10 awesome memories from marcin gortat’s 5 years in washington, dc

Earlier this week it was announced that Marcin Gortat had been traded to the Los Angeles Clippers, bringing an end to an incredible five year run with the Washington Wizards. Although we at

the Polish Embassy are incredibly sad to see him leave the Capital, we wish him all the best in California! On this occasion, we cannot help but look back on all the fantastic times from

these past five seasons. Here is our ranking of 10 awesome memories in no particular order. 1. CAREER HIGH 31 POINTS! In a 2014 game against the Toronto Raptors, Marcin Gortat scored a

career high 31 points. Marcin would score another 31 points that same season during Game 5 vs. the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference semifinal. No wonder #DCFamily fans embraced his

nick name — The Polish Hammer! 2. BARBECUE PIEROGI ALERT! Some cannot sleep at night wondering whether the chicken came before the egg; others ponder whether the dress is blue and black or

white and gold. However one day in 2014 Shaquille O’Neal had the ultimate question of all: was a pierogi a sausage or a dumpling? Being a Polish culinary novice, Shaq and the NBA TNT team

decided to solve the riddle by consulting the only Polish player in the NBA: Marcin Gortat. Hilarity ensued. We hope that following this exchange, and the food tasting that our Embassy

facilitated, Shaq won’t be confusing kielbasa with pierogi any time soon, but enjoying them both equally! 3. CONNECTING KIDS THROUGH SPORT! For many years now Marcin Gortat and his MG13

Foundation have been organizing annual summer basketball camps in Poland for school children. These camps help popularize the sport in Marcin’s homeland, inspire youths and promote a healthy

lifestyle. In 2016, our Embassy together with Marcin Gortat decided to organize the first ever Marcin Gortat Camp in the United States. Kids from throughout the DMV area including a group

of D.C. Public School students as well as children from Poland had a chance to train together under the direction of Marcin Gortat, his teammates and Washington Wizards coaching staff. We’re

sure these budding basketball stars won’t soon forget their practise with NBA players! 4. HONORING THE GREATEST GENERATION Poland’s World War II veterans, much like those from the United

States, are truly members of the greatest generation. They faced incredible hardship with unsurpassed bravery, and dedicated themselves fully to the Allied cause. Unlike Americans, however,

after the war they could not return to a free homeland. Due to the communist forces who had taken over Poland, their wartime experiences could not be properly commemorated or honored. In

fact it is only in the latter years of their lives that these men and women who gave so much are receiving their due thanks. Marcin Gortat never missed an opportunity to pay tribute to

Poland’s great veterans, and the Washington Wizards have been extremely generous in facilitating moments such as those pictured below. 5. READY, SET, FLY! During his five seasons in

Washington, Gortat barely missed a game. In fact from 2016–2018 he started in every single Wizards’ game. However throughout his busy schedule he still made time for others. Our Embassy was

thrilled to be able to leverage our partnership with the MG 13 Foundation and DC Public Schools’ Embassy Adoption Program to expose school children to professional sports, team work, healthy

life choices and positive role models. However for two lucky school kids, this partnership also involved a transatlantic flight to Poland! In 2017 Erick and Fatou, two fifth graders from

H.D. Cooke Elementary, as well as their teacher Ms. Probst were invited to travel to Poland to learn about its history, culture and cuisine. The highlight of their trip was the opportunity

to take part in Marcin Gortat’s annual basketball camp held each summer in Poland. > “It was a trip of a lifetime for all three of us” — Ms. Probst 6. POLISH HERITAGE NIGHT!!!

#NBAPOLISHNIGHT So much can be said about Polish Heritage Night! Each year for the past five years Marcin Gortat and the Washington Wizards, in cooperation with our Embassy, have organized

the largest Polish celebration in Washington, DC. Polish Heritage Night featured different cheerleading groups from Poland, various special guests including actress Alicja Bachleda-Curus and

MMA Champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk to name a few, and so many other attractions. They were fun, they were exciting and they were incredible manifestations of Polish pride! 7. RESPECT FOR

POLISH SOLDIERS! All throughout his career, Marcin Gortat has dedicated himself to honoring Polish service members. He has done this through his campaign #RespectforPolishSoldiers and by

regularly inviting Polish Veterans and Wounded Warriors to Washington Wizards’ games including to the annual Polish Heritage Night. In past years Marcin Gortat traveled to Kuwait and

Afghanistan to meet and play basketball with Polish soldiers deployed abroad. In all these ways he is helping shine a spotlight on the selfless service and sacrifice of Polish armed forces

members. 8. BRINGING POLISH KIDS TO THE CAPITAL! In addition to promoting Poland and honoring service members, Marcin Gortat has over the years also invited numerous spouses and children of

fallen soldiers to Washington, DC where they could tour the U.S. Capital and enjoyed touring cities in the U.S. and of course experienced a game of basketball. As Marcin put it, “I send

different kids from Poland to the United States to be able to see games — pretty much families who lost a father or mother in Afghanistan or Iraq.” 9. AMBASSADOR GORTAT! Marcin has many

nicknames — The Polish Hammer, the Polish Machine, but he is also undoubtedly a Polish patriot and proud Ambassador of his homeland. Using every opportunity to showcase his native land,

culture and cuisine, Gortat has done a tremendous effort to promote Poland in America. Some of his most eager converts were his fellow teammates. Whether it was sampling pieorgi in the

Wizards locker room with Jared Dudley or taking Otto Porter and others to Poland where they toured museums, ate great food, and played basketball with kids, Marcin has always been committed

to sharing the best of Poland with all those around him. > As Poland’s Ambassador to the U.S. Piotr Wilczek remarked, > “Poland is the only country represented in the U.S. by two > 

Ambassadors, myself and Marcin. We cooperate so as to best represent > our country, and fittingly we are even of similar height!” 10. NEVER A DULL INTERVIEW! The only people who may miss

Marcin more than us are the DC area sports journalists. That’s because he always had unique insight and colorful commentary to share with them. Whether he was talking about pierogi with

Shaq, basketball strategy with Chris Miller, or about his Polish heritage with Wolf Blitzer, Gortat knew how to communicate and his interviews were never dull! ALL THE MEMORIES THAT CANNOT

BE PUT TO WORDS! It is a bittersweet goodbye, but we’re grateful for all the memories from the past five years. Our sincere thanks to Marcin Gortat and his entire MG 13 team including Michał

Micielski for the opportunity to work together on so many projects. Instead of writing more, we will conclude with some great photos. Thank you Marcin for everything and good luck with the

Clippers! Powodzenia!