Jerzy Chromik was a foremost long-distance runner from Poland

Poland

Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...

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Biography

Chromik took eight national titles at long distances: 3000 m steeplechase

Steeplechase (athletics)

The steeplechase is an obstacle race in athletics, which derives its name from the steeplechase in horse racing.-Rules:The length of the race is usually 3000 m; junior events are 2000 m, as women's events formerly were. The circuit has four ordinary barriers and one water jump. Over 3000 m, each...

 (1952, 1954, 1956, 1960, 1961, 1962), 5000 m (1953), 10,000 m (1955).

He participated in three European Championships in Athletics

European Championships in Athletics

The European Athletics Championships is an event organized by the European Athletic Association. It is organised every four years, the same year as the Commonwealth Games and between the Summer Olympic Games cycle. After the 2010 Championships in Barcelona, the European Championships will take...

 in Bern (1954), Stockholm (1958), Belgrade (1962). He also took place in the 1956 Summer Olympics

1956 Summer Olympics

The 1956 Melbourne Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVI Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was held in Melbourne, Australia, in 1956, with the exception of the equestrian events, which could not be held in Australia due to quarantine regulations...

 in Melbourne (1956), and the 17th Olympic Games in Rome (1960).

In 1955, Chromik won the 5.000 metres, ahead of Sándor Iharos

Sándor Iharos

Sándor Iharos was a Hungarian distance runner. Though unsuccessful in major competitions, Iharos ran world records over multiple distances and is one of only two athletes to have held outdoor world records over 1500 metres, 5000 metres and 10000 metres...

, József Kovács

József Kovács (athlete)

József Kovács was a Hungarian athlete who competed mainly in the 10,000 metres.Born in Nyíregyháza, Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg he competed for Hungary in the 1956 Summer Olympics held in Melbourne, Australia in the 10,000 metres where he won the silver medal.-References:*...

, Emil Zátopek

Emil Zátopek

Emil Zátopek was a Czech long-distance runner best known for winning three gold medals at the 1952 Summer Olympics in Helsinki. He won gold in the 5000 metres and 10,000 metres runs, but his final medal came when he decided at the last minute to compete in the first marathon of his life...

, and Zdzisław Krzyszkowiak, at the International Youth Festival in Warsaw. In 1955 and 1958, he won the 3000m in the Kusocinski Memorial in Warsaw. In the 1958 European Championship at Stockholm, he won gold medal at the 3000m steeplechase. In 1959, he won a Cross L'Humanité in Paris.

Chromik set the 3000m steeplechase world records with 8:41.2 in Brno (August 1955), 8:40.2 in Budapest (September 1955), and 8:32.0 in Warsaw (August 1958).