Bogdan Brunon Wenta (born 19 November 1961) is a Polish politician and handball coach and former

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Polish people, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken * Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin ...

and German

handball Handball (also known as team handball, European handball, Olympic handball or indoor 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 thr ...

player. He has been a member of the

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 Champio ...

in 1981–1994 and

Germany men's national handball team The Germany national handball team is the country's national men's handball team and represents Germany in international tournaments in men's handball and is one of the most successful handball teams in the world, having ...

in 1997–2000, a participant of the

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games (Olympics; ) are the world's preeminent international Olympic sports, sporting events. They feature summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a Multi-s ...

Sydney 2000, five-time Polish Champion (1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988), and former head coach of

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

. He has been one of the best

player in the history of Polish

. Between 2014 and 2018 he was a

Member of the European Parliament A member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been Election, elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament. When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the European Coal and S ...

for the Polish

Civic Platform The Civic Platform (, PO)The party is officially the Civic Platform of the Republic of Poland (''Platforma Obywatelska Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej''). is a Centre-right politics, centre-right liberal conservative political party in Poland. Since ...

. In 2018, he was elected as Mayor of

Kielce Kielce (; ) is a city in south-central Poland and the capital of the Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship. In 2021, it had 192,468 inhabitants. The city is in the middle of the Świętokrzyskie Mountains (Holy Cross Mountains), on the banks of the Silnic ...

, having run from his own committee with the endorsement of the Civic Platform.

Personal life

Since 1984 he has been married to Iwona. They have one son Tomasz (born 13 March 1996). In 2014 Bogdan Wenta was elected to European Parliament.

Career as player

Clubs

Wenta's entire career in

was connected with one club -

Wybrzeże Gdańsk Wybrzeże Gdańsk was a Polish multi-sports club based in Gdańsk, established in 1945, most known for its motorcycle speedway and handball teams. Club has closed in 2005, due to financial problems. Before 2006 speedway season was established ...

, where he started playing in first team in 1978, when he was 17. He was five-times Polish Champion (1984–1988) and achieved European Cup final twice, losing to

RK Metaloplastika RK Metaloplastika () is a Serbian handball club based in Šabac. They compete in the Serbian Handball Super League. History The club itself dates back to 1958. They initially competed under the name Partizan. In 1970, the club changed its na ...

Šabac Šabac ( sr-Cyrl, Шабац, ) is a List of cities in Serbia, city and the administrative centre of the Mačva District in western Serbia. The traditional centre of the fertile Mačva region, Šabac is located on the right banks of the river ...

in 1986 and SKA Mińsk in 1987. In 1989 he moved to

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

and played for

Bidasoa Irún CD Bidasoa Irun is a team of handball based in Irún, Spain. It plays in Liga ASOBAL. History The Basque club was founded in 1962. Five years after its foundation, CD Bidasoa managed to get promoted to the second division and after the 1969/1 ...

(1989–1992) and

FC Barcelona Handbol Futbol Club Barcelona Handbol is a professional Spanish handball team based in Barcelona, Catalonia. It is a part of the FC Barcelona multi sports club, and was founded on 29 November 1942. The club competes domestically in the Liga ASOBAL and ...

(1992–1995). He was first Polish player in

FC Barcelona Futbol Club Barcelona (), commonly known as FC Barcelona and colloquially as Barça (), is a professional Football club (association football), football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of ...

. At last, he emigrated to

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

, and played for TuS Nettelstedt (1995–1998) and

SG Flensburg-Handewitt SG Flensburg-Handewitt is a professional handball club from Flensburg and Handewitt in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. Currently, they compete in the Handball-Bundesliga and EHF European League. They play home matches at Flens-Arena. Since formin ...

(1998–2000).

National teams

Poland 1981–1993

Wenta made his debut in Polish national team in 1981, when he was barely 20. He was appointed by Zygfryd Kuchta. It was match with

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

. He represented

in 185 official games (including friendly matches 198) and scored 763 goals, which is the third result in history of Polish handball. He took part in IHF World Handball Championship twice - in

1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. ** Spain and Portugal en ...

(14th place) and

1990 Important events of 1990 include the Reunification of Germany and the unification of Yemen, the formal beginning of the Human Genome Project (finished in 2003), the launch of the Hubble Space Telescope, the separation of Namibia from South ...

(11th place). He did not participate in

as Polish player. In 1993 he was blamed for Poland's elimination during qualifications to

1994 European Men's Handball Championship The 1994 European Men's Handball Championship was the inaugural edition of the tournament, held in Portugal from 3 to 12 June 1994, in the cities of Porto and Almada. Sweden won the tournament after defeating Russia in the final, while Croatia fi ...

. Since then he was never called up again to Polish national team.

Germany 1997–2000

In 1996 Wenta accepted

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

citizenship, which caused a lot of controversy in his homeland,

. However he has never played against

. He represented the German side in 46 official games (and 4 friendly matches) and scored 144 goals. He was a member of German national team in IHF World Handball Championship twice -

1997 Events January * January 1 – The Emergency Alert System is introduced in the United States. * January 11 – Turkey threatens Cyprus on account of a deal to buy Russian S-300 missiles, prompting the Cypriot Missile Crisis. * January 1 ...

and

1999 1999 was designated as the International Year of Older Persons. Events January * January 1 – The euro currency is established and the European Central Bank assumes its full powers. * January 3 – The Mars Polar Lander is launc ...

. In 1998 he achieved bronze medal of

European Championship A European Championship is the top level international sports competition between European athletes or sports teams representing their respective countries or professional sports clubs. In the plural, the European Championships also refers t ...

and took part in European Championship 2000. He made his Olympic debut at Olympics Sydney 2000 (5th place). He regained Polish citizenship in 2008.

Career as coach, 2000–2012

Bogdan Wenta retired in 2000 and became coach assistant in

. In 2005 he had to enter the court and play because of many players had injuries. He was 44 and this number was on his shirt. From summer 2006 to autumn 2007 he was head coach of German handball club,

SC Magdeburg The SC Magdeburg is a professional handball club from Magdeburg, Germany. The team plays in the highest German league, the Handball-Bundesliga and regularly in highest international competitions. They won the EHF Champions League in 1978, 1981, ...

. On 28 October 2004 Wenta was announced as

head coach. In 2007 he achieved with national team the biggest success of Polish handball -

won silver medal of

World Championship 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 ...

. They lost the final to host team -

25:29. In 2008

took the fifth place by defeating

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

29:28 at

2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and officially branded as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes fro ...

, held in

Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...

. In 2009

led by him achieved second medal of IHF World Handball Championship. They won the bronze medal by defeating

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

31:23 at World Championship 2009 in

Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...

. In January 2010 he was awarded ''Coach of Year 2009'' by

Plebiscite of Przegląd Sportowy A referendum, plebiscite, or ballot measure is a direct vote by the electorate (rather than their representatives) on a proposal, law, or political issue. A referendum may be either binding (resulting in the adoption of a new policy) or advis ...

. In 2012 national team did not qualify to

. On April 19, 2012, he announced his resignation. * 2007 Simple gold cup

EHF Cup The EHF European League is an annual men's handball club competition organised by the European Handball Federation (EHF) since 1981. It is the second-tier competition of European club handball, ranking only below the EHF Champions League. Previo ...

, with

* 2007

IHF World Championship, with

* 2009

IHF World Championship, with

* 2009

Polish Cup, with

Vive Targi Kielce KS Iskra Kielce SA, officially known for sponsorship reasons as Industria Kielce, and previously named Vive Kielce between 2002 and 2022, is a professional men's handball club based in Kielce in southeastern Poland. The club plays in the Polish ...

* 2009

Polish Championship, with

* 2010

Polish Cup, with

* 2010

Polish Championship, with

* 2011

Polish Cup, with

* 2011

Polish Championship, with

* 2012

Polish Cup, with

* 2012

Polish Championship, with

* 2013

Polish Cup, with

* 2013

Polish Championship, with

* 2013

EHF Champions League The EHF Champions League is the most important club handball competition for men's teams in Europe and involves the leading teams from the top European nations. The competition is organised every year by EHF. The official name for the men's com ...

, with

Involvement in politics, 2014–present

Wenta was a

elected in the 2014 European elections. In European Parliament, he served on the

Committee on Culture and Education The Committee on Culture and Education (CULT) is a committee of the European Parliament. Responsibilities of the committee This committee has focused on the well-being of all members of the human race and the increased opportunities for educat ...

and on the

Committee on Development The Committee on Development (Commission du développement, DEVE) is a committee of the European Parliament responsible for promoting, implementing and monitoring the development and cooperation policy of the European Union, notably talks with deve ...

. In addition to his committee assignments, he was a member of the Parliament's delegation to the

ACP–EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly The ACP–EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly was created to bring together the elected representatives of the European Union (the Members of the European Parliament) and the elected representatives of the African, Caribbean and Pacific states ("ACP ...

. In 2018, he quit his membership in the European Parliament after being elected as Mayor of

2018 Polish local elections The 2018 Polish local elections were held on October 21 for all 16 regional assemblies (''sejmik wojewódzki''), 380 county (''powiat'') councils, and 2477 municipal (''gmina'') councils. There were also direct elections for heads (''wójt'') of m ...

Other activities

European Endowment for Democracy The European Endowment for Democracy is a European non-governmental organisation with the stated purpose of promoting democracy, particularly in the European Neighbourhood, Turkey and the Western Balkans. It was established in 2013 following a p ...

(EED), Member of the Board of GovernorsAbout EED

(EED).

Sporting achievements

Clubs

National championships

* 1981/1982 Silver medal with cup

Polish Championship, with

* 1982/1983 Silver medal with cup

Polish Championship, with

* 1983/1984 Gold medal with cup

Polish Championship, with

* 1984/1985 Gold medal with cup

Polish Championship, with

* 1985/1986 Gold medal with cup

Polish Championship, with

* 1986/1987 Gold medal with cup

Polish Championship, with

* 1987/1988 Gold medal with cup

Polish Championship, with

* 1990/1991 Simple gold cup

Spanish Cup, with

* 1992/1993 Simple gold cup

Spanish Cup, with

* 1993/1994 Silver medal with cup

Spanish Championship, with

* 1993/1994 Simple gold cup

Spanish Cup, with

* 1994/1995 Simple gold cup

Spanish SuperCup 1994, with

* 1998/1999 Simple gold cup

German SuperCup 1998, with

TuS Nettelstedt-Lübbecke TuS Nettelstedt-Lübbecke is a handball Handball (also known as team handball, European handball, Olympic handball or indoor handball) is a team sport in which two teams of seven players each (six outcourt players and a goalkeeper) pass ...

National team

* 1998

Individually

* 1990 ASOBAL League - The best pair of foreign players with

Alfreð Gíslason Alfreð Gíslason (born 7 September 1959) is an Icelandic handball coach and former player who is currently the head coach of the German men's national team. He won titles in Iceland, Germany and Spain as a player before starting his coaching c ...

* 1991 ASOBAL League - The best pair of foreign players with

* 1990 ASOBAL League - Most Valuable Player * 1991 ASOBAL League - Most Valuable Player * 1995 ASOBAL League - Best Playmaker

State awards

* 2007

Knight's Cross of Polonia Restituta

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wenta, Bogdan 1961 births Living people People from Starogard County Handball players from Pomeranian Voivodeship Polish male handball players German male handball players Liga ASOBAL players FC Barcelona Handbol players Knights of the Order of Polonia Restituta Polish handball coaches Handball coaches of international teams MEPs for Poland 2014–2019 Olympic handball players for Germany Handball players at the 2000 Summer Olympics Mayors of places in Poland Polish sportsperson-politicians Polish expatriate sportspeople in Spain Polish expatriate handball players in Germany Naturalized citizens of Germany Naturalised handball players Friendship Games medalists in handball Expatriate handball players in Spain Expatriate handball coaches SG Flensburg-Handewitt players TuS Nettelstedt-Lübbecke players CD Bidasoa Irun players 20th-century Polish sportsmen 20th-century German sportsmen