The crash happened at around 5:30 p.m. on Saturday on Józef Piłsudski Avenue in Nowy Sącz, in Poland's southern Małopolskie region.
According to police, a car travelling in the right-hand lane stopped to let the pedestrian cross. The 50-year-old man was walking across the marked crossing with his dog when a Volkswagen Passat approached from behind and overtook the stopped car at high speed in the left lane.
The Volkswagen struck the pedestrian, who died at the scene.
Police later determined that the 21-year-old Volkswagen driver may have been taking part in an illegal race with another vehicle.
Investigators identified the other vehicle as a BMW driven by a 20-year-old man from the Nowy Sącz area. He was detained on Sunday evening on suspicion of taking part in the race and taken to a police detention facility in Nowy Sącz.
Police said he was due to be taken to the local district prosecutor's office for questioning.
The Volkswagen driver was tested for alcohol shortly after the crash and was found to be sober. Police also took a blood sample for further examination.
The investigation into the circumstances of the crash and the suspected illegal race is continuing.
In the first half of this year, 666 people were killed and 10,610 injured in 9,135 accidents on Polish roads, according to police data.
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Source: IAR/PAP, interia.pl