Ludwik Denderys

Polish heavyweight boxer Ludwik Denderys was a national champion and two-time bronze medallist at the European Amateur Boxing Championships. Denderys represented Gwardia Wrocław for his entire career from 1959 until 1975. In 1969 he became the champion of Poland after finishing as the runner-up the year before. In 1970, with help from the Polish Red Cross, he met his father, who had escaped from Siberia, for the first time, with the father initially being afraid of returning to Poland after the end of the war.

Denderys competed at three editions of the European Championships (1965, 1969, 1971), winning bronze in 1969 in București and again in 1971 in Madrid. His performances earned him a place on the Polish team for the 1972 München Olympics. His Olympic participation, however, was a short one, after the referee stopped the fight against the eventual gold medallist Teófilo Stevenson in the first round. During his career Denderys fought in 243 fights, winning 186 of them.