The local media wrote about him right away. I recommend this Wodzisław Śląski article.

“I’ve met amazing people in Finland. I could rely on them for help and support in every situation. I’m making my dreams come true. I promise to train harder and fight for gold next year.”

“When I was standing on the podium, I felt very happy to represent Poland.”

Marek’s mom, Ania, says that her son is a very good, helpful and talented boy. He does all kinds of sports.

“He really likes football, he also plays volleyball and basketball. He’s a member of the junior football team Dąb Gaszowice. When he was 10 years old, he picked up armwrestling. Because he suffers from cerebral palsy on his left side, his right arm is very strong.”

Due to his condition, doctors disadvised playing football. Ironically, football made him more goodbody. It’s similar with armwrestling. Marek also loves walking with his dog, Spider.

Polish Championships results:

European Championships results:

And a few words from Marek:

“I’m 16 and I live in Rydułtowy. I’ve suffered with infantile cerebral palsy since I was born. My “professional” career in armwrstling started in January 2023 but I’ve been armwrestling for much longer. When I was 10, I got into armwrestling because I enjoyed doing it with my classmates and family. Because of my condition, my right leg and arm have always been stronger than the left side of my body.

The breakthrough happened when we went to see Mr Tomasz Stefaniak.

Since he’s been training armwrestling for years, he saw potential in me and advised that I sign up for the Samson club in Marklowice.

After 4 months of hard work, 2-3 times a week with pure armwrestling and 3-4 times a week at the gym, I was finally ready to try myself at the Polish Championships.

Radosław Waltar told me this after the Polish Championships but still before the European ones:

“Marek’s try at the Polish Championships was his debut. We decided together that due to his advancement, motivation and category it will be good to try him out at the championships. Marek showed us what he’s got by winning over his opponents and winning the abled category. Marek is very driven and strong, he can achieve a lot if he works hard. His current goal are the European Championships. Marek got very into armwrestling while searching for something new and it turned out it was a great decision.”

PeSzy: How did you feel before your first fight at the European Championships?

Marek: The first fight was a little late and I couldn’t stay in one place. I was a little stressed but even more excited to finally test my skills for real. There were people standing by the stage and helping me out: Tomasz Stefaniak, Radosław Waltar and my father. I was prepared for this fight by Radosław Waltar and Marek Barciok.

PeSzy: Do you do anything besides armwrestling?

Marek: I attend the 2^nd Wodzisław Śląski High School. Besides armwrestling, I’m very into basketball, football and track and field.

I’m currently preparing for the World Cup in Senec. When it comes to the future, I’m planning to train even harder and show an even better self next year at an international competition.

Thank you for the interview, all the best!