Waclaw Kuchar

Waclaw Kuchar
Position	Right Wing
Teams	Pogoń Lwów
National team	Poland
Born	September 16, 1897, Lancut, Poland
Died	February 13, 1981, Warsaw, Poland
Playing Career	1925 – 1935

Waclaw Michal Kuchar (September 16, 1897 - February 13, 1981) was a Polish hockey player. He played for the Polish National Team at the European Championships in 1927 and 1929, appearing in five matches total.

Kuchar excelled in many other sports as well – track and field, soccer (firstly – forward, then midfielder, at the end of his career – defender), skiing, and speed skating. Even though born in Łańcut, his whole life was connected with Lwów, where he played for Pogoń Lwów – one of the most important and most popular sports clubs of interwar Poland.

He was one of the best players on Pogon's hockey team during the 1920s and early 1930s. The club was very successful and dominated the Lviv Championship while also becoming co-national champions of Poland in 1933.

After finishing his career, he became a referee, coach and sports official. To this day Kuchar is regarded as an excellent example of fair play.In 1926, in a poll held by the Polish sports daily Przegląd Sportowy, Kuchar was chosen as the athlete of the year. A year later he came in 10th in the same poll. In 1924, at the Paris Olympic Games, he played on the Poland national football team.

Wacław Kuchar was champion of Poland in:

• 800-meter race (1920, 1921),
• 110-meter hurdle race (1920),
• 400-meter hurdle race (1923),
• high jump (1921, 1923),
• tentathlon (1923, 1924).

As a soccer player representing Pogoń Lwów, Kuchar achieved these successes:

• years of career – 1912–1935,
• Champion of Poland: 1922, 1923, 1925, 1926,
• top scorer of Poland: 1922 (21 goals), 1926 (11 goals),
• altogether he played in 1052 games, scoring 1065 goals.

On the National Soccer Team of Poland he achieved:

• 23 official international games,
• 5 goals,
• debut – 18 February 1921, Hungary – Poland 1–0 (it was the first, historic game of the Polish team)
• last game: 27 October 1928, Czechoslovakia – Poland 3–2
• Trainer of Polish National Team 1947–1949.

Wacław Kuchar as an ice skater:

• participated in the European Speed Skating Championships for Men of 1925,
• 22-time Champion of Poland (Including single-distance titles) in the period 1922–1929.

Kuchar is most famous for his sports achievements, but also he was a captain in the Polish Army. He participated in the Polish-Ukrainian War of 1919 as well as the Polish-Soviet War of 1920; for his merits Kuchar was decorated with several medals.

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