A page from the Wisła calendar: Wisła players at the Olympic Games

Exactly 100 years ago – on May 26, 1924 – the Polish national team played its first match at the Olympic Games. Henryk Reyman captained the national team in Paris.

In the first editions of the modern Olympic Games, due to the lack of independence, Poles were not allowed to compete under their own flag. However, the Olympic ideal inspired our compatriots during the partition period, and sport – including football – was one way to strengthen national identity. For this reason, for example, the Polish Games were organized in Lviv in 1911 – won by Wisła. It's no wonder that after regaining independence, there was enthusiasm for Poles to participate – in the white and red colors and with the White Eagle on their shirts – in international competitions. However, Poland had to withdraw from the 1920 Games in Antwerp due to the Bolshevik invasion. The Olympic debut therefore took place in Paris in 1924.

The importance attached to this performance is evidenced by the fact that the Polish Football Association (PZPN) decided to change the format of the national competition and abandon the district championships in the spring of 1924. This was intended to allow the Polish national team to prepare for national team matches, but it's difficult to consider this decision a fortuitous one. Furthermore, just before the Olympics, the national team played matches in Sweden – the Poles arrived in Paris very late and after an exhausting journey. As if that weren't enough, fate assigned the national team an extremely strong Hungarian team as their opponent.

Henryk Reyman was the captain of the Polish national team at the 1924 Olympics. Other Wisła players also played against Hungary: Mieczysław Wiśniewski in goal and Zdzisław Styczeń in defense. Władysław Krupa and Jan Reyman were the reserves. Adam Obrubański served as the national team captain, the equivalent of a coach today. On May 26, 1924, at Bergeyre Stadium, Poland lost 5-0. Despite this result, press commentary was dominated by comments emphasizing that the performance provided the Polish national team with a learning opportunity and motivation for further work.

Their first appearance at the Games ended in a disastrous failure. However, Poles would go on to achieve Olympic success in the future, thanks in no small part to successive generations of Wisła athletes. But that's a story for another time!