Sport in the Koźle Region
In 1947, the Bierawianka Sports Club was set up, which later became known as Unia Kędzierzyn. The clubs and teams often changed names, e.g., after merging in 1968, Unia Kędzierzyn and Unia Blachowianka evolved into the largest sports club in the Opolian Silesia – Międzyzakładowy Klub Sportowy Chemik Kędzierzyn (Inter-Factory Sports Club Chemik Kędzierzyn), uniting various disciplines and leading competitive sections – from football, through swimming, to judo. In 1991, the name of the club was shortened, and it has been functioning to the present day as Klub Sportowy “Chemik” Kędzierzyn-Koźle (the “Chemik” Sports Club of Kędzierzyn-Koźle).
The first and biggest love of the citizens of Kędzierzyn was football, placed in the inter-voivodeship league since 1953, and then doing well in the regional league. What also deserves to be mentioned is the achievements of the athletics section, because, since 1952, it has set the tone to the sporty image of the town of Kędzierzyn. The athletic achievements reached their peak in the 1970s and 1980s. The successes of the athletes were impressive – during these years, they won 98 medals in total. The person on the leading edge was our most famous athlete, Helmut Krieger – a shot putter and winner of 19 gold medals. Furthermore, our high jumper, Janusz Trzepizur, was the first sports club member to participate in the Olympic Games in Moscow, 1980, where he placed 12th.
For many years, our predominant discipline has been volleyball, and our volleyball club is respected both nationally and internationally. Kędzierzyn-Koźle is a place where top-level events are held, that is, the championships and the Polish and World Cups.
The high results achieved by the volleyball players for many years translate into permanent social effects. The citizens integrate around the club, whereas the series of successes of our competitors constantly make the inhabitants of the Koźle Region proud. Of course, we mean the successes of our volleyball team – originally known as Mostostal, then as Mostostal-Azoty, and currently as ZAKSA.
Set up by Kazimierz Pietrzyk in 1994, the club has won many titles, gold medals in the Championships and the Polish Cup, and a brown medal in the European games for the CEV Cup. It also competed in the finals of the elite CEV Champions League, and, consequently, placed third (Milan, season 2002/2003). In 2001, the activity and attitude of the Fan Club in Kędzierzyn was recognized by the Polish Olympic Committee, which awarded it the Fair Play Prize. Moreover, the town of Kędzierzyn-Koźle has been the co-organizer of the Special Olympic several times.
