Polish Olympic Committee head arrested amid corruption probe

Officers from Poland's cybercrime unit arrested Radosław Piesiewicz, president of the Polish Olympic Committee, in Warsaw on Thursday. A court in Katowice ruled on Saturday to keep him in custody for three months.

Piesiewicz is accused of misusing his influence to help certain creditors recover funds at the expense of others as the cryptocurrency exchange Zondacrypto edged toward bankruptcy. He is also described as close to Poland's right-wing nationalist circles, and authorities have raised suspicions of links to organized crime and Russian intelligence services.

Officials react

Poland's sports minister, Jakub Rutnicki, wrote on X that someone like Piesiewicz should never have been allowed to serve as president of the Polish Olympic Committee. Interior Minister Marcin Kierwiński called the arrested official a symbol of the widespread corruption that has taken hold of the Olympic movement.

Sponsorship deal and Zondacrypto's collapse

An investigation into Piesiewicz began back in April, prompting Polish sports federations to call for his resignation. On behalf of the Olympic Committee, Piesiewicz had signed a sponsorship agreement with Zondacrypto under which Polish medalists at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina were to receive their bonuses in cryptocurrency.

The government contends that Zondacrypto was effectively operating as a Ponzi scheme. Its collapse caused losses of roughly 350 million zloty (80 million euros), with an estimated 30,000 people affected.