Jan Kalbarczyk

In addition to being one of the best Polish speed skaters of all-time, Jan Kalbarczyk was also a soldier and an architect. In his student days Kalbarczyk competed in cycling and track and field athletics, with him excelling as a speed skater. His sporting career on the ice spanned from 1929 to 1953 and saw him win 62 national titles and set 39 Polish records. Throughout the 1930s and 1940s he competed at multiple editions of the European and World Championships, with his best result coming at the latter in 1936 in Davos, finishing fourth in the 10,000 metres. Kalbarczyk skated in the 5,000 and 10,000 metres at the 1936 Garmisch-Partenkirchen Olympics, finishing 12th and 9th, respectively. He was unlucky not to finish higher in the 10,000 metres as his rivals started their heats early in the morning when the track was still hard. Kalbarczyk started his race in the afternoon, by which time the temperature had risen significantly, with the track becoming flooded with water.

Off the ice Kalbarczyk fought in the September Campaign at the start of World War II. Following the war he worked as an organiser of the Warszawa Reconstruction Office and a local sports club that helped stage the first sports events in the ruined city. To help rebuild the city after the war he became an architect and designed churches, schools, and new residential buildings. Kalbarczyk then specialised in the construction of sports venues including a cycling track and an artificial skating track.

Personal Best: 500 – 45.7 (1938); 1500 – 2:24.0 (1937); 5000 – 8:37.3 (1937); 10000 – 17:54.0 (1936).