Tragic news for Justyna Kowalczyk

by Leandro Lutz • 18.05.2023
Justyna Kowalczyk
The husband of Justyna Kowalczyk, Kacper Tekieli, a renowned Polish climber, died in the Swiss Alps while climbing. 

Kacper Tekieli, the husband of Justyna Kowalczyk, died while climbing alone at the Jungfrau in the Swiss Alps. An avalanche probably took him during the descent.

The tragedy happened yesterday, the Swiss rescue services were alerted, but weather conditions prevented the team from reaching the scene and carrying out the rescue. According to the Polish radio station RMF24, today, at around 7:00 am, a helicopter managed to fly into the valley, and his body was found.  

The famous Polish climber was 38 years old and born in Gdansk. He was a climbing instructor with a title awarded by the Polish Mountaineering Association. 

Tekieli was married to the legendary cross-country skier Justyna Kowalczyk. The couple got married in Gdansk on September 24, 2020. Almost one year later, on September 2, 2021, the couple had a son, Hugo Tekiela. 

Justyna Kowalczyk is a two times Olympic Champion and two times World Champion. She is also the only skier to win the Tour de Ski four times in a row and one of two female skiers to win the FIS Cross-Country World Cup three times in a row (four in total).

At the Winter Olympic Games, she got five medals (2 golds, 1 silver, and 2 bronzes). At the World Championships, she achieved eight medals (2 golds, 3 silvers, and 3 bronzes). At the World Cup, she competed for 17 seasons, from 2002 to 2018, and had 50 individual wins and 104 podiums. 

Kowalczyk is also a Ski Classics Legend, with 19 starts and 6 Pro Tour wins: Vasaloppet (2015), Årefjällsloppet (2016), Birkebeinerrennet (2017, 2018, and 2019), and Reistadløpet (2017). 

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