The Polish Federation of Curling Clubs is represented for the first time – admitted to the group of members of the World Curling Federation at the WCF Congress in September. The decision still had to be approved by the Court of Arbitration for Sport because the Polish Curling Association had filed a complaint against the WCF, which had excluded this organization from its structures. The Court rejected the request, so that PFKC can present its representation – although for formal reasons it is not the representation of Poland. According to the Sports Law, only the Polish sports association can appoint such a status, and the PFKC cannot apply for this status until the last court has validated the decision of the Minister of Sports and Tourism of remove the PZC from the list of Polish associations. sports associations.
Without the emblem on the chest, but recognized worldwide as the Polish national team, the team led by captain Michał Gasik-Daszkowski will send the white and red flag back to the world championship arenas. His team won the right to start in Finland at the PFKC Wheelchair Curling Tournament in September, beating colleagues from the Polish Sports Organization club in Łódź. The team consisting of: Michał Gasik-Daszkowski, Łukasz Waszek, Dariusz Mikuła, Joanna Kozakiewicz and Monika Bodych as well as trainer Agnieszka Schröder and physiotherapist Patchaporn Seephungtong on Wednesday evening will leave Okęcie for Helsinki, from where they will go to Lohja , located about 50 km to the west. There they will start the competition in Group A, in which they will face the English, the Japanese, the Swiss, the Finns and the Italians. A place in the top three will allow you to play in the play-offs for the B Division championship medals and at the same time to be promoted to the wheelchair elite, whose championship will take place in March 2023 in Richmond, Canada.
For Polish curling, the performance of the wheelchair team is Poland’s return to the world championship after two years of pandemic and a period of first suspension and then exclusion from the Polish Curling Association from world structures . “Participation in this championship is possible mainly thanks to the policy of the World Curling Federation, favorable to Polish curlers, which put the membership of the Polish Federation of Curling Clubs to the vote despite the pending decisions of the Arbitral Tribunal of Lausanne sport. and kept our team’s place in the Lohja tournament until the last moment. “- says PFKC secretary Wojciech Nowakowski. – “We are now waiting for the final judgments of the Polish courts, which will allow us to finally close the chapter called the Polish Curling Association, thanks to which we will be able to apply for the status of a Polish sports association and then ministerial subsidies for travel to the next championships , also in the junior and Olympic categories. . ”
Wheelchair curling has been a Paralympic discipline since the Turin 2006 Games. Poland has yet to have the opportunity to compete in the Olympics – the championships in Lohja and possibly Richmond could bring it closer to that debut. More than two weeks ago, the Polish team under the club name ISRS Culani, with the participation of players from the Polish Sports Organization, won the tournament of the prestigious World Curling Tour in Prague. Daszkowski and Kozakiewicz, as well as Agnieszka Kachel and Maciej Karaś. Wheelchair curling only became better known to fans last winter thanks to broadcasts of the Paralympic Games in Beijing, where the judge was a Polish, Marta Pluta. Michał Gasik-Daszkowski then sat behind the microphone, sharing his experience and knowledge with viewers.
The peculiarity of curling on carts is that all the force of the stone comes from the hand releasing the stone with a special extender, and the trajectory of its sliding is not corrected by brushing. Nevertheless, wheelchair curlers also compete with foot curlers who use brushes – but this mostly happens in friendly tournaments. Wheelchair players in games have to be very precise in giving the stone the correct force, direction and rotation – to place it at the desired point near the so-called “Home” at the other end playground on an ice cap more than 42 meters long.
We encourage you to cross your fingers for our representation. The championship in Lohji will start on Saturday November 5th and will continue until Thursday November 10th.
Press release
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