SWIMMERS from Poland

Top 10

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary Polish Swimmers of all time. This list of famous Polish Swimmers is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography's online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of Polish Swimmers.

1. Otylia Jędrzejczak (b. 1983)

With an HPI of 40.98, Otylia Jędrzejczak is the most famous Polish Swimmer.  Her biography has been translated into 26 different languages on wikipedia.

Otylia Jędrzejczak (Polish: [ɔˈtɨlja jɛndˈʐɛjtʂak] ; born 13 December 1983) is a Polish swimmer. She was the Olympic champion from 2004 Athens in the 200 metre butterfly. She finished 4th in this event in the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, and also swam at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney. In Athens 2004 she also silvered in 400 m freestyle and 100 m butterfly. Three times she broke the world record in the women's 200 m butterfly (once in the 25-metre pool). Jędrzejczak was born in Ruda Śląska, Silesian Voivodship, Poland. She started swimming at the age of six as a measure to correct a slight curvature of the spine. At first she hated the sport. Her attitude towards it changed after she had won her first prize in a competition in Germany at the age of eight. Jędrzejczak took up swimming seriously in high school. Led by coach Maria Jakóbik, she won her first titles in the Junior European Championships in 1999. Medals in the Senior European Championships in 1999 and 2000 opened the way to her first Olympic appearance. Jędrzejczak studied at the Academy of Physical Education in Warsaw. Her coach is Paweł Słomiński. She is 190 cm (6 ft 3 in) tall. For her sporting achievements, she received the Knight's Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta (5th Class) in 2004.

2. Rafał Szukała (b. 1971)

With an HPI of 40.53, Rafał Szukała is the 2nd most famous Polish Swimmer.  His biography has been translated into 14 different languages.

Rafał Marek Szukała, born on 9, April, 1971 in Poznań is a former Polish butterfly swimmer. He won the silver medal in the men's 100 m butterfly at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain. Szukała competed in three consecutive Summer Olympics for Poland his native country, starting in 1988. He won his first major title in the 100 m butterfly at the 1989 European Aquatics Championships in Bonn. He regained the European title in 1993 and also won gold in the 100 m butterfly at the 1994 World Championships . Szukała attended the University of Iowa, in the United States.

3. Konrad Czerniak (b. 1989)

With an HPI of 36.11, Konrad Czerniak is the 3rd most famous Polish Swimmer.  His biography has been translated into 15 different languages.

Konrad Czerniak (born 11 July 1989) is a Polish competitive swimmer who has participated in the Olympics, FINA world championships, and European championships. He won ten medals at these championships, mostly in the butterfly. At the 2012 Summer Olympics, he competed in the men's 100 m butterfly and the men's 100 m freestyle, reaching the final of the butterfly and the semifinals of the freestyle. At the 2016 Summer Olympics, he competed in the men's 100 m butterfly, reaching the semifinals, and the men's 4 × 100 m medley and 4 × 100 m freestyle.

4. Paweł Korzeniowski (b. 1985)

With an HPI of 35.98, Paweł Korzeniowski is the 4th most famous Polish Swimmer.  His biography has been translated into 14 different languages.

Paweł Korzeniowski (born 9 July 1985) is a Polish competitive swimmer who won the 200-meter butterfly at the 2005 World Aquatics Championships in Montreal. He also competes in the freestyle events. Initially trained by Paweł Woźnicki in Oświęcim-based Unia Oświęcim club, in 2005 he was transferred to Warsaw-based AZS AWF Warszawa club, where he has been trained by Paweł Słomiński. His current coach, since 2009, is Robert Bialecki.

5. Michael Klim (b. 1977)

With an HPI of 35.79, Michael Klim is the 5th most famous Polish Swimmer.  His biography has been translated into 18 different languages.

Michael George Klim, OAM (born 13 August 1977) is an Australian swimmer, Olympic gold medalist, world champion, and former world record-holder of the 1990s and 2000s. He is known as the creator of straight-arm freestyle.

6. Radosław Kawęcki (b. 1991)

With an HPI of 35.35, Radosław Kawęcki is the 6th most famous Polish Swimmer.  His biography has been translated into 19 different languages.

Radosław Kawęcki (born 16 August 1991) is a Polish competitive swimmer who specializes in backstroke events. Kawęcki won the silver medal in the 200 m backstroke at the 2013 and 2015 World Aquatics Championships, and was twice the 200 m backstroke short course world champion. He won four gold medals at the FINA World Swimming Championships in the 200 m backstroke. He is an 8-time European champion in the backstroke events. Kawęcki finished fourth at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London in the 200-meter backstroke. He currently represents the Cali Condors which is part of the International Swimming League.

7. Katarzyna Wasick (b. 1992)

With an HPI of 33.35, Katarzyna Wasick is the 7th most famous Polish Swimmer.  Her biography has been translated into 16 different languages.

Katarzyna "Kasia" Wasick (born Wilk; 22 March 1992) is a Polish competitive swimmer who specializes in sprint freestyle. Wasick represented Poland at the 2008, 2012, 2016, 2020, 2024 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing, London, Rio de Janeiro, Tokyo and Paris as well as other international meets. She is the fastest female swimmer in Poland holding national records in the 50 and 100 freestyle (short course & long course).

8. Jan Świtkowski (b. 1994)

With an HPI of 32.94, Jan Świtkowski is the 8th most famous Polish Swimmer.  His biography has been translated into 14 different languages.

Jan Świtkowski (born 23 January 1994) is a Polish competitive swimmer who specializes in butterfly events. He is a multiple-time Polish champion and a bronze medalist in the 200-meter butterfly at the 2015 World Championships. While studying in the United States, Switkowski initially attended Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in Blacksburg, Virginia, where he swam for the Virginia Tech Hokies under head coach Ned Skinner from 2013 to 2014. Switkowski sat out the 2014–15 season to spend most of the year competing for the Polish national swimming team, before transferring to the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida, where he competed for the Florida Gators swimming and diving team under head coach Gregg Troy. At the 2015 World Aquatics Championships in Kazan, Russia, Switkowski put up a sterling effort at 1:54.10 in the final to win the bronze medal in the men's 200-meter butterfly. In the men's 4×200-meter freestyle relay, Switkowski led off with a split of 1:47.03 before the Polish foursome of Kacper Klich, Michał Domagała, and Kacper Majchrzak ended up to eighth at the very end in 7:10.34. In the inaugural season of the International Swimming League in 2019 he competed for the Cali Condors. In 2020, he joined the New York Breakers for the second ISL season.

9. Kacper Majchrzak (b. 1992)

With an HPI of 26.91, Kacper Majchrzak is the 9th most famous Polish Swimmer.  His biography has been translated into 10 different languages.

Kacper Majchrzak (born 22 September 1992) is a Polish swimmer. He currently represents the Cali Condors which is part of the International Swimming League. Majchrzak competed in the 50 m freestyle and 4 × 100m medley relay events at the 2012 Summer Olympics. He finished 10th in the 200 metre freestyle at the 2016 Summer Olympics setting a new national record of 1:46.30.

10. Kacper Stokowski (b. 1999)

With an HPI of 26.43, Kacper Stokowski is the 10th most famous Polish Swimmer.  His biography has been translated into 10 different languages.

Kacper Aleksander Stokowski (born 6 January 1999) is a Polish competitive swimmer, who competed for the University of Florida and North Carolina State University and represented his native Poland in both the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo and the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.