This introductory text has been prepared on the occasion of the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Polish Weightlifting Federation, which will take place on 13 December 2025 in Warsaw, Poland.
In recognition of the distinguished history of the Polish Weightlifting Federation—an essential part of the heritage of the European Weightlifting Federation — the EWF has decided to publish a commemorative volume titled “100 Years of the Polish Weightlifting Federation.” The book, prepared by Mr. Zbigniew Gorlewski, a member of the EWF Historical Commission and the author of the text below, will provide you more information on the Polish weightlifting heroes.
The IWF President, Mr. Mohammed Jalood, together with the EWF President, Dr. Astrit Hasani, along with other distinguished guests, will attend the anniversary.
By Zbigniew Gorlewski
On December 6th, 1925, a congress of delegates from Athletic Associations from all over Poland was held in Katowice, during which the Polish Athletic Association was established. At that time, the Association encompassed two disciplines: wrestling and weightlifting. This union of disciplines lasted until the early 1950s. Over the years, the Association’s name changed multiple times. For a period after separating from wrestling, we were connected with judo and later with bodybuilding. Since March 10th, 1965, we have operated independently as the Polish Weightlifting Federation.
The first president elected was Mieczysław Orłowicz, who held the position until 1930. The current president, since December 19th, 2024, is Zdzisław Żołopa — the 13th “helmsman” of our discipline. In 1926, the Polish Athletic Association became a member of the Fédération Internationale Halterophile (now the International Weightlifting Federation), and since 1969, we have been a member and also a founding member of the European Weightlifting Federation.
The Association’s initial activities focused solely on promoting wrestling. Weightlifting was treated as a less important discipline. Polish athletes lagged behind competitors from other countries in every aspect, and their sporting results were poor. Poles did not compete in the World Championships, nor, of course, in the Olympic Games. However, Polish Championships in wrestling and weightlifting were organized.
The first Polish Championships were held during the founding congress. Until 1939, only one appearance at the European Championships was recorded — in 1930, when three athletes participated, placing in the lower ranks. Only one international dual meet was held as well. It was not until after World War II that weightlifting in Poland gained greater recognition, which became evident in the results of our athletes. Their international debut took place in 1952 at the Olympic Games in Helsinki. From that moment on, Polish athletes consistently competed in the Olympic Games, World Championships, and European Championships. To date, they have won a total of 1,761 medals across all age groups — 576 gold, 588 silver, and 597 bronze.
It should be noted that Poland’s first medal on the international stage was won in 1955 at the European Championships in Munich. The medal, a bronze, was won by Krzysztof Beck. A year later, at the 1956 Olympic Games in Melbourne, Marian Zieliński won Poland’s first Olympic weightlifting medal, also bronze (he remains the only Polish athlete to win three Olympic medals).
Polish athletes had to wait until 1957 for their first World Championships medal. At the Championships in Tehran, two athletes — Jan Czepułkowski and Jan Bochenek — each claimed bronze. After these early successes, Polish athletes returned from nearly every major championship with medals. It is also worth noting that Polish officials held numerous positions within the leadership of the World and European federations. Between 1969 and 1983, Janusz Przedpełski served as President of the European Weightlifting Federation. After him, Waldemar Baszanowski held the same position from 1999 to 2008. As for the greatest athletes in the history of Polish weightlifting, one must mention Agata Wróbel among women and Waldemar Baszanowski among men. Although only two names are highlighted here, the history of Polish weightlifting includes many more athletes who repeatedly represented Poland on the platforms of the world and Europe, winning numerous medals.
As we close this century-long chapter, we wish Polish athletes continued success and hope they will hear the Polish national anthem played in their honor as often as possible.