Jakub Šaur | Photo: cracovia-hokej.pl
Poles will also play at this year’s World Championships in Prague and Ostrava. Our northern neighbors will be among the elite for the first time in 22 years. “They will have a hard time, but I wish them to keep going. In the last four years, Polish hockey has made a lot of progress,” says defenseman Jakub Šaur, who has been active in the country of football, flat track and ski jumping for eight years.
Poland’s first match at the elite world championship in 22 years is approaching. Is hockey fever gaining ground in the country?
In Poland, this moment has been talked about for practically a year. Since they qualified for the World Cup. The entire hockey community is in anticipation. But I don’t know… Their results this year are not good. They will have a hard time.
The key match for the Poles will be the one against Kazakhstan, right?
Looks like it. Like I said, they’re going to have a hard time, but I wish them the best of luck. Their best hope is to replace the quality of fighting and teamwork. I’m sure they realize that.
“This year’s results of the Poles are not good. They will have a tough time at the World Cup.”
Who do you think will be the biggest star of the Polish national team?
Aron Chmielewski for me.
Poles also expect a lot from Alan Łyszczarczyk, who flashed in Třinec or Frýdek-Místek, right?
Sure, he’s a skilled player. Technically very well equipped. Plus, he has decent skating.
“The biggest Polish star? Aron Chmielewski for me.”
Recently, quite a few Polish players have been trying to break through in the Czech Republic. Is our highest competition attractive to Poles?
I would rather say that the Poles see the Czech Republic as the closest route to a quality competition. Poland has skilled hockey players, but they often run into a handicap when they have a Polish flag on their ID…
Do you run into prejudices?
Sure, they are often quality hockey players. But when a manager sees the Polish flag, it often happens that he automatically boxes.
Jakub Šaur | Photo: cracovia-hokej.pl
Are you expecting a rush of Polish fans in Ostrava?
I dare say there will be a lot of them. The center of Polish hockey is Katowice and other cities located near the Czech border. From here, fans will surely find their way to Ostrava.
So the popularity of hockey in the country is on the rise?
Certainly during my tenure. For example, in the last season, almost full winter visited us regularly. Winters are smaller in Poland, but even so, a visit of around three thousand is nice.
“Poland has skilled hockey players, but they often run into a handicap when they have a Polish flag on their ID card.”
What about the popularity of hockey compared to football, track or ski jumping?
These are still incomparable worlds. Compared to these sports, hockey in Poland has no chance yet.
So if a Polish fan had to choose between Mariusz Czerkawski and Adam Malysz’s autograph…
He would go to Malysz one hundred percent. (smiles)
“Polish hockey has gone up a lot in the last four years.”
You have been working in Poland for eight years. Has hockey there made much progress during that time?
Definitely! Especially in the last four years, he went up a lot. And not just hockey, but also everything around it.
Jakub Šaur | Photo: Archive of Jakub Šaur
Czech players also help a lot, there are a lot of them in Poland, right?
Not only Czech players. There are generally a lot of foreigners working in Poland. But I don’t want to say that the league is only about foreigners, it is primarily built on quality players from Poland.
Do the Poles care about the education of the youth?
I can’t judge this objectively. But in my experience, quite a few youngsters move on to the adult teams. The problem with some clubs is that they lack a junior, teenager or even a ninth grader…
“In Krakow, there is nothing but a title.”
During eight years you worked in Auschwitz, Kraków and Sosnowiec, how would you compare these clubs?
I started in Auschwitz, where the results were up and down. But I enjoyed hockey there, great fans, small town… Krakow is the complete opposite, big city, big ambitions. In Krakow, there is nothing but the title.
Which the numerous Czech colony could not get there during your years…
I’m really sorry for that. Otherwise, I remember Krakow very fondly, there were a lot of Czechs there, so it was great.
“In Sosnovec, I feel that I am part of a project that has a future.”
And Sosnovec?
He used to be a league slugger. But then new owners came, built a stadium, built facilities… I feel that I am part of a project that has a future and I am happy to add another season in Sosnovec.
Will you aim for the title?
We want to grow. This year we finished eighth, while the point loss was minimal. In the quarter-finals, we tormented the later finalist Katowice. The closest goal is to move in the elite five, then we’ll see.
Let’s go back eight years, why did you decide to go to Poland then?
At that time I was working in Třebíč, but I can honestly say that the Czech first league did not make sense to me at that time. I didn’t want to play her for fifteen grand a month. At the same time, it was clear to me that the extra league is not in my case. That’s why it remained abroad. I tried Poland through an agent and today I can say that I have no regrets. Exactly opposite.
“Playing in the Czech first league for fifteen thousand didn’t make sense to me eight years ago.”
So do you play hockey for a living?
Well one hundred percent! I would say that a number of players in Poland have higher salaries than some guys in the Czech Extraliga.
But anyway, when you left for Poland, didn’t your family and friends knock you on the forehead?
You know that, right! Some laughed, condemned, told me it was the end of me. And you know what happened? Two years later, they themselves called me to ask if I could get them to Poland.
Returning to your native land doesn’t appeal to you even after years?
Last year after the end in Krakow I had such thoughts. But you know how… Almost nobody knows me in the Czech Republic these days, so I chose to continue in Poland. Two things played a role, firstly the financial point of view and then also the location. It may be a paradox, but from Sosnovec it is closer to home to Brno than, for example, from Litoměřice.
Jakub Šaur | Photo: cracovia-hokej.pl
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