A New Era of Polish Track and Field

Track and field athlete and multiple Olympic medalis Natalia Bukowiecka, in a conversation with Aida Bella, talks about the records she has already broken and the ones still ahead of her, whether she has any free time and how she spends it, the sporting events she likes to watch even though she doesn’t have the time, and the world cuisines she enjoys discovering.

The year 2025 is slowly coming to an end. What was it like for you?
Definitely tough. It was an Olympic year. Physically I worked very hard, I had a set goal, I wanted to win a medal and I won it. My coach and I immediately assumed that we would ease up physically, we would train a bit lighter. I knew all of that, but it was hard to come to terms with it when I went to meets and the results weren’t what I would have wanted. For that reason, this year was tough mentally. It was marked by learning, because I truly learned a lot. I learned patience, humility, that it’s not always the way we would like it to be and that sometimes you have to be kind to yourself. When we go to competitions and we know we’re not fully well prepared, you simply have to accept it if you want to start.

You are a very ambitious athlete. You’ve proven that over the last few seasons. If you were to compare the year after Tokyo and the year after Paris, which was better for you athletically?
I think this one was better for me athletically, but back then I was in a completely different place and I was younger, so development may not have been easier. Now I have a much better personal best, so it will be increasingly harder for me to improve. After Tokyo my personal best was 50.70. I was starting from that level then, I was only beginning to run very fast, so it was much easier for me to achieve good results. It seems to me I was really carried by successes, because those were my first global medals, outside of the European Championships. This year I wouldn’t say I had no goal, because in fact my goal is always to improve and to achieve the highest possible results, but I was a bit suspended. I went to the start and I didn’t feel any emotions. It was the first time in my life I felt that way, because I don’t get very stressed, but those starts always made me happy, I felt excitement, adrenaline. Now I went out there to run. It was terribly strange and it was strange for me to just move past it. Besides, I didn’t want to do that, because I believe it’s not the right thing. That mobilization for starts should be different. I couldn’t do it. I don’t know what it comes from. Maybe from the fact that that season was full of emotions. Something was happening all the time, the European Championships and the Polish record, the Games…

If you were to compare your Olympic medals, the Polish record, or the gold from Rome a few years ago, when did you experience the most pleasant emotions? Are you even able to compare that?
It’s very hard to compare, because I won each medal at a slightly different stage. People say that an individual medal is more valuable—probably for many people that’s true, whereas I won relay medals at a completely different point in my career. I was entering senior sport then and they allowed me to move forward, they gave me wings. Each medal added a brick to my career and my athletic development.

By breaking Irena Szewińska’s Polish record in the 400 m from 1976, you did something huge.
I think so. A lot of people talked about it. We know who Irena Szewińska was—an outstanding figure in Polish track and field. I used to think that record couldn’t be broken. 49.28. When I first broke 50 seconds, I considered it something incredible. Later, when I broke that record, I was shocked myself. I told myself: yes, this is something huge, because simply being the best in Poland’s history is truly a major achievement.

We all know what a huge show Mondo Duplantis’ world record-breaking is. Of course, there are also financial rewards tied to it. In your event, do you also get paid for breaking the Polish record?
There are no financial rewards for that. It only depends on my private contracts.
I think Mondo is also compensated quite well by his sponsors for breaking world records, but there is also a prize from World Athletics. For every athlete it’s defined that about $50,000 is awarded for breaking
a world record in each Olympic discipline.
Did you watch the Olympics live?
I arrived at the village a day or two before my start. My starts were spread out every two to three days, so in between I rested.
I lay down, spent that time so I could focus and recover as well as possible, so
I didn’t really get to go anywhere. Down at the mission there was a TV, I would sit there and cheer.

The Winter Olympics in Milan are coming up. Will you watch them? Which winter sport do you like the most?
I’ll probably watch, though not all of it. It takes a lot of time. I might be, for example, in South Africa then and they might not show the broadcasts there. I used to say
I liked ski jumping the most, because there was a time when every Sunday you’d sit down and watch ski jumping. I did that with my parents too. Completely natural. Now I’d really like to watch speed skating, because it’s exciting.

To wrap up, a series of quick questions. Indoor or stadium?
Stadium.

If not for sports, then…
That’s a very difficult question. At this moment I absolutely don’t see myself outside of sports.

Sports taught me…
Perseverance, patience.

Who will win a medal at the Winter Olympics in Milan?
Among Poles? Wow, that’s a tough question. I don’t know, but I hope there will be a lot of medals.

Natalia Bukowiecka in five years.
We’ll have the year 2030. I think I’ll already be nearing the end of my athletic career.

What needs to happen for you to be able to define yourself as a fulfilled athlete?
I’m already a fulfilled athlete. If I ended my athletic career today, which I’m not planning to do, I’m fulfilled and satisfied with how it has gone.