SPORTS: Polish Olympians
Congratulations to Team Poland! At the Rio Games Polish Olympians set one new World Record and won two gold, three silver and six bronze medals. Poland’s combined Olympic medal count from all summer and winter games surpassed 300 during the Rio Olympiad and currently stands at 302.
GOLD
Anita Włodarczyk smashed the world record in Women’s Hammer Throw with a distance of 82.29 meters! This result won her Olympic Gold and set a New World Record! The Polish Queen of the Hammer, as Włodarczyk is called, is now Olympic Champion, two time World Champion, and three time European Champion. We salute you Anita!
Magdalena Fularczyk-Kozłowska and Natalia Madaj (center) rowed to Gold in Women’s Double Sculls, earning Poland’s first ever Olympic gold medal in women’s rowing. Magdalena Fularczyk-Kozłowska won a bronze medal in this competition four years ago in London with then partner Julia Michalska. Congratulations to our Golden rowers!
SILVER
Piotr Małachowski, European and World Champion, won Silver in Men’s Discus Throw at the Rio Olympics! Upon returning to Poland Małachowski auctioned off his Olympic medal to raise funds for three year old Olek Szymanski who has retinoblastoma, an eye cancer affecting young children. The successful auction helped raise the necessary funds to cover costs associated with Olek’s treatment in New York.
Marta Walczykiewicz clinched the Silver medal in Canoe Sprint Women’s K-1 200 Meters! A 5th place finisher in London during the 2012 Olympics, this is Marta’s first Olympic medal and Poland’s first-ever medal in this event.
Maja Włoszczowska won Silver in Women’s Cross Country Cycling and was the last Olympian to medal for Poland at the Rio Games. Maja previously won a Silver Medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
Did you know: for the first time in Olympics history, the women’s result (82.29m) was better than the men’s result (78.68m) in hammer throw. Bravo once again to Anita Włodarczyk for her World Record!
BRONZE
Rafał Majka won Poland’s first medal of the Rio Olympics, earning the Bronze in Men’s Road Race. Rafał’s incredible performance gave Poland it’s first Olympics cycling medal since the 1988 games.
Monika Ciaciuch, Agnieszka Kobus, Maria Springwald and Joanna Leszczyńska earned a Bronze medal in Women’s Quadruple Sculls, becoming the first ever Polish team to medal in this event. Way to go!
The Bronze Medal was won by Karolina Naja and Beata Mikołajczyk in Canoe Sprint Women’s K-2 500 Meters. The duo previously won a bronze medal at the 2012 London Olympics. Before that Beata Mikołajczyk won Silver at the 2008 Beijing Olympics with a different partner (Aneta Konieczna) also in K-2 500m.
Poland’s Monika Michalik won Bronze in Women’s Freestyle Wrestling 63kg after defeating Inna Trazhukova of Russia. Having reached the quater finals in the previous two Olympics, we are thrilled that Monika won her first Olympic medal!
Wojciech Nowicki finished third in Men’s Hammer Throw, winning his first ever Olympic medal with a result of 77.73 meters.
Oktawia Nowacka won the Bronze medal in Women’s Modern Pentathlon. Nowacka is Poland’s first ever Olympic medalist in women’s modern pentathlon, which is comprised of pistol shooting, fencing, swimming, horse riding and running.
