Polish team’s pieróg mascot becomes Winter Olympics star

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Notes from Poland is run by a small editorial team and is published by an independent, non-profit foundation that is funded through donations from our readers. We cannot do what we do without your support.

A plushie in the form of a smiling pieróg – Poland’s famous stuffed dumpling – has become a huge hit at the ongoing Winter Olympics in Italy after being adopted as an unofficial mascot of the Polish figure-skating team.

The cooperative for people with disabilities that creates the toy says it has been overwhelmed with orders.

The mascot is called “Pieroguszka”, which combines the words pieróg (meaning dumpling, with the plural being pierogi) and poduszka, meaning pillow. It was purchased in Poland and then taken to Italy by a member of the national figure-skating team.

Soon after the team was photographed waving the mascot around, it became an online hit, doing the rounds on social media and prompting comments from journalists, fans and athletes.

It reportedly even attracted the attention of American rap superstar Snoop Dogg, who has been enthusiastically attending the Winter Olympics.

Ekaterina Kurakova, a member of the Polish figure-skating team, told Polish news outlet Interia that the rapper had tried to reach out to the team through intermediaries in the hope of getting himself a Pieroguszka.

The mascot is produced by the Katowice-based “Honolulu Social Cooperative” during handicraft workshops for people with disabilities. Social cooperatives are organisations that combine the functions of a business and an NGO, and are mostly made up of people who are at risk of social exclusion.

“We’ve been around for over 10 years,” the cooperative’s head, Przemysław Sołtysik, told the Polish Press Agency (PAP). “Initially, we were a restaurant but, during the pandemic, we had to find something to do in the meantime. So we started sewing Pieroguszkas and opened a shop, which is still operating today.”

“We’re having trouble keeping up with orders,” he added. “We didn’t know this [plushie] was going to Milan, we only saw it in photos. Then the [Polish figure-skating] association contacted us and ordered more, which are now on their way to Milan.”

Pierogi are perhaps the most famous element of Polish cuisine. Eaten boiled or fried, the most common fillings include cheese and potatoes (pierogi ruskie), ground meat (pierogi z mięsem), and mushroom and cabbage (pierogi z kapustą i grzybami).

They can also be eaten in sweet form with fruit inside and served with sour cream and sugar. Savoury pierogi, meanwhile, are often accompanied with fried bacon and onions.

Last year, another Polish sports star helped introduce an element of Polish culinary culture to the world.

On her way to winning the Wimbledon Championships, tennis player Iga Świątek revealed that her favourite post-match meal is pasta with strawberries and yoghurt, prompting many fans to try the traditional Polish summer dish.

Notes from Poland is run by a small editorial team and published by an independent, non-profit foundation that is funded through donations from our readers. We cannot do what we do without your support.

Main image credit: Szymon Sikora/PKOl

Olivier Sorgho

Olivier Sorgho is senior editor at Notes from Poland, covering politics, business and society. He previously worked for Reuters.