Thursday’s opening of the temporary exhibition “The History of Oświęcim Ice Hockey: Eighty Years of Unia Oświęcim” at The Remembrance Museum of the Land of Oświęcim attracted a large number of fans, ice hockey enthusiasts, and former and current players. Conversations and memories continued throughout the afternoon.
The exhibition was conceived by Maciej Kosnowski, an ice hockey and Unia Oświęcim enthusiast, well-known chronicler, and collector of memorabilia associated with the club. Many of the objects on display come from his personal collection.
During the opening, the sixth episode of a series devoted to the history of the Unia Oświęcim ice hockey team in the years 1990–1992 was screened on a large screen in the conference room. The series was written and directed by Mirosław Ganobis and Tomasz Klimczak.
The exhibition was being assembled almost until the very last moment, as the final objects arrived just before the opening. After information about the exhibition appeared in the media, the Museum received numerous calls from collectors and ice hockey enthusiasts offering to lend additional memorabilia associated with the team and club. Among the guests at the opening was Marek Mordan, a former longtime photojournalist for Dziennik Polski, whose extensive body of work also includes numerous photographs documenting ice hockey. Thanks to him, visitors could view photographs featured in a special album dedicated to Unia Oświęcim’s players.
On behalf of the Museum, the event was organized and hosted by Piotr Hertig. Guests included, among others, Andrzej Skrzypiński, Oświęcim County Executive, wearing a Unia Oświęcim jersey; Teresa Jankowska, Deputy County Executive; Sylwia Żak-Biesik, a regional councilor; Jakub Przewoźnik, Head of the Oświęcim Branch Office of the Management Board’s Office of the Marshal’s Office of the Małopolska Region; and Szymon Kowalski, Deputy Head of the Archives of the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum in Oświęcim.
Among the special guests were players who personally helped write some of the most memorable chapters in the club’s history. The opening was attended by Waldemar Klisiak, Andrzej Ryczko, Andrzej Wiechaj, Tomasz Piątek, Zygmunt Osoba, Kazimierz Jarnot, Paweł Kuszaj, and Sławomir Wieloch.
The exhibition in the Museum’s foyer features, among other items, gold medals, badges, commemorative hockey pucks, players’ jerseys, skates, helmets, hockey sticks, and archival photographs with descriptions. One particularly fascinating object is the gold medal awarded for Unia Oświęcim’s first-ever Polish Senior Ice Hockey Championship title in the 1991/1992 season. The medal belonged to Waldemar Klisiak, a Unia Oświęcim youth player who went on to represent Poland many times and compete at the 1992 Winter Olympics in Albertville. In 2023, Waldemar Klisiak donated the medal to a charity auction supporting another outstanding Oświęcim ice hockey player, Andrzej Matlak. Sadly, Andrzej Matlak passed away two years ago. The medal is now owned by Łukasz Dziędziel, President of Fabryka Maszyn i Urządzeń OMAG Sp. z o.o. in Brzezinka.
The exhibition can be visited until the end of August, daily from 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM, except Mondays. Admission is free.
Free parking for cars is available next to the Museum, as well as bicycle racks. The Museum can also be reached by MZK buses 1, 16, 18, 19, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, and 29 — Uczelnia stop.
