The Jerzy Iwanow-Szajnowicz Plaque is a tribute to a man of extraordinary courage and resilience. Located in Warsaw, this plaque commemorates a hero of the Polish Resistance during World War II, a Greek-Polish athlete who faced the Nazi regime with unwavering bravery. It was not an easy path he had to take.
Jerzy Iwanow-Szajnowicz, a skilled swimmer and water polo player, was born in Warsaw on December 14, 1911. His life took a dramatic turn after his parents divorced. His mother, Leonarda Szajnowicz, remarried a Greek man, Ioannis Lambrinidis, and they moved to Thessaloniki, Greece. Jerzy thrived in his new home, excelling in sports and becoming a Greek champion in 100-meter freestyle in 1934. He also studied agricultural engineering at the University of Louvain in Belgium. He returned to Greece and was enlisted in Polish intelligence in 1940.
But when war broke out in 1941, Jerzy had to flee Greece during the German invasion. He joined the exiled Polish forces in the Middle East, where he was secretly recruited for a daring mission: to infiltrate the Nazi-occupied Greece. He was trained as a saboteur and landed on the coast of Attica on October 13, 1941. There, he began his remarkable work as a resistance hero. Under the code name “Bolby,” Jerzy built a vast intelligence network to gather information about the Germans’ movements. He also participated in sabotage missions, which caused considerable damage to the war effort. He was known for his bravery and his dedication to fighting for freedom. He disrupted German aircraft motor repairs, destroyed German U-boats, and even thwarted a plan to assassinate Benito Mussolini in Athens.
But Jerzy’s bravery came at a steep price. Betrayed by his associate, he was captured by the Gestapo in September 1942. He attempted to escape from prison and was placed on the German’s “wanted” list with a reward of 500,000 Greek drachmas. He was captured again and sentenced to death. He was executed on January 4, 1943. His final words were said to be: “Long live Poland, long live Greece.”
The Jerzy Iwanow-Szajnowicz Plaque serves as a poignant reminder of his sacrifice and a testament to his heroism. Though his life was cut short, his story of courage and resistance transcends borders and time. The plaque is a constant reminder of the unwavering human spirit that stands up against tyranny and oppression.