Maria Golimowska took up volleyball at the age of 16 and joined the Polish national team in 1955. Her first major international medal came a year later, at the 1956 World Championships, where she won a bronze medal. She earned a second one at the European Championships in 1958, and then a third at the 1962 World Championships, with a fourth-place finish in-between at the 1960 World Championships. She finally moved up to silver at the 1963 Europeans, where Poland finished behind only the Soviet Union in the final pool. She was also with the team when volleyball made its début at the Olympics in 1964 and Poland placed third. Although this was her last major international medal, she remained with the team through 1966 and did not retire fully until 1971. Domestically, her only national title came in 1961 with Legia Warsaw. She later worked as a schoolteacher.
Poland