Leszek Jan Sibilski (born April 1, 1958) is a Polish-American sociologist,

track cyclist Track cycling is a bicycle racing sport usually held on specially built banked tracks or velodromes using purpose-designed track bicycles. History Track cycling has been around since at least 1870. When track cycling was in its infancy, it wa ...

, and originator of the

World Bicycle Day In April 2018, the United Nations General Assembly declared June 3 as International World Bicycle Day. The resolution for World Bicycle Day recognizes "the uniqueness, longevity and versatility of the bicycle, which has been in use for two cen ...

Education and professional career

Leszek Sibilski graduated from Education and Sport Science at the

Academy of Physical Education in Poznań An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary education, secondary or tertiary education, tertiary higher education, higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membershi ...

. In 2000, he earned Ph.D. in Sociology in Social Inclusion and Social Movements from the

Jagiellonian University The Jagiellonian University (Polish: ''Uniwersytet Jagielloński'', UJ) is a public research university in Kraków, Poland. Founded in 1364 by King Casimir III the Great, it is the oldest university in Poland and the 13th oldest university in ...

Kraków Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 ...

, Poland. As a sociologist, he focuses on

climate change In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to E ...

, the environment, family,

public policy Public policy is an institutionalized proposal or a decided set of elements like laws, regulations, guidelines, and actions to solve or address relevant and real-world problems, guided by a conception and often implemented by programs. Public p ...

, global poverty, youth, and role of women in contemporary society. In 1980s, Sibilski worked for ''

Przegląd Sportowy ''Przegląd Sportowy'' (, ''Sports Review'') is the oldest and now the only Polish sports daily, founded in 1921 in Kraków. In 1926 it initiated an annual, popular plebiscite for the Polish Sportspersonality of the Year. Its current editor-in-chie ...

'' daily and '' Sportowiec'' weekly as a reporter and photographer, carrying out interviews, among others, with

Lech Wałęsa Lech Wałęsa (; ; born 29 September 1943) is a Polish statesman, dissident, and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, who served as the President of Poland between 1990 and 1995. After winning the 1990 election, Wałęsa became the first democratica ...

and

Eddy Merckx Édouard Louis Joseph, Baron Merckx (, ; born 17 June 1945), better known as Eddy Merckx, is a Belgian former professional road and track bicycle racer who is among the most successful riders in the history of competitive cycling. His victorie ...

. He has been also a physical education teacher at schools in Witaszyce and Jarocin. In 1987, Sibilski decided to move from Poland, when during business trip to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, he was offered post at the

Achilles Track Club Achilles International, formerly known as the Achilles Track Club, was established by Dick Traum in 1983 to encourage people with disabilities to participate in mainstream athletics. Achilles has become an international organization that provides ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. Between 1989 and 1993, he served as the Director for International Affairs there. He has been also working for the

World Bank The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and grants to the governments of low- and middle-income countries for the purpose of pursuing capital projects. The World Bank is the collective name for the Interna ...

, and the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

. Later, he became professor at the

Catholic University of America The Catholic University of America (CUA) is a private Roman Catholic research university in Washington, D.C. It is a pontifical university of the Catholic Church in the United States and the only institution of higher education founded by U.S. ...

Montgomery College Montgomery College (MC) is a Public college, public community college in Montgomery County, Maryland. Founded officially in 1946 as Montgomery Junior College, its name comes from the county in which it is located. The earliest start date that c ...

, and

Marymount University Marymount University is a private Catholic university with its main campus in Arlington, Virginia. Marymount offers bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees. It has approximately 3,897 students enrolled, representing approximately 45 states an ...

Cyclist

From 1971 to 1983, he trained in track cycling. He was national junior champion in sprint as well as on the 500 and 1000 metres distances. He was member of a national team. In 1976, Sibilski was chosen Cyclist of the Year by the

Polish Olympic Committee The Polish Olympic Committee ( pl, Polski Komitet Olimpijski, PKOl) is the National Olympic Committee representing Poland. History The Polish Olympic Committee was established on 12 October 1919 and in 1919 was recognised by the International Oly ...

. Though he did not continue his professional career as a senior, he remained active in promoting sport. He became engaged especially in improving the status of athletes with disabilities in developing countries and minority participation in sport. He took part in the

2010 Winter Paralympics torch relay The 2010 Winter Paralympics Torch Relay was a 10-day event leading up to the 2010 Winter Paralympic Games in Vancouver. It began on March 3, 2010, in Ottawa and concluded at the Games' opening ceremony on March 12. Held entirely within Canada, ...

. In 2015, publishing an article titled "Cycling is Everyone's Business", Sibilski started a grassroots campaign to establish a World Bicycle Day. He received the formal support of the

Turkmenistan Turkmenistan ( or ; tk, Türkmenistan / Түркменистан, ) is a country located in Central Asia, bordered by Kazakhstan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north, east and northeast, Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the sout ...

Representation to the United Nations. On April 12, 2018, the resolution establishing June 3 as World Bicycle Day was supported by 193 countries of which 56 were co-sponsors. On 15 March 2022, following similar campaign by Sibilski, UN General Assembly adopted a resolution on integration of mainstream bicycling into

public transportation Public transport (also known as public transportation, public transit, mass transit, or simply transit) is a system of transport for passengers by group travel systems available for use by the general public unlike private transport, typical ...

systems for

sustainable development Sustainable development is an organizing principle for meeting human development goals while also sustaining the ability of natural systems to provide the natural resources and ecosystem services on which the economy and society depend. The des ...

. Sibilski is also engaged in commemoration of the 1978 air crash near Gabare, Bulgaria in which five Polish cyclists died. He was not a member of the team thanks to his commitments at the university. Sibilski received several awards, e.g. from the

Mayors of New York City The mayor of New York City is the chief executive of the Government of New York City, as stipulated by New York City's charter. The current officeholder, the 110th in the sequence of regular mayors, is Eric Adams, a member of the Democratic Pa ...

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

, the

China Disabled Persons' Federation The China Disabled Persons' Federation, also known as the CDPF, is a people's organization for individuals with disability in China established in Beijing, China in March 1988, aiming to represent and safeguard the rights and interests of disabled ...

, president

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...

, Inspiring Jewish Journeys Award for Education (2012),

Leo Foley Leo T. Foley (October 25, 1928 – February 5, 2016) was an American politician who was a member of the Minnesota Senate representing District 49 from 1997 to 2003, and District 47 from 2003 to 2011, which includes portions of Anoka and Hen ...

Award for Outstanding Educator at the Catholic University of America (2007), the Trailblazer Award by the

World Bicycle Relief World Bicycle Relief is an international, non-profit organization based in Chicago, IL that specializes in large-scale, comprehensive bicycle distribution programs to aid poverty relief in developing countries around the world. Their programs fo ...

. He was a

Kosciuszko Foundation The Kosciuszko Foundation is a charitable foundation based in New York City. It was created by Stephen Mizwa to fund programs that promote Polish-American intellectual and artistic exchange. History The Polish American Scholarship Committee was ...

and

Harvard Kennedy School The Harvard Kennedy School (HKS), officially the John F. Kennedy School of Government, is the school of public policy and government of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school offers master's degrees in public policy, public ...

scholar.

Private life

Sibilski grew up in

Jarocin Jarocin () (german: Jarotschin) is a town in west-central Poland with 25,700 inhabitants (1995), the administrative capital of Jarocin County in Greater Poland Voivodeship. Jarocin is a historical town, having been founded and granted city right ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

. He is married to Krystyna and is father to Jakub and Agnieszka. He lives in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

He holds both Polish and American citizenships.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sibilski, Leszek 1958 births American sociologists American sports executives and administrators Catholic University of America School of Arts and Sciences faculty Marymount University faculty Montgomery College faculty People from Jaworzno Polish emigrants to the United States Polish schoolteachers Polish sociologists Polish sports journalists Polish track cyclists Living people