A Rio 2016 silver medallist is being hailed as the true embodiment of Olympic spirit after selling off his newly minted medal to fund specialist treatment for a boy with a rare form of cancer.
Piotr Malachowski took second place in the discus to become one of 11 Polish Olympians to bag a medal in Rio. It was his second silver after netting one in Beijing in 2008.
The Olympian told his followers how he had been contacted by the mother of three-year-old Olek Szymanski, who has spent almost two years battling retinoblastoma, a rare form of eye cancer that affects young children. As a result, Malachowski said, he was auctioning off his medal to help pay for Olek and his family to travel to New York and receive specialist treatment not currently available in Poland.
The auction was won by Poland's billionaire siblings Dominika and Sebastian Kulczyk, who "declared their willingness to buy my silver medal for an amount which enables us to meet the goal set", wrote the Malachowski. "My silver medal today is worth much more than a week ago," he added.
News of the generous gesture spread quickly, with people around the world applauding his compassion. "This is the real Olympic spirit. Bravo!" wrote one admirer, while another added: "You have a true heart of gold."
