Warsaw: Silver Medalist Maria Andrejczyk from Poland auctioned off her medal – earned in this year’s Tokyo Olympics – to generate money for an 8-month-old boy who was to send to Stanford University for heart surgery. The auction raised almost INR 1.4 crore for Zabka convenience shop.
Maria redeemed herself after missing out on an Olympic medal by the tiniest of margins in Rio 2016, finishing 4th, with a magnificent 64.61m throw in the finals to capture the famous silver medal in the recently ended Games. However, she only placed her medal up for auction a few days later.
By her efforts on the field in Tokyo, the Polish athlete not only proved herself in the world of sport but also made a difference in someone’s life and decided to donate her Olympic Silver.
Maria came upon a baby named Miloszek Malysa who has Total Anomalous Pulmonary Venous Connection (TAPVC), a serious disfunction of the pulmonary veins, while looking for those in need.
The infant was in severe condition and required immediate heart surgery, which cost INR 2.86 crore. After some thought, she stated that she would auction her silver medal to generate funds for the youngster.
Maria said on Facebook, “Miloszek suffers from a significant cardiac condition. He requires surgery. He’s already a step ahead of Kubus, a youngster who didn’t make it in time but whose generous parents decided to donate the money they raised. In this way, I’d like to contribute as well. My Olympic silver medal is being auctioned for him.”
During the auction, the Polish convenience store Zabka won the bid, raising approximately INR 1.4 crore. The Polish athlete expressed her gratitude for everyone’s support by posting a message on Facebook.
However, in a touching turn of events, Zabka returned Maria’s hard-won medal and gave the entire sum to Miloszek’s operation.
In the description, she added, “@zabkapolska auctioned the medal I put up for Miloszek last week. We have raised nearly half a million zlotys for Miosz thanks to Zabka’s gift!”
Polish silver medalist in Javelin throw Maria Andrejczyk, who is also a devout Catholic, sold her Olympic medal in auction to find money for the heart surgery of a Polish boy. Polish store chain Zabka won the auction, but they returned the medal back to her 🇵🇱 pic.twitter.com/68GKHjyUeB
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— Sachin Jose (@Sachinettiyil) August 18, 2021
Silver Medalist Maria Andrejczyk from Poland auctioned off her Medal to help send a 8month old boy to Stanford University for heart surgery.
Zebka, a Polish store chain won the auction with a bid of $125K & then returned the medal to her.A Medalist with a golden 💛#Tokyo2020 pic.twitter.com/O4AGVRLAzF
— Dil Toh Bachcha Hai Ji🇮🇳🚩 (@bijlis05) August 18, 2021
Polish Javelin Star Maria Andrejczyk recently heard about an infant unable to afford a heart surgery in the USA
To help,she put her #Tokyo2020 Silver Medal up for auction
Supermarket giant Zabka won the auction & returned the🥈;donations for the baby passed the £280K needed. pic.twitter.com/zEQtB7BGLw
— #Messi (@alimo_philip) August 18, 2021
A heartwarming story from Poland 🇵🇱#Olympics #JavelinThrow #MariaAndrejczyk pic.twitter.com/UAtkKFTxDK
— FirstSportz (@SportzFirst) August 18, 2021
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A gold medal at the Olympics is unquestionably one of the most sought awards in sports. However, an athlete recently demonstrated that it is not bigger than a person’s life. Maria Andrejczyk, a female javelin thrower from Poland, just won a silver medal in Tokyo and then went on to win everyone’s hearts a few days later.
