Warsaw → Paris

In 1900, at the close of the nineteenth century, when a lady's exercise was expected to amount to little more than an elegant stroll around the garden, a dignified ride on horseback or a gentle glide on ice skates, something scandalous happened. Karolina Kocięcka - a Warsaw woman with a will of steel and a true pioneer of women's sport at a time when physical exertion was reserved almost exclusively for men - decided to defy convention. Before setting off on her most famous journey, she had already competed in races and enjoyed her first cycling successes. Now she went a step further: she climbed onto a heavy road bicycle and… rode from Warsaw to Paris!

No tarmac, no GPS, no weather forecast on her phone - just onlookers staring at her in utter disapproval. Some thought she had lost her mind; her family threw up their hands in despair. But she kept pedalling, earning the legendary nickname “The Flying She-Devil”. In an age that expected women to be passive ornaments in drawing rooms, she chose the wind in her hair, mud on her spokes and freedom.

A hundred years later… along came me!

I was born (almost) exactly a hundred years after that Karolina, and my name is… exactly the same. When I first dug into her story, I felt a shiver down my spine - as though someone had written my biography a century ago.

And there is something else I share with “The Flying She-Devil”, another almost unbelievable coincidence. That Karolina earned her nickname through her extraordinary speed and fearless spirit on a bicycle, whereas I… literally fly! It seems that with this name, a quiet, well-behaved life simply isn't an option.

When I get on a modern road bike this October and set off from Warsaw to Paris, it will be more than an ordinary trip. It will be a tribute to an extraordinary pioneer who paved the way for all of us.

€1 per kilometre

Ahead of me lie exactly 1,614 kilometres of adventure, sweat, aching muscles and beautiful views. The fundraiser follows one simple, transparent idea: every PLN 5 (approximately €1.15) “sponsors” one kilometre of the journey.

All the money raised will cover the essentials that make this adventure possible:

• Accommodation along the way (so I have the energy to get back in the saddle each morning),
• Food (burning thousands of calories on the road takes proper fuel!),
• Bike servicing and essential equipment (because my bike has to go the distance).

Plan B - putting my cards on the table

I'm planning the ride for October this year. There is one goal: France, a little elegance and a finish line in Paris! If fate - an injury or the downpour of the century - throws a spanner in the works and I can't complete the route, I promise one thing: I'll return and finish it next autumn. And if circumstances beyond my control prevent me from doing so again, I will donate every penny of the remaining funds to a charitable foundation of my choice!