Sport participation in Poland is on the rise with a range of sports growing faster in Poland then some of the more traditional western European country’s. Numerous sports are popular in Poland . Soccer (piłka nożna) is the country’s most popular sport , with a rich history of global competitiveness . Track and field (lekkoatletyka) , basketball (koszykówka) , boxing (boks) , ski jumping (skoki narciarskie), fencing (szermierka) , handball (piłka ręczna), cycling (kolarstwo), ice hockey (hokej na lodzie), swimming (pływactwo) , volleyball (siatkówka) , winter sports (sporty zimowe), weightlifting (podnoszenie ciężarów) and bodybuilding (kulturystyka) are notable other sports popular in Poland .

The golden era of football in Poland took place throughout the 1970s together with until the early 1980s , when the Polish national football team accomplished their best results in any FIFA World Cup competitions achieving third place in the 1974 and 1982 World Cups . The team won a gold medal in football at the 1972 Summer Olympics as well as winning 2 silver medals in 1976 and 1992 . Poland , together with Ukraine hosted the UEFA European Football Championship in 2012 (I happened to visit Poland during that time – lots of fun!).

The Polish mountains are the perfect location for hiking , winter sports and mountain biking and attract millions of tourists each year from all over the world . Baltic beaches and resorts are popular locations for fishing , canoeing , kayaking and a broad-range of other water-themed sports .

Here is useful sports vocabulary for you in Polish:

alpine skiing – narciarstwo alpejskie
archery – łucznictwo
badminton – badminton/kometka
basketball – koszykówka
bobsleigh – bobsleje
boxing – boks
canoeing – kajakarstwo
cricket – krykiet
cross-country skiing – biegi narciarskie
cycling – kolarstwo
diving – skoki do wody
equestrian – jeździectwo
fencing – szermierka
field hockey – hokej na trawie
figure skating – łyżwiarstwo figurowe
football – piłka nożna
freestyle skiing – narciarstwo dowolne
golf – golf
gymnastics – gimnastyka
handball – piłka ręczna
ice hockey – hokej na lodzie
judo – dżudo
luge – saneczkarstwo
modern pentathlon – pięciobój nowoczesny
nordic combined – kombinacja norweska
rowing – wioślarstwo
rugby – rugby
sailing – żeglarstwo
shooting – strzelectwo
ski jumping – skoki narciarskie
synchronized swimming – pływanie synchroniczne
table tennis – tenis stołowy
tennis – tenis
track cycling – kolarstwo torowe
volleyball – siatkówka
water polo – piłka wodna
weightlifting – podnoszenie ciężarów
wrestling – zapasy

What is your favorite sport? Please let us know in comments below:) Let’s see which sport Polish blog readers like the most!