Eliza Rucka-Michałek, despite being only 25 years old, came back this season from… a four-year retirement. She quit skiing in 2021 when she fainted during exercise and did not obtain consent from doctors for sports rights in the national team. During the break, she gave birth to two children and cured herself of vasovagal syndrome. After returning, she achieved results that she could only dream of before.
What was Eliza Rucka-Michałek’s place in the 50 km race?
How long did the break in Eliza Rucka-Michałek’s career last?
Who did Eliza Rucka-Michałek compete with for the medal?
What achievements did Eliza Rucka-Michałek have before the break?
While she had not scored any World Cup points before the break, this season she jumped to sixth place in the 5 km race at the Tour de Ski, achieving her best result since Justyna Kowalczyk. In total, she finished in the top thirty three times out of ten starts.
An absolute sensation at the end of the Olympic Games, the life of Eliza Rucka-Michałek
However, her form in the 50 km race was unknown, as the Pole had never competed over such a long distance in the most important competitions. In the World Cup there is only one such a long race at the end of the season. As the Pole was 27th and 29th in the shorter distances, here, due to the narrower field, she was also expected to fight for similar positions.
The Pole started calmly, being in the third and second ten places. Around 10 km, however, the Pole was doing so well that she decided to attack. She went on a mad dash, trying to make up for her losses. She surprised absolutely everyone by achieving the best results in some parts of the entire competition. Between 30 and 45 km, she only once recorded a section result worse than fourth place, moving up in the classification to eighth place. What is worth adding, the Pole was running alone all this time, unable to rest behind her rivals.
10 km before the finish line, Rucka-Michałek began to see a group of five competitors fighting for the bronze medal. She joined them five kilometers before the finish line.
Ebba Anderson won ahead of Heidi Weng. Nadia Kaelin took third place in the sprint. Although the Pole did not win the medal because the players were more rested, she took eighth place, which gave her a scholarship. The Rucka-Michałek run was the last Polish performance at the 2026 Olympic Games.
This is the best Polish result in 50 km since Justyna Kowalczyk (1st place in 2010). Apart from our champion, this is the best result in Polish history.
