ROZWÓJ SPORTU ZAPAŚNICZEGO W POLSCE PÓŁNOCNO-WSCHODNIEJ (1945–1989)

Wrestling among indigenous peoples was a fight for survival and therefore it was inspired for constant development. For the above reasons, it is considered one of the oldest sports in the world. The first exhibits related to it come from the turn of the 4th and 3rd millennium B.C.E. Evidence of the above is an ivory bas-relief found in the handle of a stone knife in the town of Gebel el-Ark in Egypt, depicting figures of wrestlers. On the other hand, paintings and engravings from that period show that certain behaviors in hand-to-hand combat were already practiced at that time. In the understanding of ancient peoples, they developed both the body and the psyche, and the best athletes enjoyed extraordinary prestige and respect. That is why in 708 BC wrestling was included in the program of the Olympic Games. With the development of civilization, wrestling was perceived as an excellent form of shaping the body, health and spirit. It was cultivated inter alia by a great thinker and philosopher that Plato is generally considered to be. The important role of wrestling in the history of humanity is also evidenced by the beautiful statues of Phidias and Praxiteles. In Poland, the pioneer in education through physical recreation and sport was doctor Henryk Jordan (1842–1907). Whereas, the beginnings of professional wrestling date back to the end of the 19th century and were associated with the circus stage, but the first national wrestling championships were only held  in 1925. Until the outbreak of World War II, they were organized systematically. In the second half of the 1940’s, wrestling was practiced by inhabitants of three regions of north-eastern Poland: Gdańsk Pomerania, Podlasie and Warmia and Mazury. Due to the economic potential, access to appropriate infrastructure and the care of specialist training staff, the most successful players were from the former Gdańsk Voivodeship. A good example of this is Bernard Knitter, a graduate of the Union Sports Club "Spójnia" Gdańsk. In his weight category, he was a multiple medalist in national competitions, participated several times in European and world championships and the Olympic Games (Rome 1960, Tokyo 1964). The crowning achievement of his career was his appointment as the coach of the Polish national team. Those practicing wrestling in the other two regions were in no way inferior to them both in national and international rivalry. The greatest merits in the development of this discipline in Podlasie should be attributed to coach Antoni Dąbrowski. In Warmia and Mazury, Zenon Rydziński was considered the most committed. Key words: wrestling, club, rivalry, regions, championships.