On Saturday and Sunday, Poland’s Michal Niewinski has the chance to show his nation just how good a Short Track speed skater he has become, and the 22-year-old cannot wait. 

“I’ll just be thinking these people came to see me do what I do best,” Niewinski said as he contemplated a full house for the start of the ISU Short Track World Tour #3 in his hometown of Gdańsk. 

“I need to just do the best job I can. Put on a show, show what I can do and it will be good.” 

The most crucial person Niewinski wants to impress is his mother. Not only did she first put him on ice, long before he could walk, she also dedicated so much of her life to enabling her son to follow his dreams. Including overcoming, in her early 40s, a long-held fear of driving just so she could ferry her talented young son to Short Track competitions all over Poland. 

“The best part of the sacrifice of my family, of my mum, is she can now enjoy me skating on the best level,” Niewinski confirmed. “It’s really special to have her here because it’s a long way to get here.” 

Not that Mrs Niewinski will find the next two days easy. 

Michal Niewinski (POL) skates ahead of Park Jiwon (KOR) in the 500m heats during the 2025 ISU World Short Track Speed Skating Championships in Beijing, Chin © ISU

“It’s really stressing her, she really gets into it,” her son added with a laugh. “There are many emotions inside of her but the best part is she doesn’t care most about what happens on the ice but about how I feel. She’s only stressed (thinking), ‘Oh Michal will feel bad’ (if he doesn’t perform well).” 

Niewinski is very hopeful she will not have to worry. 

While the first two ISU Short Track World Tour events of this season did not go to plan, the Pole is convinced he is finding his way back to the sort of form with which he grabbed a podium and three other top-10 finishes last season on his way to ending last season as the world’s 11th-best men’s Short Track speed skater. 

Michal Niewinski (POL) on the podium in 2024 after claiming silver in the 1000m at the ISU Short Track World Tour in Beijing, China © ISU

“Maybe I would not say that I’m in perfect shape. I know that I can still be way better but, for sure, it’s way better than in Montreal. I’m feeling more confident, more relaxed,” he said. “I'm not feeling like it's going to be bad, I’m just thinking about enjoying the racing.” 

The issues he faced during the opening two World Cup Tour stops this season – Niewinski failed to get inside the top 20 in any of his races in Montreal in October – originated from a strange place. But perhaps one that explains his current levels of confidence. 

“I think the issue was that I was actually feeling too good,” he said, smiling. “In the pre-season I was really in great shape, I would say that it was my best shape ever, for sure, but I was too focused on doing things better, faster, higher, and I forgot about the basic things in skating.

“I just lost the focus on the technique of the skating, the track pattern, the transfer of the power to the ice.” 

With the problem identified, Niewinski has spent the past three weeks lasered-in on his process and technique. Add that to great memories inside Gdańsk’s Hala Olivia and it’s clear why the Pole thinks he can shine once more on home ice. 

“It was a special day, it was the last World Cup, the last event of the day and I took the medal that day,” Niewinski said of claiming 500m bronze in the final ISU World Cup Short Track Speed Skating event, held in Gdańsk in early 2024. 

“It was really nice to enjoy this moment with my family, with the Polish crowd. I was really feeling the energy when I was coming for the A final, the whole ice rink was screaming my name and cheering for me. So, the memories are strong, but I’m trying to focus on the future, not the past.”

That will be music to the capacity crowds expected on both days these weekend, an audience swollen by a 60-strong ‘Michal Niewinski fan club’ started by his sister. It is all part of a wider mission to grow the sport he loves. 

“It’s really nice to see that Short Track is growing in Poland because when I was a small kid nobody knew what Short Track was,” Niewinski said.  

“Now when I say to some random Polish people that I am a Short Track speed skater, they are like, ‘Ah, OK, speed skating!’ It's a great feeling that it’s also because of me and my achievements that it’s getting more popular.” 

The ever-smiling skater had one final message for his compatriots: “You should come and watch because Polish people actually win medals in the sport.”