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Ignacy Tłoczyński (; 14 July 1911 – 25 December 2000) was a Polish tennis player, coach and
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
veteran. Tłoczyński participated in 10
Davis Cup The Davis Cup is the premier international team event in men's tennis. It is organised by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and contested annually between teams from over 150 competing countries, making it the world's largest annual ...
ties for
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...
from 1930–1939, posting a 23–8 record in singles and a 3–9 record in doubles. He won two national titles in singles, seven in doubles and was a six-time International Polish Championship winner. He was ranked number one in
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...
in 1934. In international level he reached the third round at Wimbledon on four occasions. He was a doubles semi-finalist for the French Open with
Adam Baworowski Count Adam Baworowski (; 9 August 1913 – 1943) was an Austrian- Polish tennis player. Biography Early life and family Count Adam Baworowski descended from the Polish noble family '' Baworowski''. He was the son of Count Rudolf Baworow-Bawo ...
, won the Monte-Carlo tournament (now known as the
Monte-Carlo Masters The Monte-Carlo Masters (also known as the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters for sponsorship reasons) is an annual tennis tournament for male professional players held in Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, France, which borders on Monaco. It is played on clay cour ...
) in doubles with Józef Hebda, a two-times singles runner-up for the British Hard Court Championships, and three-times Scottish champion.


Early life

Ignacy Tłoczyński was born 14 July 1911, in
Poznań Poznań ( ) is a city on the Warta, River Warta in west Poland, within the Greater Poland region. The city is an important cultural and business center and one of Poland's most populous regions with many regional customs such as Saint John's ...
, then part of the
German Empire The German Empire (),; ; World Book, Inc. ''The World Book dictionary, Volume 1''. World Book, Inc., 2003. p. 572. States that Deutsches Reich translates as "German Realm" and was a former official name of Germany. also referred to as Imperia ...
, and was considered a skilful young player practising at the local courts of the town. Despite being a kid he was the sparring partner of players of the Academic Sports Association. He was born to a poor family and was forced to play tennis for money. According to the amateur rules that were in effect in pre-World War II tennis organisations, only professionals could financially benefit from playing. However the Polish Lawn Tennis Association suspended his penalty. He then moved to
Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...
and found a job at an insurance company.


Tennis career

He first participated in the Polish Championship in 1929, eventually losing in the quarterfinals to national champion Max Stolarow. Later he won his first title in doubles at the Warmian Voivodeship tournament. This earned him a spot in the Poland Davis Cup team next year for the upcoming match with
Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...
, where he won both of his rubbers. These achievements led to him being put up for voting by the
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-ch ...
newspaper for the Polish Sportspersonality of the Year where he finished second, right behind track and field runner
Janusz Kusociński Janusz Tadeusz Kusociński (15 January 1907 – 21 June 1940) was a Polish Sport of athletics, athlete, winner in the 10,000 meters event at the 1932 Summer Olympics. Biography Born in Warsaw into the family of a railroad worker, Janusz Kuso ...
. The same year he was crowned Polish champion after his victory over Stolarow in the final. In September 1931 he defended his national title and paired up with Wanda Dubieńska for the mixed contest, only losing in the final to Popławski/Volkmer. Also in September at the Polish International Championships, he was only beaten by French
Benny Berthet Benjamin Berthet (18 September 1910 – 20 January 1981) was a French tennis player and coach. Berthet was born to Polish-Jewish emigrants in New York and moved to France as a nine-year old. In 1931 he made the singles quarter-finals of the Fr ...
both in the singles and doubles event. In 1932 he shared the Cannes L.T.C. trophy with Giorgio de Stefani, as their match remained unplayed. They also divided the doubles title. He lost the mixed doubles partnering
Jadwiga Jędrzejowska Jadwiga "Jed" Jędrzejowska (; 15 October 1912 – 28 February 1980) was a Polish tennis player who had her main achievements during the second half of the 1930s. Because her name was difficult to pronounce for many people who did not speak Polis ...
to Swiss team of Lolette Payot and Charles Aeschlimann. He then met de Stefani again for the Nizza L.T.C. championship, unsuccessfully. He and Jędrzejowska were runners-up again for the mixed doubles. De Stefani fought him for the Nice L.T.C. as well, but Tłoczyński fell for the second time. He and Miss Jędrzejowska were beaten for the second time by Miss Payot and Hector Fisher. In 1933 he finally won the Nizza title both in singles and doubles, with his Davis Cup teammate Józef Hebda against
Max Ellmer Max Ellmer (1909 – 1984) was a Swiss tennis player in the years before and after World War 2. Ellmer had a powerful backhand and good footwork. He played Davis Cup for Switzerland from 1933 to 1938. He won the Swiss Championships four times ...
and Aeschlimann-Journu respectively. He won the Polish national championships as well without dropping a single set. In 1934 he lost the Hungarian International Tennis Championships to Czechoslovakian
Ladislav Hecht Ladislav Hecht (; ; August 31, 1909 – May 27, 2004) was a Jewish Czechoslovak-American professional tennis player. He won the gold medal in singles at the 1932 Maccabiah Games in Mandatory Palestine, and won the 1934 Hungarian Internationa ...
. In 1938 he repeated that feat beating Hebda and won the doubles with
Adam Baworowski Count Adam Baworowski (; 9 August 1913 – 1943) was an Austrian- Polish tennis player. Biography Early life and family Count Adam Baworowski descended from the Polish noble family '' Baworowski''. He was the son of Count Rudolf Baworow-Bawo ...
. In March 1939 he won the doubles of the Monte-Carlo tournament with Józef Hebda, overcoming the Belgian duo of Pierre Geelhand de Merxem and Charles Naeyaert. Just before the outbreak of
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, in July he won the Polish international championships held in
Gdynia Gdynia is a city in northern Poland and a seaport on the Baltic Sea coast. With an estimated population of 257,000, it is the List of cities in Poland, 12th-largest city in Poland and the second-largest in the Pomeranian Voivodeship after Gdańsk ...
in mixed doubles with
Jadwiga Jędrzejowska Jadwiga "Jed" Jędrzejowska (; 15 October 1912 – 28 February 1980) was a Polish tennis player who had her main achievements during the second half of the 1930s. Because her name was difficult to pronounce for many people who did not speak Polis ...
and was a runner-up for the gentlemen's doubles. In the 1946 Wimbledon Championships he represented his nation, although the Communist government of Poland protested against it because of his wartime affiliation with
Anders Anders is a male name in Scandinavian languages and Fering, Fering North Frisian, an equivalent of the Greek Andreas ("manly") and the English Andrew. It originated from Andres (name), Andres via metathesis (linguistics), metathesis. In Sweden, A ...
and the partisans. He refused to remove the Polish badge from his cloth, although his nationality indication was removed from the main draw. In 1946 he won the singles title at the North of England Hard Court Championships on clay in
Scarborough Scarborough or Scarboro may refer to: People * Scarborough (surname) * Earl of Scarbrough Places Australia * Scarborough, Western Australia, suburb of Perth * Scarborough, New South Wales, suburb of Wollongong * Scarborough, Queensland, sub ...
and retained it in 1947, he would go on to win it three more times consecutivley between 1948 and 1950. Additionally he also won the North of England Championships on grass two times from 1946 to 1947. Also in 1947 he participated in an international match between Poland and Great Britain still wearing the Polish colours. In 1947 he was defeated in straight sets at the British Hard Court Championships by South African
Eric Sturgess Eric William Sturgess (10 May 1920 – 14 January 2004) was a South African male tennis player and winner of six Grand Slam doubles titles. He also reached the singles final of a Grand Slam tournament three times but never won. Sturgess was ra ...
as well as the next year also to Sturgess in straights. In July 1950 rain prevented the doubles final to be played at the
Midland Counties Championships The Midland Counties Championships also known as the Midland International was a grass court tennis tournament held at Edgbaston Cricket and Lawn Tennis Club, Edgbaston Edgbaston () is a suburb of Birmingham, West Midlands (county), West Mi ...
in Birmingham where Tłoczyński and Czesław Spychała were about to be featured and the prize was shared with their opponents
Jaroslav Drobný Jaroslav Drobný (; 12 October 1921 – 13 September 2001) was a world No. 1 amateur tennis and ice hockey champion. He left Czechoslovakia in 1949 and travelled as an Egyptian citizen before becoming a citizen of the United Kingdom in 1959, w ...
and
Bill Sidwell Oswald William Thomas Sidwell (16 April 1920 – 19 August 2021) was an Australian tennis player. Sidwell reached five Grand Slam doubles finals, winning once, at the 1949 U.S. National Championships with compatriot John Bromwich. He also pl ...
. That same year Tłoczyński won singles titles at Bedford Open, St. Andrews, Carlisle and the covered court tournaments including the
Welsh Covered Court Championships The Welsh Covered Court Championships its original name also called Welsh Covered Court Lawn Tennis Championships was a tennis event held from 1893 through 1955 in Wales, United Kingdom. History The Welsh Covered Court Championships was played ...
at
Llandudno Llandudno (, ) is a seaside resort, town and community (Wales), community in Conwy County Borough, Wales, located on the Creuddyn peninsula, which protrudes into the Irish Sea. In the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 UK census, the community � ...
and the Palace Hotel Covered Courts at
Torquay Torquay ( ) is a seaside town in Devon, England, part of the unitary authority area of Torbay. It lies south of the county town of Exeter and east-north-east of Plymouth, on the north of Tor Bay, adjoining the neighbouring town of Paignt ...
. In May 1951 he was victorious in the doubles event of the Sutton Coldfield Hardcourts Tournament partnering Peter Hare. Although his efforts were fruitless in the singles competition as he was subdued in the final against Peter Cawthorn. In October he was a finalist for the Covered Court Championships of the United Kingdom facing eventual victor
Geoffrey Paish Geoffrey Lane Paish MBE (2 January 1922 – 3 February 2008) was a noted tennis player and administrator. Paish was born in Croydon, Surrey and educated at Mid-Whitgift School (now Trinity School) in Croydon. Career After World War II Paish ...
. In March 1952 he won the Southdean Covered Court Championships at Middleton-on-Sea against
Gerry Oakley Gerald Oakley (born 25 July 1933) is a British former tennis player. Born in Purley, Surrey, Oakley was a tall bespectacled player, active on tour from the 1940s to 1960s. Oakley, a mixed doubles finalist at the 1949 French Championships, repr ...
. In 1952 he entered the Connaught Hard Court Championships tournament where he reached the doubles final together with Anthony John Mottram where they were stopped by Cawthorn-Tregonning. Between 1950–1952 he won the Scottish Hard Court Championships three consecutive years. In 1954 he captured the North of England Hard Court Championships title for the sixth time by defeating Matthew Farhang Mohtadi in three sets although Mohtadi found success in the doubles final against Tłoczyński/ Pryor.


During World War II

In early November 1939 after the
Invasion of Poland The invasion of Poland, also known as the September Campaign, Polish Campaign, and Polish Defensive War of 1939 (1 September – 6 October 1939), was a joint attack on the Second Polish Republic, Republic of Poland by Nazi Germany, the Slovak R ...
he was reported missing and hiding in
Latvia Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, along with Estonia to the north and Lithuania to the south. It borders Russia to the east and Belarus to t ...
. Later it turned out that he was working in a Warsaw Cafe with mixed doubles partner
Jadwiga Jędrzejowska Jadwiga "Jed" Jędrzejowska (; 15 October 1912 – 28 February 1980) was a Polish tennis player who had her main achievements during the second half of the 1930s. Because her name was difficult to pronounce for many people who did not speak Polis ...
. During the war he was involved in the
Warsaw uprising The Warsaw Uprising (; ), sometimes referred to as the August Uprising (), or the Battle of Warsaw, was a major World War II operation by the Polish resistance movement in World War II, Polish underground resistance to liberate Warsaw from ...
as a member of the Polish Resistance and smuggled hazardous cargoes in the city. In the first days of the uprising along with his brother Ksawery and several prominent sportsmen including Czesław Spychała, Jerzy Gottschalk, Antoni Smordowski and Tadeusz Hanke he stormed an SS barrack and occupied it. The assault, which took place on 1 August 1944 saw a one and a half-hour struggle in which the partisans threw in grenades and petrol bombs and surrendered the Germans. They took 72 SS soldiers as prisoners and seized a handful of ammunition and an armoured car. The Tłoczyński brothers and Spychała were all wounded as a result of the fight. He kept on serving as a
corporal Corporal is a military rank in use by the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. The rank is usually the lowest ranking non-commissioned officer. In some militaries, the rank of corporal nominally corr ...
and mainly operated in the
Śródmieście-Północ Śródmieście-Północ (''Downtown-North'') is a municipal neighbourhood of the city of Szczecin, Poland, within the Śródmieście, Szczecin, Downtown district. Its western half features low-rise housing with villas, while the eastern half, mid-r ...
as a member of the battalion "Ruczaj" within the Wojskowa Służba Ochrony Powstania branch of the Sub-district I of Śródmieście. His codename was "Igo." He was wounded and transferred to a
POW POW is "prisoner of war", a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict. POW or pow may also refer to: Music * P.O.W (Bullet for My Valentine song), "P.O.W" (Bull ...
camp near Salzburg-Maxglan. After being liberated 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 an explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are calle ...
he joined the 2nd Polish Corps of
Władysław Anders Władysław Albert Anders (11 August 1892 – 12 May 1970) was a Polish military officer and politician, and prominent member of the Polish government-in-exile in London. Born in Krośniewice-Błonie, then part of the Russian Empire, he serv ...
. After the war he emigrated to Britain.


Personal life

In 1955 he officially retired from tennis and went on to coaching at the Dunlop Tennis Club in
Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...
. His most famous coachee was Suzi Mair.


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Tloczynski, Ignacy 1911 births 2000 deaths Polish male tennis players Tennis players from Poznań Polish resistance members of World War II Naturalised citizens of the United Kingdom Polish emigrants to the United Kingdom British tennis coaches 20th-century Polish sportsmen