Tour de Pologne facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Tour de Pologne

Race details
Date	August
Region	Poland
English name	Tour of Poland
Local name(s)	Wyścig Dookoła Polski
Discipline	Road race
Competition	UCI World Tour
Type	Race stage
Organiser	Lang Team Sp. z o.o.
Race director	Czesław Lang
History
First edition	1928; 97 years ago (1928)
Editions	82 (as of 2025)
First winner	Feliks Więcek (POL)
Most wins	Dariusz Baranowski (POL)  Andrzej Mierzejewski (POL)  Marian Więckowski (POL) (3 wins each)
Most recent	Jonas Vingegaard (DEN)

The Tour de Pologne (which means Tour of Poland in English) is a famous bicycle race for professional male cyclists held every year in Poland. The race, often called TdP, is a big deal in the world of cycling. It's made up of seven or eight parts, called stages, and the total distance is usually about 1,200 kilometers.

First held in 1928, the Tour de Pologne is Poland's oldest and most important bike race. For many years, only amateur (non-professional) cyclists could compete. But since 1993, it has been a professional race, attracting top riders from all over the globe.

Today, the TdP is part of the UCI World Tour, which is the highest level of professional men's cycling races. Three Polish riders, Dariusz Baranowski, Andrzej Mierzejewski, and Marian Więckowski, hold the record for the most wins, with three victories each.

History of the Race

Józef Stefański wins a stage in the 1929 race.

The idea for the Tour de Pologne came from the famous Tour de France. A cycling club in Warsaw and a sports newspaper worked together to create the first race in 1928. It was a tough race, covering almost 1,500 kilometers. The first-ever winner was Feliks Więcek. Important Polish leaders, like President Ignacy Mościcki and Marshal Józef Piłsudski, supported the event.

The early races were very different from today. The stages were much longer, sometimes over 300 kilometers in one day! The roads were not smooth, so riders often had to stop to fix flat tires.

After World War II

The main group of riders, called the peloton, during the 2006 Tour de Pologne in Toruń.

After the war ended, the race returned in 1947. For a long time, another race called the Peace Race was more famous in the region. This meant the Tour de Pologne wasn't considered as important.

However, things changed in 1993 when Czesław Lang became the director. Lang was a famous cyclist himself, having won a silver medal at the 1980 Olympics and the Tour de Pologne that same year. He worked hard to make the race a major international event.

Becoming a World-Class Event

The peloton during the 2004 Tour de Pologne.

Thanks to Czesław Lang's efforts, the Tour de Pologne grew in importance. In 2005, it joined the UCI ProTour, a group of the world's most elite cycling races. This meant that the TdP was now in the same league as the famous Grand Tours like the Tour de France and Giro d'Italia.

This change brought many of the world's best cyclists to Poland. Stars like Peter Sagan, Vincenzo Nibali, Geraint Thomas, and Jonas Vingegaard have all competed in the race. The race has also won awards in Poland for being the "Best Sport Event of the Year."

Sometimes, stages of the race have even been held in other countries, like the Czech Republic, Italy, and Slovakia. In 2024, a women's version of the race, called Tour de Pologne Women, was also held.

Race Winners

Here is a list of all the cyclists who have won the Tour de Pologne since it began.

		Rider	Team
1928		Więcek, FeliksFeliks Więcek		Bydgoski Klub Kolarzy
1929		Stefański, JózefJózef Stefański		AKS Warszawa
1933		Lipiński, JerzyJerzy Lipiński		Skoda Warszawa
1937		Napierała, BolesławBolesław Napierała		Polska II
1939		Napierała, BolesławBolesław Napierała		Syrena Warszawa
1947		Grzelak, StanisławStanisław Grzelak		Tramwajarz Łódź
1948		Wójcik, WacławWacław Wójcik		Polska I
1949		Locatelli, FrancescoFrancesco Locatelli		Italy
1952		Wójcik, WacławWacław Wójcik		CWKS Warszawa
1953		Wilczewski, MieczysławMieczysław Wilczewski		Unia Chorzów
1954		Więckowski, MarianMarian Więckowski		CWKS Warszawa
1955		Więckowski, MarianMarian Więckowski		CWKS Warszawa
1956		Więckowski, MarianMarian Więckowski		CWKS Legia Warszawa
1957		Kowalski, HenrykHenryk Kowalski		Lechia Gdańsk
1958		Fornalczyk, BogusławBogusław Fornalczyk		LZS Myszków
1959		Podobas, WiesławWiesław Podobas		CWKS Warszawa
1960		Diercken, RogerRoger Diercken		Belgium
1961		Kowalski, HenrykHenryk Kowalski		Lechia Gdańsk
1962		Kudra, JanJan Kudra		Społem Łódź
1963		Gazda, StanisławStanisław Gazda		Start Bielsko
1964		Zieliński, RajmundRajmund Zieliński		LZS Nowogard
1965		Beker, JózefJózef Beker		LZS Mokrzeszów
1966		Gawliczek, JózefJózef Gawliczek		LZS II
1967		Bławdzin, AndrzejAndrzej Bławdzin		LZS Mazowsze
1968		Kudra, JanJan Kudra		Społem Łódź
1969		Matusiak, WojciechWojciech Matusiak		Arkonia Szczecin
1970		Stachura, JanJan Stachura		Unia Oświęcim
1971		Szozda, StanisławStanisław Szozda		CWKS Legia Warszawa
1972		Viejo, José LuisJosé Luis Viejo		Spain
1973		Lis, LucjanLucjan Lis		Górnik Radzionków
1974		Delcroix, AndréAndré Delcroix		Belgium
1975		Mytnik, TadeuszTadeusz Mytnik		Flota Gdynia
1976		Kowalski, JanuszJanusz Kowalski		Polska
1977		Michalak, LechosławLechosław Michalak		Polska II
1978		Brzeźny, JanJan Brzeźny		Polska I
1979		Charucki, HenrykHenryk Charucki		Metalowiec
1980		Lang, CzesławCzesław Lang		Polska I
1981		Brzeźny, JanJan Brzeźny		Polska I
1982		Mierzejewski, AndrzejAndrzej Mierzejewski		Polska
1983		Krawczyk, TadeuszTadeusz Krawczyk		Polska I
1984		Mierzejewski, AndrzejAndrzej Mierzejewski		Polska
1985		Leśniewski, MarekMarek Leśniewski		Polska
1986		Kulas, MarekMarek Kulas		Polska
1987		Piątek, ZbigniewZbigniew Piątek		Polska
1988		Mierzejewski, AndrzejAndrzej Mierzejewski		LZS I
1989		Wrona, MarekMarek Wrona		JZS Jelcz Oława
1990		Karłowicz, MieczysławMieczysław Karłowicz		JZS Jelcz
1991		Baranowski, DariuszDariusz Baranowski		OZKol Wałbrzych
1992		Baranowski, DariuszDariusz Baranowski		Soia – Górnik
1993		Baranowski, DariuszDariusz Baranowski		Pekaes Lang Rover Legia
1994		Fondriest, MaurizioMaurizio Fondriest		Lampre Panaria Animex
1995		Spruch, ZbigniewZbigniew Spruch		Lampre Panaria Animex
1996		Djavanian, ViatcheslavViatcheslav Djavanian		Roslotto ZG
1997		Järmann, RolfRolf Järmann		Casino – Géant
1998		Ivanov, SergueiSerguei Ivanov		TVM–Farm Frites
1999		Brożyna, TomaszTomasz Brożyna		Mróz
2000		Przydział, PiotrPiotr Przydział		Mat–Ceresit–CCC
2001		Sosenka, OndřejOndřej Sosenka		Ceresit–CCC–Mat
2002		Brochard, LaurentLaurent Brochard		Jean Delatour
2003		Zamana, CezaryCezary Zamana		Action Nvidia–Mróz
2004		Sosenka, OndřejOndřej Sosenka		Acqua & Sapone
2005		Kirchen, KimKim Kirchen		Fassa Bortolo
2006		Schumacher, StefanStefan Schumacher		Gerolsteiner
2007		Vansummeren, JohanJohan Vansummeren		Predictor–Lotto
2008		Voigt, JensJens Voigt		CSC–Saxo Bank
2009		Ballan, AlessandroAlessandro Ballan		Lampre–NGC
2010		Martin, DanDaniel Martin		Garmin–Transitions
2011		Sagan, PeterPeter Sagan		Liquigas–Cannondale
2012		Moser, MorenoMoreno Moser		Liquigas–Cannondale
2013		Weening, PieterPieter Weening		Orica–GreenEDGE
2014		Majka, RafałRafał Majka		Tinkoff–Saxo
2015		Izagirre, IonIon Izagirre		Movistar Team
2016		Wellens, TimTim Wellens		Lotto–Soudal
2017		Teuns, DylanDylan Teuns		BMC Racing Team
2018		Kwiatkowski, MichałMichał Kwiatkowski		Team Sky
2019		Sivakov, PavelPavel Sivakov		Team Ineos
2020		Evenepoel, RemcoRemco Evenepoel		Deceuninck–Quick-Step
2021		Almeida, JoãoJoão Almeida		Deceuninck–Quick-Step
2022		Hayter, EthanEthan Hayter		Ineos Grenadiers
2023		Mohorič, MatejMatej Mohorič		Team Bahrain Victorious
2024		Vingegaard, JonasJonas Vingegaard		Visma–Lease a Bike

Riders with Multiple Wins

Wins	Rider	Editions
3	Dariusz Baranowski (POL)	1991, 1992, 1993
	Andrzej Mierzejewski (POL)	1982, 1984, 1988
	Marian Więckowski (POL)	1954, 1955, 1956
2	Jan Brzeźny (POL)	1978, 1981
	Henryk Kowalski (POL)	1957, 1961
	Jan Kudra (POL)	1962, 1968
	Bolesław Napierała (POL)	1937, 1939
	Ondřej Sosenka (CZE)	2001, 2004
	Wacław Wójcik (POL)	1948, 1952

Winners by Country

#	Country	Victories
1	Poland	52
2	Belgium	6
3	Italy	4
4	Russia	3
5	Czech Republic	2
	Germany	2
	Spain	2
7	Denmark	1
	France	1
	Ireland	1
	Luxembourg	1
	Netherlands	1
	Portugal	1
	Slovenia	1
	Slovakia	1
	Switzerland	1
	United Kingdom	1

Safety in the Race

Like any high-speed sport, cycling has its risks. Sadly, throughout the long history of the Tour de Pologne, two riders have died from accidents during the race.

• In 1967, Polish rider Jan Myszak died after an accident during the third stage.
• In 2019, Belgian rider Bjorg Lambrecht died after a crash during the third stage.

Fun Facts and Records

• Special Jerseys: Riders compete for four different colored jerseys. The yellow jersey is for the overall leader, pink for the best climber, white for the best sprinter, and navy blue for the most active rider.
• Fastest Finish: In 2014, Jonas van Genechten set a record for the fastest finish, reaching a speed of 80 kilometers per hour as he crossed the line!
• Huge Crowds: The race is very popular. Each year, about 3.5 million fans line the roads to cheer on the cyclists.
• Race for Everyone: On the last day, there is a special race called Tour de Pologne Amatorów for amateur riders. They get to ride on the same course as the professionals.
• Closest Wins: The race has been incredibly close! In 2015 and 2017, the winner beat the second-place rider by only two seconds after a full week of racing.

Images for kids

• 

  Ondřej Sosenka was the winner of the race in 2004.

• 

  The peloton finishes a stage in Katowice during the 2019 Tour de Pologne.

• 

  The start of the third stage of the 2021 Tour de Pologne.

• 

  Dariusz Baranowski, who won the race three times in a row (1991, 1992, 1993).

See also

In Spanish: Tour de Polonia para niños

• Sport in Poland
• Tour of Małopolska
• UCI WorldTour
• Road cycling
• Bicycling terminology

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