Grzegorz Gwiazdowski

Grzegorz Gwiazdowski ( born November 3, 1974 in Lubawa ) is the only Polish cyclist, who won a World Cup race.

The big coup landed Gwiazdowski in the 1999 season when he was fastest in the Championship of Zurich. Until 1999 it was granted no Polish cyclists, each a one-day race of the World Cup calendar to decide for themselves.

Gwiazdowski began his professional cycling career under Ryszard Szurkowski in whose Radklub PZU Joko Szurkowski. As a junior, he drove in the jerseys of two small teams: Nowe Miasto Agroplon Lubawskie and Agromel Toruń. Gwiazdowskis first coach was his father Waldemar, who worked in the community school in Kurzętnik as a sports teacher.

In 1998 Gwiazdowski was the whiz par excellence. Right away he won the silver medal at the Polish Championships. The fight for gold he lost only against Tomasz Brożyna. In addition Gwiazdowski took fourth place at the GP Ouest France- Plouay.

At that time Gwiazdowski was already at the French Cofidis team under contract, for which he was on the way to the end of 1999. After his breakthrough in Zurich, he got an offer from the management of another French team Française des Jeux. In 2000 he took part in his first and last Tour de France. Gwiazdowski went to Paris through and finished the Tour de France on place 106 At the Giro d' Italia, he was more fortunate and came on the 58th rank.

Even in the service of Cofidis Gwiazdowski was nominated for the Vuelta a Espana, but from which he had to withdraw prematurely to. The cycling 1999 belonged at all to the best and most successful in Gwiazdowskis very short career. He garnered a lot of good results and was victorious among others in the Tour de l' Ain them. In the overall World Cup standings, he was out in 13th place.

At a place in the Olympic Games 2000 in Sydney Gwiazdowski were without health reasons. Injuries, primarily knee and tendon problems came back to haunt him and had the effect that he had to hang his career on the nail after the 2001 season. Gwiazdowski even blamed for the deterioration of his health the new bicycle pedals. He did not come with the pedals of the company LOOK at FDJeux to the edge. In Cofidis he had driven pedals manufacturer Time.

Gwiazdowski comes from a sports- mad family who dedicated himself to the sport of cycling. His sister Daria celebrated some success in cross-country race of women. After the End of career Gwiazdowski worked for a short time as a driving instructor in a driving school in Gdańsk.

Palmarčs

• Polish Championship

• Tour de l' Ain
• Championship of Zurich

Team

• Cofidis (1998-1999)
• La Française des Jeux (2000-2001)