16 Facts About Zbigniew Czajkowski

Zbigniew Czajkowski coached many champions, including Egon Franke - the first Pole to earn an Olympic gold medal in fencing.

Zbigniew Czajkowski was born in Modlin and started fencing at the age of 14, while in high school.

Zbigniew Czajkowski was fortunate to avoid execution as the commissar in Kobryn was not interested in Czajkowski and sent him home.

Zbigniew Czajkowski then made his way back to the Soviet controlled Lwow and, while waiting to be allowed to cross the Romanian border to rejoin the Polish forces in France, continued his fencing training.

Zbigniew Czajkowski was then sent to the Soviet labor camp in Vorkuta, beyond the polar circle where he survived extremely harsh conditions until, in September 1941, the new head of the labor camp decided to free him.

On February 5,1942, his birthday, Zbigniew Czajkowski rejoined the Polish Navy.

Zbigniew Czajkowski eventually was stationed in Great Britain, at the Polish Naval Station in Plymouth.

Zbigniew Czajkowski fenced for the Edinburgh University fencing club and the Scottish Fencing Club.

Zbigniew Czajkowski began to do some amateur coaching for the Polish Students Association in Great Britain.

Zbigniew Czajkowski's son was born in Edinburgh 1 December 1945.

In 1949, Zbigniew Czajkowski returned to Poland, along with his new wife, Wendy Cochrane-Czajkowska.

In 1950, Zbigniew Czajkowski became the first post-war Polish National Champion in foil.

Zbigniew Czajkowski represented Poland many times as a member of its national team - particularly achieving success in sabre, his favorite weapon.

Zbigniew Czajkowski spent many years as Poland's top coach, creating dozens of national, European, World, and Olympic medalists in all three weapons.

Since 1980, Zbigniew Czajkowski has been director of the Fencing Department at the Academy of Physical Education in Katowice where he has educated over one hundred fencing masters, including Edward Korfanty, Artur Wasiolka, Pawel Mancewicz, Michael Marx and Andrzej Gottner.

Zbigniew Czajkowski has written hundreds of published articles on fencing and its training, and thirty books including Understanding Fencing - The Unity of Theory and Practice, which was published in 2005 in the United States.