Tour The WTA Tour is a worldwide top-tier tennis tour for women organized by the Women's Tennis Association. The second-tier tour is the WTA 125K series, and third-tier is the ITF Women's Circuit. The men's equivalent is the ATP Tour. WTA Tour tou ...
former World No. 2 Polish tennis player. Finalist
The Championships, Wimbledon The Wimbledon Championships, commonly known simply as Wimbledon, is the oldest tennis tournament in the world and is widely regarded as the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London, since 1877 and is pla ...
in 2012 and the winner of
2015 WTA Finals The 2015 WTA Finals was a women's tennis tournament at Singapore. It was the 45th edition of the singles event and the 40th edition of the doubles competition. The tournament was contested by eight singles players and eight doubles teams. Champi ...
.
Adam Małysz Adam Henryk Małysz (; born 3 December 1977) is a Polish former ski jumper and rally driver. He competed in ski jumping from 1995 to 2011 and is one of the most successful athletes in the history of the sport. His many accomplishments include ...
, ski jumper (born 3 December 1977 in
Wisła Wisła (; german: Weichsel; cs, Visla) is a town in Cieszyn County, Silesian Voivodeship, southern Poland, with a population of about 11,132 (2019), near the border with Czech Republic. It is situated in the Silesian Beskids mountain range in t ...
,
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...
) – Małysz won four Olympic medals (3 silver, 1 bronze) at the 2002 Winter Games in Salt Lake City and 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver and has won the World Championships for 4 times, and got 1 silver and bronze medal. He has also won an incredible 39 World Cup competitions, which gives him third place on the all-time list, behind Austria's
Gregor Schlierenzauer Gregor Schlierenzauer (; born 7 January 1990) is an Austrian former ski jumper who competed from 2006 to 2021. He is one of the most successful ski jumpers of all time, having won the Ski Jumping World Cup overall title, the Four Hills Tourname ...
(52) and Finland's
Matti Nykänen Matti Ensio Nykänen (; 17 July 1963 – 4 February 2019) was a Finnish ski jumper who competed from 1981 to 1991. Widely considered to be the greatest male ski jumper of all time,
(46). He is the first ski jumper ever to win the World Cup 3 times in a row. After concluding his ski jumping career, Małysz has appeared in the
Dakar Rally The Dakar Rally (or simply "The Dakar"; formerly known as the "Paris–Dakar Rally") is an annual rally raid organised by the Amaury Sport Organisation. Most events since the inception in 1978 were staged from Paris, France, to Dakar, Senegal ...
.
Robert Korzeniowski Robert Marek Korzeniowski (born 30 July 1968) is a Polish former racewalker who won four gold medals at the Olympic Games and three gold medals at World Championships. Biography Korzeniowski was born in Lubaczów, and is the brother of fello ...
, (born 30 July 1968 in Lubaczów, Poland) is a former Polish racewalker. He has won four gold medals at the Summer Olympics and has won three world championships.
Mariusz Pudzianowski Mariusz Zbigniew Pudzianowski (; born 7 February 1977), also known as "Pudzian" and "Dominator", is a Polish entrepreneur, mixed martial artist and former strongman competitor. With 43 international victories at a record 70% winning percenta ...
, a professional
strongman In the 19th century, the term strongman referred to an exhibitor of strength or similar circus performers who performed feats of strength. More recently, strength athletics, also known as strongman competitions, have grown in popularity. Thes ...
(born 7 February 1977) – He started
Kyokushin is a style of karate originating in Japan. It is a style of stand-up fighting and is rooted in a philosophy of self-improvement, discipline, and hard training. Kyokushin Kaikan is the martial arts organization founded in 1964 by Korean-Jap ...
in 1988,
weight training Weight training is a common type of strength training for developing the strength, size of skeletal muscles and maintenance of strength.Keogh, Justin W, and Paul W Winwood. “Report for: The Epidemiology of Injuries Across the Weight-Trai ...
in 1990 and box in 1992. At the end of the 1990s he focussed on strongman competitions. He is one of the three men that won the
World's Strongest Man The World's Strongest Man is an international Strongman competition held every year. Organized by American event management company IMG, a subsidiary of Endeavor, it is broadcast in the US during summers and in the UK around the end of Decem ...
title (in 2002, 2003, 2005, 2007, and 2008) near
Jón Páll Sigmarsson Jón Páll Sigmarsson (28 April 1960 – 16 January 1993) was an Icelandic strongman, powerlifter and bodybuilder who was the first man to win the World's Strong ...
and
Magnus Ver Magnusson Magnus, meaning "Great" in Latin, was used as cognomen of Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus in the first century BC. The best-known use of the name during the Roman Empire is for the fourth-century Western Roman Emperor Magnus Maximus. The name gained wi ...
. He is also the only man to ever win the World's Strongest Man title 5 times. Andrzej Gołota, boxer (born 5 January 1968) – In his early days, Gołota had 111 wins in a stellar amateur career that culminated in his winning a bronze medal at the
1988 Seoul Olympics The 1988 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad () and commonly known as Seoul 1988 ( ko, 서울 1988, Seoul Cheon gubaek palsip-pal), was an international multi-sport event held from 17 September to 2 October ...
. Gołota also captured a bronze medal at the 1989
European Amateur Boxing Championships The European Amateur Boxing Championships is the highest competition for boxing amateurs in Europe, organised by the continent's governing body EUBC, which stands for the ''European Boxing Confederation''. The first edition of the tournament t ...
. His professional record stands at 39 wins, 6 losses, one no contest and one draw, with 32 knockouts.
Tomasz Adamek Tomasz "Tomek" Adamek (; born 1 December 1976) is a Polish former professional boxer who competed from 1999 to 2018. He held world championships in two weight classes, including the WBC light heavyweight title from 2005 to 2007, and the IBF an ...
, a professional heavyweight boxer (born 1 December 1976) – his professional record (as of March 2013) is: 48 wins, 2 losses, with 29 knockouts.
Jerzy Dudek Jerzy Henryk Dudek (; born 23 March 1973) is a Polish former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. After beginning his career in his home country, he went on to have successful spells in the Netherlands and England, winning the Ch ...
, football player (born 23 March 1973 in
Rybnik Rybnik (Polish pronunciation: ; szl, Rybńik) is a city in southern Poland, in the Silesian Voivodeship, around 38 km (24 mi) southwest of Katowice, the region's capital, and around 19 km (11 miles) from the Czech border. It is ...
,
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...
) – Dudek, a famous Polish goalkeeper began his professional career with Sokół Tychy, a team in the Polish National Football League where he played one season in 1995–96. Between 1996 and 2002, Dudek was a member of
Feyenoord Rotterdam Feyenoord Rotterdam () is a Dutch professional football club in Rotterdam, which plays in the Eredivisie, the top tier in Dutch football. Founded as Wilhelmina in 1908, the club changed to various names before settling on being called after its ...
of the
Eredivisie The Eredivisie (; ''"Honour Division"'' or ''"Premier Division"'') is the highest level of professional football in the Netherlands. The league was founded in 1956, two years after the start of professional football in the Netherlands. It is ...
league in the
Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
, where he won the 1998–99 Dutch League Championship and the 1999–2000 Dutch Super Cup. During his stay with Feyenoord he also received the league's highest goalkeeping honors, winning the Dutch Keeper of the Year Award twice (1998–99, 1999–2000. In 2002 Dudek was transferred to
Liverpool Liverpool is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the List of English districts by population, 10th largest English district by population and its E ...
of the
Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Fo ...
, where he became a household name, winning the
League Cup In several sports, most prominently association football, a league cup or secondary cup generally signifies a cup competition for which entry is restricted only to teams in a particular league. The first national association football tournament t ...
in 2002–03, the UEFA Champions League in 2004–05 and the European Super Cup in 2005–06, as well as the
FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football compet ...
in 2005–06. Between 2007 and 2011 Dudek played for
Real Madrid Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (, meaning ''Royal Madrid Football Club''), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid. Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, the club has traditionally wor ...
in Spain, and then retired. He has made 60 appearances for the Polish National Team.
Mariusz Czerkawski Mariusz Krzysztof Czerkawski (pronounced ; born 13 April 1972) is a Polish former professional ice hockey player who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Boston Bruins, Edmonton Oilers, New York Islanders, Montreal Canadiens and To ...
, hockey player (born 13 April 1972 in
Radomsko Radomsko is a city in southern Poland with 44,700 inhabitants (2021). It is situated on the Radomka river in the Łódź Voivodeship (since 1999), having previously been in Piotrków Trybunalski Voivodeship (1975–1998). It is the county sea ...
,
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...
) – Czerkawski has enjoyed a successful career in the
National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey sports league, league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranke ...
with a total of 215 goals, 220 assists and 435 points in 745 games. Throughout his 14-year NHL career, Czerkawski played for the
Boston Bruins The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston. The Bruins compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The team has been in existence since 1924, making ...
(1993–96, 2005–06),
Edmonton Oilers The Edmonton Oilers are a professional ice hockey team based in Edmonton. The Oilers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. They play their home games at Rogers Place, which ...
(1996–97),
New York Islanders The New York Islanders (colloquially known as the Isles) are a professional ice hockey team based in Elmont, New York. The Islanders compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conferenc ...
(1997–2002, 2003–04)
Montreal Canadiens The Montreal CanadiensEven in English, the French spelling is always used instead of ''Canadians''. The French spelling of ''Montréal'' is also sometimes used in the English media. (french: link=no, Les Canadiens de Montréal), officially ...
(2002–03) and the
Toronto Maple Leafs The Toronto Maple Leafs (officially the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and often referred to as the Leafs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Div ...
(2005–06). Czerkawski represented Poland in the 1992
Winter Olympics The Winter Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'hiver) is a major international multi-sport event held once every four years for sports practiced on snow and ice. The first Winter Olympic Games, the 1924 Winter Olympics, were h ...
where he collected one assist in five games. Presently, he plays for the
Rapperswil-Jona Lakers The SC Rapperswil-Jona Lakers are a professional ice hockey club from Rapperswil, Switzerland and are members of the National League. History The Lakers were founded in 1945 and were known as SC Rapperswil-Jona until 2005, when the club changed ...
of the Nationalliga A in Switzerland. Krzysztof Oliwa, hockey player (born 12 April 1973 in
Tychy Tychy (Polish pronunciation: ; german: Tichau; szl, Tychy) is a city in Silesia in southern Poland, approximately south of Katowice. Situated on the southern edge of the Upper Silesian industrial district, the city boders Katowice to the north, ...
,
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...
) – Former professional
ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice ...
player who played the left wing position in the
National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey sports league, league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranke ...
. Oliwa was nicknamed "The Hammer" due to his physical and intimidating on-ice presence. At 6'5", with a strong build, he would normally play the role of the team's enforcer. Oliwa won the 1999–2000 Stanley Cup as a member of the
New Jersey Devils The New Jersey Devils are a professional ice hockey team based in Newark, New Jersey. The Devils compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference. The club was founded as the Kan ...
. Oliwa has also played for the
Columbus Blue Jackets The Columbus Blue Jackets (often simply referred to as the Jackets) are a professional ice hockey team based in Columbus, Ohio. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference ...
,
Pittsburgh Penguins The Pittsburgh Penguins (colloquially known as the Pens) are a professional ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division of the Eastern Conference, and have playe ...
,
New York Rangers The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in the New York City borough of Manhattan. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference. The team plays its ho ...
,
Boston Bruins The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston. The Bruins compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The team has been in existence since 1924, making ...
and
Calgary Flames The Calgary Flames are a professional ice hockey team based in Calgary. The Flames compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference, and are the third major professional ice hockey te ...
.
Zbigniew Boniek Zbigniew Boniek (; born 3 March 1956) is a Polish former footballer and manager as well as current UEFA vice-president. A former midfielder, who was also capable of playing mostly as a right winger and second striker, he is considered one of t ...
, football player (born 3 March 1956 in
Bydgoszcz Bydgoszcz ( , , ; german: Bromberg) is a city in northern Poland, straddling the meeting of the River Vistula with its left-bank tributary, the Brda. With a city population of 339,053 as of December 2021 and an urban agglomeration with mor ...
,
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...
– He played on
Zawisza Bydgoszcz Zawisza Bydgoszcz () is a sports club from Bydgoszcz, Poland, founded in 1946. Its name commemorates a legendary Polish 15th-century knight, Zawisza Czarny (Zawisza the Black). The club holds many sections: football, track and field athletics, ...
,
Widzew Łódź RTS Widzew Łódź () is a Polish football club based in Łódź. The club was founded in 1910. Its official colours are red and white, hence their nicknames ''Czerwona Armia'' (Red Army) and ''Czerwono-biało-czerwoni'' (Red-white-reds). Histor ...
,
Juventus Juventus Football Club (from la, iuventūs, 'youth'; ), colloquially known as Juve (), is a professional football club based in Turin, Piedmont, Italy, that competes in the Serie A, the top tier of the Italian football league system. Founded in ...
and
AS Roma ' (''Rome Sport Association''), commonly referred to as Roma (), is a professional Association football, football club based in Rome, Italy. Founded by a merger in 1927, Roma has participated in the top tier of Italian football for all of its ...
. In 2004
Pelé Edson Arantes do Nascimento (; born 23 October 1940), known as Pelé (), is a Brazilian former professional footballer who played as a forward. Widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time and labelled "the greatest" by FIFA ...
got him on the
FIFA 100 The FIFA 100 is a list of Brazilian footballer Pelé's choice of the "greatest living footballers". Unveiled on 4 March 2004 at a gala ceremony in London, England, the FIFA 100 marked part of the celebrations of the 100th anniversary of the fou ...
list. Today, he is the president of the
Polish Football Association The Polish Football Association ( pl, Polski Związek Piłki Nożnej; PZPN) is the governing body of association football in Poland. It organizes the Polish football leagues (without the Ekstraklasa), the Polish Cup and the Polish national footb ...
. He was elected as the president on 26 October 2012. Helena Rakoczy, (born 23 December 1921 in
Kraków Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula, Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland un ...
, Poland). Gymnast at Olympics (1952, 1956), and
World Championships A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...
(1950, 1954). World Individual All-Around, Vault, Balance Beam, and Floor Exercise champion in 1950. Inducted into
International Gymnastics Hall of Fame The International Gymnastics Hall of Fame, located in Oklahoma City, USA, is a hall of fame dedicated to honoring the achievements and contributions of the world's greatest competitors, coaches and authorities in artistic gymnastics. The early IGHO ...
in 2004.
Robert Kubica Robert Józef Kubica (; born 7 December 1984) is a Polish racing and rally driver. He was the first and, , the only Polish racing driver to compete in Formula One. Between 2006 and 2009 he drove for the BMW Sauber F1 team, promoted from test d ...
(born 7 December 1984 in
Kraków Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula, Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland un ...
, Poland), Robert Kubica is the first Polish Formula One driver. He made his racing debut at the
2006 Hungarian Grand Prix The 2006 Hungarian Grand Prix (officially the Formula 1 Magyar Nagydíj 2006) was a Formula One motor race held on 6 August 2006 at the Hungaroring, Mogyoród, Pest, Hungary. It was the 13th race of the 2006 Formula One season. Jenson Button won ...
. In only his third race he experienced his first podium finish at Monza, Italy at the
2006 Italian Grand Prix The 2006 Italian Grand Prix (officially the Formula 1 Gran Premio Vodafone d'Italia 2006) was a Formula One motor race held on 10 September 2006 at Autodromo Nazionale di Monza. It was the fifteenth race of the 2006 Formula One season, and was won ...
. During this race he finished third and stood on the podium next to
Michael Schumacher Michael Schumacher (; ; born 3 January 1969) is a German former racing driver who competed in Formula One for Jordan, Benetton, Ferrari, and Mercedes. Schumacher has a joint-record seven World Drivers' Championship titles (tied with Lewis ...
(Germany) and
Kimi Räikkönen Kimi-Matias Räikkönen (; born 17 October 1979), nicknamed "The Iceman", is a Finnish racing driver who competed in Formula One between 2001 and 2021 for Sauber, McLaren, Ferrari, Lotus, and Alfa Romeo. Räikkönen won the 2007 Formula One Wor ...
(Finland). In the
2007 Formula One season The 2007 FIA Formula One World Championship was the 61st season of FIA Formula One motor racing. It featured the 2007 FIA Formula One World Championship, which began on 18 March and ended on 21 October after seventeen events. The Drivers' Ch ...
he survived a horrific crash at the Canadian Grand Prix. Kubica came out of the crash with only a sprained ankle and minor
concussion A concussion, also known as a mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI), is a head injury that temporarily affects brain functioning. Symptoms may include loss of consciousness (LOC); memory loss; headaches; difficulty with thinking, concentration ...
. Robert Kubica scored his very first victory in Formula 1 at
2008 Canadian Grand Prix The 2008 Canadian Grand Prix (formally the Formula 1 Grand Prix du Canada 2008) was a Formula One motor race held on 8 June 2008 at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It was the 7th race of the 2008 Formula One seaso ...
(it was also the very first win for the BMW Sauber team). Robert Kubica has brought Formula One to Poland, bringing along with him many new fans. In February 2011, he had a crash in the Rally Ronde di Andora. He went through long rehabilitation processes. In 2013, Kubica started racing in the
World Rally Championship The World Rally Championship (abbreviated as WRC) is the highest level of global competition in the motorsport discipline of rallying, owned and governed by the FIA. There are separate championships for drivers, co-drivers, manufacturers and t ...
with immediate success, winning
WRC-2 The FIA WRC2 (previously also known as World Rally Championship 2 and WRC 2), is a support championship of the World Rally Championship. The calendar consists of the same rallies and stages as the main class and crews usually compete immediately ...
championship in
2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fa ...
. He then moved to top WRC class for 2014 season.
Sobiesław Zasada Sobiesław Jan Zasada (born 27 January 1930 in Dąbrowa Górnicza, Poland) is a Polish rally driver and economist. He won the European Rally Championship in 1966, 1967, 1971 and was vice-champion in 1968, 1969, and 1972. In 1967, he was chosen ...
(born 27 January 1930 in
Dąbrowa Górnicza Dąbrowa Górnicza is a city in Zagłębie Dąbrowskie, southern Poland, near Katowice and Sosnowiec. It is located in eastern part of the Silesian Voivodeship, on the Czarna Przemsza and Biała Przemsza rivers (tributaries of the Vistula River, ...
), is a Polish former rally driver. He won the
European Rally Championship The European Rally Championship (officially FIA European Rally Championship) is an automobile rally competition held annually on the European continent and organized by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The championship has b ...
in 1966, 1967, 1971 and was vice-champion in 1968, 1969, 1972.
Paweł Zagumny Paweł Zagumny (born 18 October 1977) is a Polish former professional volleyball player. He was a member of the Poland national team in 1996–2014. A participant at the Olympic Games (Atlanta 1996, Athens 2004, Beijing 2008, London 2012), the ...
(born 18 October 1977 in Jasło, Poland) is a Polish volleyball player. He is a son of Lech Zagumny, the coach of Polish volleyball club AZS Politechnika Warszawa. He is playing in volleyball club Kedzierzyn-Kozle and also in Poland national team, in which he debuted in 1998. In his prime, Zagumny was widely considered as the best setter in the world.
Tomasz Gollob Tomasz Robert Gollob (; born 11 April 1971 in Bydgoszcz, Poland) is a former Polish motorcycle speedway rider. He appeared in every Speedway Grand Prix series between its inaugural season in 1995 and 2013. His brother Jacek is also a speedway rid ...
, motorcycle speedway rider (born 11 April 1971 in
Bydgoszcz Bydgoszcz ( , , ; german: Bromberg) is a city in northern Poland, straddling the meeting of the River Vistula with its left-bank tributary, the Brda. With a city population of 339,053 as of December 2021 and an urban agglomeration with mor ...
,
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...
) – Gollob is Poland's most recognized motorcyclist. He has finished in the top ten of the
Speedway Grand Prix Speedway Grand Prix are a series of stand-alone motorcycle speedway events over the course of a season used to determine the Speedway World Champion. The series started in 1995 replacing the previous format of a single event final. The first win ...
15 times, including his best performance in 2010 when he captured first place.
Alan Kulwicki Alan Dennis Kulwicki (December 14, 1954 – April 1, 1993), nicknamed "Special K" and the "Polish Prince", was an American auto racing driver and team owner. He started racing at local short tracks in Wisconsin before moving up to regional ...
(14 December 1954 – 1 April 1993), nicknamed "Special K" and the "Polish Prince", was an American
NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and ...
Winston Cup Series The NASCAR Cup Series is the top racing series of the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR). The series began in 1949 as the Strictly Stock Division, and from 1950 to 1970 it was known as the Grand National Division. In 1971 ...
. He won the 1992 Cup Series championship.
Grzegorz Lato Grzegorz Bolesław Lato (Polish pronunciation: ; born 8 April 1950) is a Polish former professional football player and manager who played as a winger. He was a member of Poland's golden generation of football players who rose to fame in the ...
, footballer (born 8 April 1950 in
Malbork Malbork; ; * la, Mariaeburgum, ''Mariae castrum'', ''Marianopolis'', ''Civitas Beatae Virginis'' * Kashubian: ''Malbórg'' * Old Prussian: ''Algemin'' is a town in the Pomeranian Voivodeship, Poland. It is the seat of Malbork County and has ...
,
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...
) – Lato is the all-time cap leader for the Polish National Football Team. He was the leading scorer at the
1974 FIFA World Cup The 1974 FIFA World Cup was the tenth FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial football tournament for men's senior national teams, and was played in West Germany (and West Berlin) between 13 June and 7 July. The tournament marked the first time that the ...
, where he won the Golden Shoe after scoring a tournament best seven goals. Lato's playing career coincided with the golden era of Polish football, which began with Olympic gold in Munich in 1972 and ended a decade later with a third-place finish at the 1982 World Cup in Spain, a repeat of the Poles' impressive finish at the 1974 championships in Germany. Lato retired from professional football in 1984 with 45 international goals, a record that stands to this day. On 30 October 2008, he was elected as the president of the Polish FA, but on 26 October 2012,
Zbigniew Boniek Zbigniew Boniek (; born 3 March 1956) is a Polish former footballer and manager as well as current UEFA vice-president. A former midfielder, who was also capable of playing mostly as a right winger and second striker, he is considered one of t ...
became the Association's president.
Jadwiga Jędrzejowska Jadwiga "Jed" Jędrzejowska (; 15 October 1912 – 28 February 1980) was a Polish tennis player who had her main achievements during the second half of the 1930s. Because her name was difficult to pronounce for many people who did not speak Polis ...
was a successful tennis player before the WWII,
Wojciech Fibak Wojciech Fibak (; popularly Wojtek Fibak ; born 30 August 1952) is a former professional tennis player and Polish entrepreneur and art collector. Fibak is best known for his doubles success with Dutch pro Tom Okker and Australian Kim Warwick, ...
during the 1970s and 1980s,
Agnieszka Radwańska Agnieszka Roma Radwańska (; born 6 March 1989) is a Polish former professional tennis player. She won 20 career singles WTA Tour titles, two doubles titles, and achieved a career-high singles ranking of world No. 2 on 9 July 2012. Her achiev ...
until her retirement from tennis in 2018.
Joanna Jędrzejczyk Joanna Jędrzejczyk (; born August 18, 1987) is a Polish former professional mixed martial artist and Muay Thai kickboxer. She has been called the greatest female strawweight mixed martial artist of all time, including by Daniel Cormier, who ...
(born 18 August 1987), is a mixed martial artist who competes in the women's strawweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. She is a former UFC Women's Strawweight Champion and previously held the title for 966 days, making her the longest reigning champion in the division. As of 28 September 2020: she is #4 in the UFC women's strawweight rankings and #5 in UFC women's pound-for-pound rankings.
Jan Błachowicz Jan Maciej Błachowicz (; born 24 February 1983) is a Polish professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Light Heavyweight division for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he is a former UFC Light Heavyweight Champ ...
(born 24 February 1983), is a Polish professional mixed martial artist. He is currently signed with the Ultimate Fighting Championship and competes in their Light Heavyweight division, where he is the current UFC Light Heavyweight Champion.


Gallery

File:20190302 FIS NWSC Seefeld Medal Ceremony Kamil Stoch 850 6745.jpg,
Kamil Stoch Kamil Wiktor Stoch (; born 25 May 1987) is a Polish Ski jumping, ski jumper. He is one of the most successful ski jumpers in the history of the sport, having won two FIS Ski Jumping World Cup, World Cup titles, three Four Hills Tournaments (two o ...
File:Iga Swiatek (50498824617).jpg,
Iga Świątek Iga Natalia Świątek (; born 31 May 2001) is a Polish professional tennis player. She is currently ranked world No. 1 by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA). Świątek is a three-time major singles champion, having won the French Open in 20 ...
File:LewandowskiR.jpg,
Robert Lewandowski Robert Lewandowski (; born 21 August 1988) is a Polish professional footballer who plays as a striker for La Liga club Barcelona and captains the Poland national team. Recognised for his positioning, technique and finishing, Lewandowski is co ...
File:2014 Rallye Deutschland by 2eight 8SC0282.jpg,
Robert Kubica Robert Józef Kubica (; born 7 December 1984) is a Polish racing and rally driver. He was the first and, , the only Polish racing driver to compete in Formula One. Between 2006 and 2009 he drove for the BMW Sauber F1 team, promoted from test d ...
File:Agnieszka Radwanska (9431585860).jpg,
Agnieszka Radwańska Agnieszka Roma Radwańska (; born 6 March 1989) is a Polish former professional tennis player. She won 20 career singles WTA Tour titles, two doubles titles, and achieved a career-high singles ranking of world No. 2 on 9 July 2012. Her achiev ...
File:Wojciech Szczęsny - 2019.jpg,
Wojciech Szczęsny Wojciech Tomasz Szczęsny (; born 18 April 1990) is a Polish professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for club Juventus and the Poland national team. After starting his club career at Legia Warsaw, Szczęsny signed for Arsenal in Jan ...
File:Nederland tegen Polen 0-0 in Olympisch Stadion in Amsterdam Lazarek, nr. 11, 12, Bestanddeelnr 933-8193 (cropped).jpg,
Zbigniew Boniek Zbigniew Boniek (; born 3 March 1956) is a Polish former footballer and manager as well as current UEFA vice-president. A former midfielder, who was also capable of playing mostly as a right winger and second striker, he is considered one of t ...
File:Kowalczyk-Trondheim09.jpg,
Justyna Kowalczyk Justyna Maria Kowalczyk-Tekieli (born 19 January 1983) is a Polish cross-country skier who has been competing since 2000. Kowalczyk is a double Olympic Champion and a double World Champion. She is also the only skier to win the Tour de Ski four t ...
File:Irena Szewinska 2007 AB.jpg, Irena Szewińska File:Hurkacz RG21 (9) (51376382433).jpg,
Hubert Hurkacz Hubert Hurkacz (; born 11 February 1997) is a Polish professional tennis player. He has been ranked as high as world No. 9 in singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP), which he first achieved in November 2021, making him the hig ...
File:Adam Małysz at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics.jpg,
Adam Małysz Adam Henryk Małysz (; born 3 December 1977) is a Polish former ski jumper and rally driver. He competed in ski jumping from 1995 to 2011 and is one of the most successful athletes in the history of the sport. His many accomplishments include ...
File:Jerzy Dudek (cropped).jpg,
Jerzy Dudek Jerzy Henryk Dudek (; born 23 March 1973) is a Polish former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. After beginning his career in his home country, he went on to have successful spells in the Netherlands and England, winning the Ch ...
File:AnitaWRio2016_cropped.jpg,
Anita Włodarczyk Anita Włodarczyk (; born 8 August 1985) is a Polish hammer thrower. She is the 2012, 2016 and 2020 Olympic champion, and the first woman in history to throw the hammer over 80 m; she currently holds the women's world record of 82.98 m. She is c ...
File:Robert Korzeniowski, Łódź, 1.10.2014 Conference.jpg,
Robert Korzeniowski Robert Marek Korzeniowski (born 30 July 1968) is a Polish former racewalker who won four gold medals at the Olympic Games and three gold medals at World Championships. Biography Korzeniowski was born in Lubaczów, and is the brother of fello ...
File:Bartosz Kurek 2012.jpg,
Bartosz Kurek Bartosz Kamil Kurek (born 29 August 1988) is a Polish professional volleyball player. He is a member of the Poland national team, a participant in the Olympic Games (London 2012, Rio 2016, Tokyo 2020), 2018 World Champion, 2009 European Champ ...
File:Fourmies - Grand Prix de Fourmies, 6 septembre 2015 (B087).JPG,
Michał Kwiatkowski Michał Kwiatkowski ( , born 2 June 1990) is a Polish professional road bicycle racer, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . Kwiatkowski is seen as a strong all rounder, with good sprinting, time-trialling and climbing abilities allowing him ...


Research and academic education

Poland developed a network of physical education universities, the oldest of them the
Józef Piłsudski University of Physical Education in Warsaw Józef Piłsudski University of Physical Education in Warsaw ( pl, Akademia Wychowania Fizycznego Józefa Piłsudskiego w Warszawie, lit=Józef Piłsudski Academy of Physical Education in Warsaw) is a public institution of higher learning in Warsaw ...
.


Arts

Poles obtained several medals in
Art competitions at the Summer Olympics Art competitions formed part of the modern Olympic Games during its early years, from 1912 to 1948. The competitions were part of the original intention of the Olympic Movement's founder, Pierre de Frédy, Baron de Coubertin. Medals were awar ...
.


Museums

*
Museum of Sport and Tourism Muzeum Sportu i Turystyki w Warszawie ( pl, Muzeum Sportu i Turystyki, MSiT) is a museum in Warsaw, Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces calle ...
in Warsaw *Museum for Sport and Tourism in Karpacz *Museum of Sport and Tourism in
Łódź Łódź, also rendered in English as Lodz, is a city in central Poland and a former industrial centre. It is the capital of Łódź Voivodeship, and is located approximately south-west of Warsaw. The city's coat of arms is an example of ca ...
, the division of the City Museum *Museum of Hunting and Horsemanship


See also

* List of Polish athletes *
Sport in Warsaw Warsaw is home to one major professional football club and a number of smaller clubs. The only one currently playing in the first division (Ekstraklasa) is Legia Warsaw. Overview On 9 April 2008 the President of Warsaw, Hanna Gronkiewicz-Waltz, o ...
* Sports in Białystok


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sport in Poland