Polish javelin thrower Maria Andrejczyk did not have her silver medal for very long. Less than a month after winning it in Tokyo the Polish Olympian auctioned it to help pay for a baby’s life-changing surgery.
Andrejczyk is no stranger to struggle in her own right. An injury kept her out of competition in 2017. In addition, she survived a 2018 diagnosis of bone cancer.
So when Andrejczyk heard about a fundraiser for an infant who needed surgery for a rare heart defect, she didn’t hesitate to act.
(Getty Images)
USA Today reported on her generosity:
Andrejczyk wrote on her Facebook page in Polish of the situation as translated by ESPN and other outlets: ‘He already has a head start from Kubus – a boy who didn’t make it in time but whose amazing parents decided to pass on the funds they collected. … And in this way, I also want to help. It’s for him that I am auctioning my Olympic silver medal.’
Żabka, a Polish supermarket chain, won the auction with a bid of $125,000, Andrejczyk said on Instagram. The money raised will allow the boy to get the necessary surgery at Stanford University Medical Center, she said on Facebook.
After winning the auction, Żabka returned the medal to Andrejczyk – making it a donation for the boy and Andrejczyk’s cause.
Polish javelin thrower Maria Andrejczyk auctioned off the silver medal she won at the #TokyoOlympics to pay for an infant’s heart surgery. #MorningBoost pic.twitter.com/HFa4xrPMOd
— TODAY (@TODAYshow) August 18, 2021
USA Today reported that Andrejczyk previously missed a medal win by 2 centimeters at the 2016 Rio Olympics.
Follow Penny Starr on Twitter or send news tips to pstarr@breitbart.com.
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