How many motorcycles does a speedway rider have? What did the Olympic village in Beijing look like? What is the “bed problem” for basketball players? Who is Mr. Geniek in the “Lech Poznań” team, and what does Piotr Reiss intend to do after his football career ends? These are just some of the curiosities revealed by the guests of the 2nd National Conference “Logistics in Sports”. The event, organized by the WSL University Fan Club, attracted over four hundred sports and logistics fans from all over the country to Poznań.
Among the speakers were personalities such as kayaker Aneta Pastuszka-Konieczna, a three-time Olympic medalist (from Sydney, Athens, and Beijing), “Lech Poznań” team captain Piotr Reiss, Polish speedway vice-champion Daniel Pytel, and Bartłomiej Tomaszewski, formerly one of the best Polish small forwards, now the sports director of PBG Basket Poznań.
Thanks to them, conference participants were able to look at sports from a completely different perspective. No longer just from the point of view of a fan, but also through the eyes of a participant, organizer, or sponsor.
The audience was introduced to the topic of broadly defined logistics in sports by Assoc. Prof. Ireneusz Fechner, Chancellor of the College of Logistics, who thus inaugurated the student conference. Then, the microphone was taken by Maciej Zawieja, a Poznań City Councilor and founder of the University Fan Clubs. Describing the creation and development of the UKK, he noted that he dreams of them becoming the image and pride of Poznań in the future.
The lecture by representatives of Schenker, a partner of the conference, was very popular. Kamil Walukiewicz and Rafał Tarasewicz briefly presented Schenker’s activities in the field of sports logistics.
– We mainly focus on football, but Olympic disciplines are also familiar to us. For years, we have been supporting events such as the Summer and Winter Olympic Games, World and European Championships, rallies, and regattas – listed Rafał Tarasewicz. – In terms of logistics, we handle, among other things, press centers during the European Football Championships, organize so-called fanzones, i.e., places where fans gather and watch a given event on big screens, help in preparing cultural programs, take care of gifts for VIPs, and even conduct training for volunteers and logistics department employees – he adds.
To ensure no one had any doubts about the scope of these tasks, they presented the film “Logistics of Global Sports Events,” which documented Schenker’s operations during the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany.
Damian Gapiński, press officer for PSŻ Milion Team Poznań, and Daniel Pytel, Polish speedway vice-champion, revealed curiosities from the life of the “Scorpions” team. For example, who knew that a mid-range engine for a speedway motorcycle costs about 20,000 and has to be changed after every race? And that every speedway rider has at least three motorcycles, and the best ones even sixteen, which allows the competitors to participate in several leagues simultaneously. We also learned that the name “Scorpions” came from a bar where it was decided to restore the speedway tradition in Poznań. The guests also revealed what so-called “tear-offs” are.
– These are transparent films that we stick onto our goggles and then tear off when they get dusty. Although there are races where the tear-offs run out and the goggles are so dirty that you can’t see anything. Then we only have two options: either we ride by feel, or we throw off the glasses. Personally, I don’t recommend either solution – joked Daniel Pytel at the end of his speech.
From the Poznań Track, we suddenly moved to Beijing. A WSL student, Aneta Pastuszka-Konieczna, a silver medalist of this year’s Olympic Games, treated us to a photo presentation commemorating this international celebration of sports. Thanks to her, we not only saw the Olympic village but also learned about the logistics solutions used to facilitate movement around Beijing during the Games.
– To reduce car traffic, the Chinese introduced a rule that on even days, only cars with even license plates drive, and on odd days – with odd license plates, of course – said Aneta Konieczna.
The next guest of the conference was announced by a performance by the “Kolejorz Kids” dance group. The kids got all the participants on their feet. However, euphoria reached its peak when a special guest appeared in the College of Logistics Auditorium – Piotr Reiss, captain of the “Lech Poznań” team.
– I am always happy with such joyful welcomes – admitted the footballer.
Piotr Reiss eagerly answered questions from conference participants. He said that he does not intend to end his sports career yet, and if he is forced to do so, he will definitely stay in football. As for logistics in the Poznań team, he admitted that as a player, he never had to worry about organizational issues.
– We have a famous Mr. Geniek, the head of the sports equipment warehouse. It is actually thanks to him that we always have something to play in; he ensures that our kits are clean and the equipment is in good working order – praised Reiss. – And although the “Lech Poznań” club does not yet match the best in Europe, I can say with full responsibility that it is getting better and better. After all, I remember the times when there was no hot water in the shower after training and when playing matches abroad, we traveled to the venue by coach – he recalled.
Together with Piotr Reiss was Jarosław Kiliński, President of the “Wiara Lecha” Association, who presented the audience with issues regarding the transport of fans to the Poznań team’s matches and problems with organizing match choreographies. He also promised that he would do everything to ensure that in a few years, 40,000 fans would sit in the stands during “Lech” matches, which is twice as many as now.
At the end of the conference, Bartłomiej Tomaszewski, sports director of PBG Basket Poznań, spoke. The basketball player presented the problem of logistics in his team.
– As a director, I have to remember everything. About rehabilitation, about feeding the players, about renting a hall for training, about buying sports equipment, supplements, and medicines, as well as about booking hotels. This last issue causes me particular problems. Due to the height of the basketball players, we set a certain requirement for hotel owners: the beds must either be over two meters long or have no footboards so that the players’ legs can hang freely. Otherwise, the guys won’t get any sleep – joked Bartłomiej Tomaszewski. – However, despite all these meticulous preparations, sports have the characteristic of being unpredictable. But that is exactly what is most beautiful about them – concluded the sports director of PBG Basket Poznań.
Over four hundred participants took part in the student venture. The audience arrived at the WSL headquarters from, among other places, Poznań, Szczecin, Leszno, Wrocław, Wałcz, Bydgoszcz, Gorzów Wielkopolski, Katowice, and Nowa Sól.
The organizer of the Conference was the University Fan Club of the College of Logistics, and the partner was the company Schenker. The honorary patronage over the venture was taken by Grzegorz Ganowicz, Chairman of the Poznań City Council, while media patronage was accepted by Radio RMI FM, the magazine “Logistyka”, the portals Logistyka.net.pl, Studentnews.pl, as well as the magazines “Transport i Spedycja” and “Logistyka a Jakość”.