The President of the Polish Olympic Committee, Radosław Piesiewicz, has refuted accusations by Sławomir Nitras and the media regarding information about irregularities in the activities of the Polish Olympic Committee in connection with trips to Paris. “The Minister of Sports, who is responsible for the results and transfer of funds, is trying to absolve himself of responsibility,” he told Polsat News.
Minister of Sports and Tourism Sławomir Nitras has revealed the costs of preparations for the Olympic Games. He also asked the President of the Polish Olympic Committee, Radosław Piesiewicz, to provide documentation regarding, among other things, the composition of the delegations of individual associations at the Paris Olympic Games.
The head of the Sports Ministry addressed a similar request to the presidents of the Olympic associations. Provide a list of the names of the association representatives present in Paris, information on who received Olympic accreditation and who was in the French capital at the invitation of the Polish Olympic Committee, the IOC or the international sports federation. He also asks for information on which federations did not have representatives in Paris.
READ MORE: What are the costs of preparing for the Paris Games? Nitras: There have been many signs about the lack of coaches, physiotherapists or equipment
Did the Polish Olympic Committee fail?
The request for information and a list of costs associated with POC activists’ travel to Paris was definitely not appreciated by POC head Radosław Piesiewicz. There were allegations in the media that President Piesiewicz often used VIP services at Chopin airport, and trade union activists flew to the Paris Olympics instead of people needed to support the national team.
Piesiewicz himself was also supposed to take his family to the French capital, for which the Polish Olympic Committee was supposed to pay. In addition, the president of the Polish Olympic Committee allegedly did this more than 35 times, also in the frequent company of his family.
What particularly outrages Polish public opinion is the fact that, at the same time that President Piesiewicz was supposed to fly to Paris, none of the Polish athletes used this service.
Translations by the President of the Polish Olympic Committee
Radosław Piesiewicz decided to comment on the accusations against him and the Association on Polsat News.
President Piesiewicz paid this extremely expensive compensation himself. The funds are being transferred to my children
– he defended himself.
In his opinion, all those whose presence in Paris was not essential paid for themselves. Piesiewicz assured that he did not want to “waste public money”, which in turn led him to sign a contract with Adidas and not with 4F.
We signed a contract with Adidas because they paid for and delivered the uniforms. I didn’t want to use public funds.
– explained the president of the Polish Olympic Committee.
Piesiewicz strikes back
The president of the Polish Olympic Committee did not hold back and during an interview with Polsat News he refuted the accusations of Minister Sławomir Nitras, who suggested that the poor results of the Poles at the Paris Olympic Games were mainly the fault of the sports associations and the Polish Olympic Committee.
The Minister of Sports, responsible for the results and the transfer of resources, tries to avoid responsibility. This is probably the first minister in history who ineptly tries to blame everyone around him. Just to avoid taking responsibility. What a shame.
– said Piesiewicz.
He added that Minister Nitras “did not contribute any money” before the Paris Games and that the athletes themselves received small amounts.
He donated PLN 1,130,000 from the state budget in 2024. The day before the match. The minister did not contribute a single cent to anything. Let him not deceive the public opinion, the government or the prime minister. The activists who flew to the games flew with their own money.
– he said.
In turn, Piesiewicz explained the Polish trade unionists’ trip to Paris due to the need to meet with other representatives of sports organizations from around the world.
The President of the Polish Olympic Committee also took the initiative to invite the most important politicians in Poland to discuss the resolution of the problems of Polish sport, including: President Andrzej Duda, Prime Minister Donald Tusk, Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz, and also… Sławomir Nitras.
Tusk wants the matter clarified
It is necessary to explain what happened to the public money allocated to Olympic sports and why it “did not lead to Polish success” at the Paris Games
– said Prime Minister Donald Tusk.
According to the Prime Minister, it is necessary to carefully examine how public money was used for Olympic sports. He stressed that the expectations for Polish athletes at this year’s games were higher.
Let’s be honest, we have our heroes, but we all know that Poland’s results at these Olympic Games were surprisingly poor.
– he said.
As Tusk stressed, the president of the Polish Olympic Committee, Radosław Piesiewicz, should help “analyse very carefully what happened with such large funds and why they did not lead to Polish success”. He said the president should clarify this issue, or at least help the relevant services, including the National Tax Administration.
There is no need to hunt for witches, but this agreement is necessary so that in four years’ time in Los Angeles we can watch these games with greater satisfaction. Surely everyone feels that Polish sport needs repair and it is not the efforts of the athletes, but of the activists, the trade unions, the Polish Olympic Committee.
– Tusk pointed.
The Prime Minister recalled that all funds available to ministries, including the Ministry of Sports, are transparent.
We want to examine the situation between the company, the Polish Olympic Committee, sports associations and clubs. Because it is not a transparent system and we all know that.
– he pointed.
We should think together, regardless of who ruled in the past, who rules today and who will rule tomorrow, how to rebuild Polish sport so that this money works better.
– Tusk appealed.
In his opinion, the conversation about Polish sport should start with an explanation of the circumstances of its financing.
Is President Piesiewicz the best candidate to remedy the financial situation of Polish sport? For now, I will only put a big question mark over this thesis.
– he added.
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maz/Polsat News/PAP
