14th National Boat-Based Spinning Competition for Pairs
Człuchów, Lake Rychnowskie, 24 September 2023
The Człuchów branch of the Polish Angling Association (PZW) organised the 14th National Spinning Competition for Pairs from Boats. A total of 48 two-person teams registered for the event. Sunday 24 September was an exceptionally beautiful day. Warm, with a light breeze and sunny weather. What’s more, the water was exceptionally clear. Visibility in the water was up to several metres! This particular factor proved to be quite a challenge for the competitors, as the fish were holding in deeper parts of the water. So the competitors certainly couldn’t complain about the weather conditions. Fishing was enjoyable and everyone had an equal chance. Usually, competitions in this series were held on the second Sunday in September; this year, it was on the fourth. This was because slightly cooler weather and a greater number of fine specimens were expected. The weather wasn’t any cooler, but a few fine specimens were caught.
The competition started at 8.30 am. The first reports of fish caught came in shortly after the start. Shortly after the competition began, one of the teams from Przechlewo faced off against a massive pike, which, however, won the battle.
Thanks to the three judges’ boats supporting the competition, the fish caught were immediately measured, photographed and released back into the water. This gave the competition jury a real-time overview of the current situation on the water. During the six-hour competition, five scoring pike over 45 cm and exactly 50 scoring perch over 20 cm were caught. In addition, as always, there were many non-scoring perch and pike.
The largest pike of the competition was caught by a competitor from team no. 24, Jakub Miłkowski from Starogard Gdański. The pike measured 76.5 cm. It is worth noting that the angler who caught this specimen was a junior, who was competing in the team alongside his father. What’s more, it was the young angler’s fish of a lifetime – and what a moment to catch it! The largest perch, however, turned out to be a beautiful, medal-winning specimen caught by Andrzej Jażdżewski from Człuchów, from team no. 46. It measured 41.4 cm! So the expectations regarding medal-winning fish proved to be correct. There were fewer of them than usual, but they were larger.
The competition ended at 2.30 pm. Everyone headed off for a well-deserved lunch, after which there was an official summary of the results, the presentation of honorary and material prizes, and a prize draw. The summary was attended by the Mayor of Człuchów, Ryszard Szybajło, the Head of Człuchów Parish, Paweł Gibczyński, and the President of WOPR, Władysław Stroik. All participants in the event received a commemorative T-shirt and a lanyard.
Final standings:
1st place: team no. 27 from Debrzno, comprising Piotr Białek and Michał Jagusz, with a score of 3,110 points; the team caught 16 perch, including one measuring nearly 40 cm;
2nd place: team no. 14 from Człuchów, comprising Marcin Kucharski-Zemke and Piotr Zemke, with a score of 2,810 points; the team caught 11 truly fine perch;
3rd place: team no. 24 from Starogard Gdański, comprising Jakub and Roman Miłkowski, with a score of 2,100 points; 1 pike, but the largest fish of the competition;
4th place: team no. 10 from Przechlewo, comprising Henryk and Mateusz Maleccy, with a score of 1,940 points; 1 pike and 5 perch;
5th place: team no. 1, Janusz Kuźniak and Ryszard Kuźniak, a Gdynia-Koczale team, with a score of 950 points; 1 pike and 2 perch;
6th place: Team No. 46, comprising Hubert and Andrzej Jażdżewski from Człuchów, with a score of 940 points; 2 perch, including a record-breaking specimen.
Also making it into the top ten were the following teams: Mirosław Ścibisz and Grzegorz Konrad (Człuchów/Słupsk), Andrzej Zelewski and Adam Dziadkiewicz (Czarne), Krzysztof Tynny and Eugeniusz Łuczyszyn (Czaplinek), and Sławomir Kurzyński and Mariusz Jasiak (Sępólno Krajeńskie).
Although not all teams caught fish that scored points, the competition must be considered a success. It took place in a sporting and friendly atmosphere. It is very pleasing that many of the teams were made up of family members. Three women also took part. After all, angling is a family sport.
The competition was held with financial support from the Człuchów Local Authority and the Town of Człuchów. Furthermore, the sponsors were: Goodvalley Polska, the Sports and Recreation Centre in Człuchów, the HOBBY fishing shop in Człuchów, and PrintVision Printing Works. The Człuchów WOPR (Water Rescue Service) assisted in organising the event, lending its base to the organisers.
The competition was judged by:
chief judge: Karol Dziemiańczyk
technical judge: Mirosław Pryba
judges: Łukasz Kleist, Łukasz Szeremeta, Maciej Pawłowski, Łukasz Szymański, Przemysław Szerszeń, Tomasz Masiak, Piotr Szczygielski.
medical support: Łukasz Szeremeta.
The excellent work of the judging and organising teams resulted in a positive assessment of the entire event. The National Spinning Competition, held regularly on Lake Rychnowskie, is the largest angling event in our region, and its popularity is constantly growing. Next year will see the 15th, anniversary edition of the competition.
Karol Dziemiańczyk
