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History of the Weightlifting Section

The first information about the weightlifting section being established within TS Wisła dates back to November 1911. As reported by "Nowa Reforma":

“A new athletic club in Kraków, set to be formed as a branch of the ‘Wisła’ Sports Society, invites all interested in joining to a constitutive meeting, which will take place on Sunday, the 12th of this month, at 7 PM in the ‘Wisła’ premises, located at Wolska Street 25, first floor.”

History of the Heavy Athletics Section (Wrestling and Weightlifting)

The term "heavy athletics," which may sound somewhat archaic today, encompassed two sports during the interwar period: wrestling and weightlifting, both relying heavily on the physical strength of the athletes. In Kraków, the section was established as the third within TS Wisła, following the football and athletics sections, in June 1922.

The early years were not easy. As noted in the club's 30th anniversary jubilee book, “this sport unfortunately enjoys little support from society, which has been put off by the circus-like 'acts' of professional wrestlers.” However, the situation dramatically changed in the mid-1920s with the arrival of Stanisław “Zbyszko” Cyganiewicz, a three-time world professional wrestling champion and a living legend of the sport.

Cyganiewicz was an extraordinary individual. He spoke nine languages, had a keen interest in philosophy, and was an opera music enthusiast. Born in Jodłowa near Jasło, he attended the Saint Jack's Gymnasium in Kraków (which produced many members of Wisła). After graduating, he began studying law at the Jagiellonian University. Despite being welcomed into the high society of the world, he always emphasized his Polish roots and was eager to promote wrestling in Kraków.

To encourage young boys to take up wrestling, he performed in several exhibitions in 1925, battling multiple opponents at once (and of course, not losing a single match). One of these exhibitions proved to be pivotal for the history of Wisła's wrestling.

Held at the Kraków Sokoła hall, this event inspired Władysław Bajorek, who realized that wrestling was his passion. The following year, he won the title of Małopolska district champion, and in 1929, he claimed the title of Polish champion. He repeated this success in 1931, qualifying for the national team for the European Championships.

At these championships, Bajorek made a name for himself internationally, advancing to the finals in the lightweight category. In a decisive match, he lost to the multiple European champion and two-time Olympic champion, the "king of wrestling," the Swede Johansson, in what was described as the most beautiful match of the tournament. This defeat relegated him to the dreaded fourth place, a position often disliked by athletes. In subsequent years, he did not achieve the same level of success abroad, only re-emerging seven years later by winning a highly competitive international tournament in Bytom (then in Germany).

However, it was not Władysław Bajorek, but Aleksander Jaworski who won the first Polish championship title for Wisła. This took place in 1927 in Lviv, where Antoni Pawlikowski also secured third place for the White Star. These wrestlers, along with Kazimierz Nigrin and the founders of the section—Franciszek Pawlikowski and Mieczysław Tylko—were the backbone of Wisła's wrestling strength during that period. Bohdan Śmitkowski also showed promise as a good wrestler (Bohdan Śmitkowski was murdered by the Nazi occupiers in 1944. He was posthumously awarded the Virtuti Militari order and promoted to the rank of captain in the Home Army).

“Zbyszko” Cyganiewicz was drawn to Wisła. On June 13, 1937, at the White Star Stadium, in front of a thousand spectators, a freestyle wrestling event took place. “Zbyszko” defeated the champion of Yugoslavia, and the audience carried him off the ring in appreciation. Wisła also achieved significant success in weightlifting. In 1932, during the Kraków championships, Wisła athletes won five championship titles, and Władysław Derbot equaled the Polish record in the clean and jerk in the lightweight category with a lift of 100 kg. The following year, he won the national vice-championship in the triathlon and, in 1934, achieved a decisive victory in the same-level competition in the pentathlon (snatch and clean and jerk with one hand, press, snatch, and clean and jerk with two hands). These championships were particularly fruitful for the White Star weightlifters, as Józef Głowacki won a gold medal in the bantamweight category, while “Elpini” took third place in the middleweight category.

Wisła weightlifters also recorded successes at the Polish championships in 1937. Władysław Derbot won the vice-championship in the lightweight category, while a competitor named Suchy secured a bronze medal in the middleweight category, equaling the Polish record in the snatch. In the post-war period, it was not possible to rebuild the section on a larger scale; only its wrestling part was reactivated in 1951, which—despite being promoted to the first league in 1954—was dissolved a few years later. However, it is worth remembering that both wrestlers and weightlifters contributed to building the strength and glory of Wisła.

Source: "A Hundred Years in the Glow of the White Star," Dariusz Zastawny.