Teodor Peterek (nicknames: ''Mietlorz'' and ''Teo''; 7 November 1910, in

Świętochłowice Świętochłowice (; german: Schwientochlowitz; szl, Świyntochłowice) is a town in Silesia in southern Poland, near Katowice. It is also the central district of the Upper Silesian Metropolitan Union metropolis, with a population of 2 million, a ...

– 12 January 1969, in Słupiec), was a Polish

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

player from the interwar period, forward, represented Ruch Chorzów and the Polish national team. He was born on 7 November 1910 in Schwientochlowitz, Germany, since 1920

, and died on 12 January 1969 in

Nowa Ruda Nowa Ruda ( cs, Nová Ruda, german: Neurode, szl, Nowŏ Ruda) is a town in south-western Poland near the Czech border, lying on the Włodzica river in the central Sudetes mountain range. it had 22,067 inhabitants. The town is located in Kło ...

Life and career

Peterek's career started in

Śląsk Świętochłowice Śląsk Świętochłowice (full name: Miejski Klub Sportowy Śląsk Świętochłowice (Silesia Świętochłowice City Sports Club) is one of the Polish sports clubs from Upper Silesia, strongly connected with the region, which is reflected in its ...

in 1925, and two years later moved to Ruch Chorzów for whom he debuted at a very early age. "Teo" was not even 18 years old, when he played in a 1928 game against

ŁKS Łódź ŁKS Łódź (''Łódzki Klub Sportowy Łódź''; ) is a Polish sports club based in Łódź. They are best known for their football club but are represented in many sports such as basketball, volleyball, tennis, athletics and in the past ice ...

. The young forward's first game for Chorzów's side was very successful - he scored a goal. He must have liked playing for Ruch (which in the 1930s was by far the best team of Poland, winning championships of the country in the years 1933, 34, 35, 36 and 1938), because "Mietlorz" did not change the side, putting on Ruch's jersey until 1939 and then, for a few times, after the war. In the 1937–38 season, he scored in 16 consecutive league matches, which remained as a world record until broken by

Messi Lionel Andrés Messi (; born 24 June 1987), also known as Leo Messi, is an Argentine Professionalism in association football, professional footballer who plays as a forward (association football), forward for club Paris Saint-Germain F.C ...

in 2013.

World War II

During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, played in Bismarckhuetter Sport-Verein (1939–1941), which was in fact pre-war Ruch Chorzów, with a German name. In 1942, Theodor (this was the German-language variation of his first name) was conscripted to the

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previous ...

, two years later escaped the German Army and was captured by the

Allies An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...

, who sent him to Polish units. There, he returned to soccer, representing the Polish Army Soccer Team in 88 friendly games.

After the war

When the war ended, remained in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

and in 1947 returned to Chorzów. In 1948 played a few games in Ruch's jersey, then quit soccer and became a coach. Together with

Gerard Wodarz Gerard Wodarz (10 August 1913 – 8 November 1982) was one of the best football players of interwar Poland. He was a multiple champion of the country (representing Ruch Wielkie Hajduki, which in January 1939 became Ruch Chorzów) and also played ...

and

Ernest Willimowski Ernest Otton Wilimowski (, born Ernst Otto Prandella; 23 June 1916 – 30 August 1997), nicknamed "Ezi", was a footballer who played as a forward. He ranks among the best goalscorers in the history of both the Poland national team and Polish c ...

, Peterek was part of Ruch's forward, which is to this day regarded as one of the best forward formations in history of Polish Soccer League. In 189 games for Ruch (1928–1939), he scored 154 goals, a lot of them with the head - this was due to "Teo's" height - at 182 centimeters, he was one of the tallest forwards in Poland. Twice - in 1936 (together with Wilimowski - 18 goals) and in 1938 (21 goals), was the best scorer of the League. Regarded as a very ambitious, success-oriented player, who would never give up. According to an urban legend, on one occasion Peterek threw some mud in the face of a goalkeeper who had saved his penalty kick. In Polish National Team played in 12 games and scored 6 goals, debuting on 23 August 1931 in

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...

, in a match versus

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...

(2:3). Participated in 1936

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

's Olympic Games, where scored a goal. He played his last game on 18 September 1938 in

Chemnitz Chemnitz (; from 1953 to 1990: Karl-Marx-Stadt , ) is the third-largest city in the German state of Saxony after Leipzig and Dresden. It is the 28th largest city of Germany as well as the fourth largest city in the area of former East Germany a ...

, versus

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

(1-4, Poland's lone goal was scored by "Teo").

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Peterek, Teodor 1910 births 1969 deaths People from Świętochłowice Polish footballers Association football forwards Śląsk Świętochłowice players Ruch Chorzów players Ekstraklasa players People from the Province of Silesia Poland international footballers Olympic footballers of Poland Footballers at the 1936 Summer Olympics German Army personnel of World War II Sportspeople from Silesian Voivodeship

Life and career

World War II

After the war

See also

References