An Olympic javelin thrower knows a life is more precious than silver or gold-including her own medal. After learning about a baby boy who has little time left, Olympic javelin thrower, Maria Andrejczyk instantly auctions off her silver medal. And for a good reason.
Maria learned from a Facebook post, Miłoszek Małysa, an 8-month-old boy was running out of time. He needed to have life-saving heart surgery and his family was trying to raise almost $400,000 to travel to the U.S. to have the procedure.
Olympic Javelin Thrower Puts Silver Medal Up For Auction
Not even two weeks after winning the medal, she took to Facebook to auction off a medal she had been working towards her whole life.
“The true value of a medal always remains in the heart,” she said. “A medal is only an object, but it can be of great value to others. This silver can save lives, instead of collecting dust in a closet. That is why I decided to auction it to help sick children.”
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She took to Facebook and posted, “Miłoszek has a serious heart defect, he needs an operation. He also has support from above from Kubuś - a boy who did not make it on time, but wonderful people decided to donate his funds to Miłoszek. And this is how I want to help too. It is for him that I am auctioning off my Olympic silver medal.”
Can we all take a moment to praise God for the heart of gold this silver medalist has? The Olympic javelin thrower not only realized she could do something to help save a life but she also gave up the most precious item she could've earned. She chose to do this because she knows what it's like to live life a few precious moments at a time.
Olympic Javelin Thrower Maria Andrejczyk Inspires
In 2018, the Olympic javelin thrower learned she had cancer. Her bone cancer put her career as an Olympian at risk as she underwent surgery to remove a mass her medical team found in her bones.
But she didn't let cancer stop her.
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After her surgery, Maria Andrejczyk recovered and was able to restart training for the 2019 games. By the time the Olympic games arrived in Tokyo, she was ready to compete when she earned her silver medal for her throw of 64.41 meters. A mere 2.5 meters short of gold medalist Shiying Liu!
While she cherishes her accomplishment, she cherishes generosity more which is why she chose to auction off her silver medal!
After learning that the winner of the auction was a company called Zabka, she was shocked to learn the company not only donated enough funds to win the auction. They decided she would also keep her medal. Zabka gracefully declined keeping the medal when they said, “We also decided that the silver medal from Tokyo will stay with Ms. Maria.”
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I imagine Olympic javelin thrower Maria Andrejczyk will forever cherish the medal as a reminder of her accomplishments as an Olympic medalist. But more than that, it will remind her of the life she helped save.
"The crucible is for silver, and the furnace is for gold, and a man is tested by his praise." Proverbs 27:21
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h/t: Yahoo Sports
Featured Image Credit: Facebook/Maria Magdalena Andrejczyk | Facebook/Waleczne serce Miłoszka