Wojtek Czyz
Encyclopedia
Wojtek Czyz is a disabled German
athlete
from Polish
part of Silesia
.
He lost his lower left leg in 2001, when he was an aspiring soccer player. He ran for a loose ball, when the opposing goalkeeper rammed his knee, causing multiple fractures and destroying several major blood vessels. According to Czyz, the injury was gravely underestimated due to professional failure, and eventually, amputation
was necessary.
However, Czyz rebounded and established himself as one of the most successful German athletes in the T42 handicap class (leg amputees). A Team Ossur
member, he won triple Gold Medals at the Athletics World Championship 2004 for the Disabled. He won the 100 m- and the 200 m-dash the long jump
for leg amputees, setting World Records in the latter two. In the European Championship of 2005, he repeated his triple crown, winning each discipline again, and feat emulated in the 2006 World Championships, when he again won triple gold medals.
. His personal motto is "don't think of what you were, but of what you are and of what you aspire to be" ("denk nicht an das was du warst, sondern an das, was du bist und zu sein dich sehnst").
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
athlete
Athletics (track and field)
Athletics is an exclusive collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking. The most common types of athletics competitions are track and field, road running, cross country running, and race walking...
from Polish
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...
part of Silesia
Silesia
Silesia is a historical region of Central Europe located mostly in Poland, with smaller parts also in the Czech Republic, and Germany.Silesia is rich in mineral and natural resources, and includes several important industrial areas. Silesia's largest city and historical capital is Wrocław...
.
He lost his lower left leg in 2001, when he was an aspiring soccer player. He ran for a loose ball, when the opposing goalkeeper rammed his knee, causing multiple fractures and destroying several major blood vessels. According to Czyz, the injury was gravely underestimated due to professional failure, and eventually, amputation
Amputation
Amputation is the removal of a body extremity by trauma, prolonged constriction, or surgery. As a surgical measure, it is used to control pain or a disease process in the affected limb, such as malignancy or gangrene. In some cases, it is carried out on individuals as a preventative surgery for...
was necessary.
However, Czyz rebounded and established himself as one of the most successful German athletes in the T42 handicap class (leg amputees). A Team Ossur
Ossur
Össur is a company making non-invasive orthopaedics. It makes and sells bracing and support products, compression therapy, and prosthetics. The company’s headquarters are in Reykjavík, Iceland. The company also has extensive operations in the Americas, Europe, and Asia, with numerous distributors...
member, he won triple Gold Medals at the Athletics World Championship 2004 for the Disabled. He won the 100 m- and the 200 m-dash the long jump
Long jump
The long jump is a track and field event in which athletes combine speed, strength, and agility in an attempt to leap as far as possible from a take off point...
for leg amputees, setting World Records in the latter two. In the European Championship of 2005, he repeated his triple crown, winning each discipline again, and feat emulated in the 2006 World Championships, when he again won triple gold medals.
Awards
- 2008 Summer Paralympics2008 Summer ParalympicsThe 2008 Summer Paralympic Games, the thirteenth Paralympics, took place in Beijing, China from September 6 to September 17, 2008. As with the 2008 Summer Olympics, equestrian events were held in Hong Kong and sailing events in Qingdao....
-
- Gold medal with new world record in long jump F42/44 (6.50m)
- 2007 World Championships
- Gold medal in long jump (5.88m)
- 2006 World Championships
- Gold medal in 100m sprint (12.79s)
- Gold medal in 200m sprint (25.90s)
- Gold medal in long jump (5.98m)
- 2005 European Championships
- Gold medal in 100m sprint (12.61s)
- Gold medal in 200m sprint with new world record (25.75s)
- Gold medal in long jump (6.20m)
- 2004 Summer Paralympics2004 Summer ParalympicsThe 2004 Summer Paralympics were held in Athens, Greece, from September 17 to September 28. The twelfth Paralympic Games, an estimated 4,000 athletes took part in the Athens programme, with ages ranging from 11 to 66. Paralympic events had already taken place during the 2004 Summer Olympics as...
- 2004 Summer Paralympics
- Gold medal with new Paralympic record in 100m sprint T42 (12.51s)
- Gold medal with new world record in 200m sprint T42 (26.18s)
- Gold medal with new world record in long jump F42 (6.23m)
- 2003 European Championships
- Gold medal in long jump
- Gold medal with new world record in long jump F42/44 (6.50m)
Personal life
Czyz is currently a sport student in CologneCologne
Cologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the...
. His personal motto is "don't think of what you were, but of what you are and of what you aspire to be" ("denk nicht an das was du warst, sondern an das, was du bist und zu sein dich sehnst").
Personal Records
- 100m dash: 12,51s (Paralympics Record, September 21, 2004, Athens)
- 200m dash: 25,75s (World Record, August 27, 2005, Espoo)
- Long jump: 6,35s (World Record, August 20, 2006, Rhede)