Born on October 27, 1946 in Międzyrzec Podlaski in eastern Poland, Petruczenko dedicated his entire professional career to the sports daily Przegląd Sportowy, where he started working in 1970.
He earned a law degree from the University of Warsaw and later pursued postgraduate studies in journalism at the same institution.
Over the course of more than five decades, Petruczenko held various positions at Przegląd Sportowy, continuing to contribute regularly even after his retirement.
Since 2021, he had served as the newspaper’s honorary editor-in-chief.
Petruczenko was a respected authority on track and field, the Olympic movement and doping in sports.
He authored several books, including Prześcignąć swój czas (To Beat the Time), a biography of Poland’s most decorated Olympian, Irena Szewińska, who was posthumously named the greatest female athlete of all time by US sports magazine Track & Field.
Petruczenko's contributions to sports journalism earned him numerous accolades, including the Knight’s Cross of the Polonia Restituta Order, a prestigious state award, and the coveted Gold Olympic Laurel honour from the Polish Olympic Committee (PKOl)
He was also a member of the Association of Track and Field Statisticians and, starting in 1991, played a key role in creating local Warsaw publications Pasmo and later Passa.
Remaining active until his final days, Petruczenko in early January attended a high-profile ceremony during which Przegląd Sportowy and private broadcaster Polsat announced the winners of their annual Athlete of the Year poll.
He passed away on the morning of January 27.
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Source: IAR, PAP