Shortly after the Bolesławiec mayor’s awards for promoting the city were presented, a post appeared on the Facebook profile of the “Gladiator” Combat Sports Club:

“Upon assuming the office of mayor, I solemnly swear that I will uphold the law and that I will perform the office entrusted to me solely for the public good and the prosperity of the city’s residents. So help me God.” Piotr Roman

How does this oath relate to the mayor’s actual conduct? At the beginning of February, a meeting was held concerning funding for sports clubs, during which the signing of agreements was finalized. As usual, as every year, our club received the least support of all Bolesławiec clubs, despite its major achievements and dynamic development in 2014. In total, for four different training groups, we received PLN 3,500 for the year!

Unhappy with this decision, we asked the committee to explain the reasons for treating our club so unfairly. Naturally, we did not receive logical answers to some questions and, after a heated discussion, the mayor stated: “If this is how you handle matters, you will get nothing next time.”

As Thursday’s presentation of the city-promotion awards showed, the mayor did exactly what he said he would. Although the committee evaluating the applications gave a positive opinion on awarding prizes to our male and female competitors, the mayor still did not approve them. The club nominated two athletes for the award: Oliwia Ziembikiewicz, who in 2014 became the first female athlete from Poland’s children’s national team in history to win a medal at the Muay Thai World Championships in Malaysia. Another achievement of the 11-year-old Bolesławiec resident was becoming world runner-up in the low-kick competition, held in Prague, as well as winning the Polish championship.

Dominik Zadora [to], winner of the World Cup in Croatia and participant in many prestigious professional events, including the professional K1 World Championship bout in Munich.

To get to the heart of the matter, this is an example of the mayor putting personal grudges, caused solely by a difference of opinion, above the welfare of children and young people who train so hard and willingly represent our city at the biggest events in Poland and around the world.

The matter returned during the February session of the Bolesławiec City Council. Mayor Piotr Roman said: “This is the situation every year. Let me start with this: I disagree with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ verdict [chodzi o Oscary – przyp. „ii”]. ‘Birdman’ is a weak film in my opinion. It is similar in Bolesławiec. Whenever we recognize someone, there is always a group of dissatisfied people. This is especially true among sports activists, because there are always the most applications from them.”

He added: “It is very difficult to determine the scale and importance of individual sporting results. I am aware of the responsibility resting on me. I know that some people are dissatisfied. What is more, when a given category is announced and it turns out that they are not receiving an award, they can collectively leave the room during the ceremony. We had such a situation.”

The mayor then presented the criteria on the basis of which the awards are granted (we omitted some of them because they sounded quite similar to the previous ones):

  • whether the application is complete and consistent with the idea of the competition (“We do not award prizes for sporting achievements, but for promoting the city through sport. If someone achieves a high position but there is no mention that they are from Bolesławiec... Last year there was a question about whether Łukasz Kubot deserved an award. We decided that during broadcasts of tennis matches it was often mentioned that Kubot came from Bolesławiec, and he himself sent greetings to the residents of our city,” Piotr Roman explained.)
  • whether the application concerns the promotion of the city of Bolesławiec (city officials sometimes receive applications related to the Bolesławiec Rural Commune.)
  • whether the application was submitted by an eligible entity (sometimes people apply for an award for themselves)
  • whether the arguments are presented clearly, legibly and understandably
  • whether the information has been substantiated with press clippings, media recordings and links to websites (“We are often unable to verify this ourselves,” the mayor explained. He announced: “Next year we will require much more in this regard.”)
  • whether the nature of the city-promoting activities indicates continuity, that is, whether they are a one-off effect or have continued for years
  • the reach of the promotional activities (whether they have a broader scope); in Piotr Roman’s opinion, niche sports do not: “If someone goes to a championship and there is no opponent there for them, so they become champion... You can be a European champion in table hockey, but it is difficult to talk about any broader reach here.”
  • whether the activities mainly concerned the previous calendar year
  • whether the reported activities have a positive dimension in the public perception (“Did the ZEC chimney collapsing promote Bolesławiec?” Piotr Roman asked rhetorically.)
  • the vote by which the committee approved the application (“There is one online portal that is very unhappy about an award for promotion not being granted. But the situation here was straightforward: the committee unanimously decided that the award was not deserved,” the mayor added.)

What do you think? Who is right in this dispute?