Latest news with #Piotr
The Courier
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Courier
Behind the scenes as Robson Green and Carol Smillie trial ancient paddle boats on Loch Earn for BBC series
Actor Robson Green and presenter Carol Smillie trialled ancient paddle boards on Loch Earn in Perthshire for Robson Green's Weekend Escapes. Piotr Gudan, who runs Blairgowrie-based Outdoor Explore, introduced the pair to coracles for the third season of the BBC Two show. The unusual round-shaped boats were historically used for fishing and ferrying people and goods in Speyside. Robson Green's Weekend Escapes sees the English actor, 60, 'find wellbeing and adventure in wonderful places' with 'famous friends'. Previous episodes have seen Robson take on an assault course in North Yorkshire with Olympic champion boxer Nicola Adams, explore the Lake District with TV presenter Helen Skelton and go kayaking with former Strictly Come Dancing star Janette Manrara. Last month, Green was joined by presenter and Invictus Games medallist JJ Chalmers at Perth restaurant Brown & Blacks. The Soldier Soldier actor also visited Broughty Ferry for the show alongside Dundee-based Gladiators star Sheli McCoy. Piotr said he was approached by the production company looking for something 'rare and exciting' to do in rural Perthshire. He told The Courier: 'My favourite part was being able to take two lovely people out on the water, in crafts they would normally not come across. 'Passing on my love of the great outdoors, Scottish heritage, and the Perthshire countryside. 'He (Robson Green) is such a lovely person. 'It was a very relaxed atmosphere created by the whole amazing crew. 'It was fantastic to hear that Robson was already quite well familiar with Perthshire from his previous projects and visits. 'This place is amazing.' The TV stars explored Loch Earn and St Fillans with Piotr, who says he hopes to have passed on some of his knowledge of the area and ancient coracles. The boats he uses are built in Perthshire using willow framework in a round or pear shape. He said: 'Heritage crafts have always been something I have had a passion for. 'My storage is packed with some amazing gems. 'Coracles, however, have taken a special place amongst all those. 'I am sure the first one I sat on brought a huge smile to my face, testing my balancing and canoe paddling techniques. 'Now, introducing these crafts to many more folk over the years, I am pretty sure the coracles brought smiles to all faces of those who tried them.' Piotr added: 'Over the years, Outdoor Explore has had the pleasure of working with various production companies, for daytime TV shows, regional and national promotional filming and documentaries. 'All were always focused on the amazing countryside of Perthshire, Tayside and the east of Scotland. 'It's a privilege to become an ambassador for this lovely part of the world, which we help to look after and inspire others to explore with us.' The Courier has rounded up TV shows recently shot in Tayside, Fife and Stirling set to be broadcast in the near future.
Daily Mirror
28-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
London Marathon couple issued humble apology after being caught 'cheating'
It is one of the hardest events any person can take on, but merely earning a place in the London Marathon also comes with many of its own challenges A couple who participated in the 2021 London Marathon faced a backlash after being accused of 'cheating' by outraged social media users. Monika Czarnecka and her husband, Piotr, ran the full 26.2 miles together, finishing hand-in-hand and crossing the line at the same time. The controversy erupted when a photo surfaced online showing both Monika and Piotr sporting the same bib number, 11250, sparking accusations of foul play. Although they weren't accused of cutting corners or falsifying times, it turned out that only Ms. Czarnecka was officially registered for the marathon. Piotr confessed he had duplicated the number to sneak onto the course and support his wife, a move that ignited anger among those who had tried and failed to secure a spot in the prestigious race. Among the tens of thousands who took to the streets of London, Ms. Czarnecka finished in 21,697th place, clocking a time of 4 hours, 40 minutes, and 58 seconds. The marathon is notoriously difficult to enter, with hundreds of thousands of hopefuls getting turned away each year. In response to the uproar over her husband's unregistered participation, Ms. Czarnecka expressed her remorse. While speaking to the Mail, she said: "I'm truly sorry for what we've done and didn't want to cause any harm. The supporters were amazing, and their cheering and clapping helped me finish the marathon. "It hurts to think that I've let them down. This was my first marathon and I needed Piotr's support because I was worried sick that I wouldn't be able to finish it." Piotr took full responsibility for the incident, claiming he was the person who came up with the idea to sneak onto the course. He said: "It was all my idea and I take full responsibility for it. I know it's wrong and I'm truly sorry, but I did what I did to support my wife." An official comment from organisers of the London Marathon said: "We are aware of the images that show two runners wearing identical numbers and we are investigating. We take any incident where a participant cheats or forges numbers extremely seriously." The incident sparked outrage on social media, with one individual expressing their frustration after multiple rejections. They wrote: "I've had 9 rejections in 9 years. This kind of thing is incredibly frustrating. Next year is my last chance. I'm not holding out any hope." Another voiced their discontent regarding charity places, saying: "It's not fair if we are paying around £200 for a charity place, stressing raising £2k, and you get virtuals or fakes on course really." Addressing the backlash, Piotr emphasized his sole intention was to support Monika rather than race and record a score for himself. He added: "I didn't collect a medal, I was just there to support Monika. "The race was like a walk for me because my marathon times are a lot quicker. I've run two London Marathons in the past so this one just gone was not about racing. "It was all about my wife. People are behaving as if we've committed a serious crime and are treating us worse than athletes who've been caught for drug cheating."
Irish Examiner
25-04-2025
- General
- Irish Examiner
'Pope Francis would probably prefer a funeral like Piotr's': Dublin mourners bury homeless man
The notice in gave Piotr Torng's address as Dublin 8. Not any specific address in the postcode, just the general area, wherever in the environs of Thomas Street he tended to sleep. He had lived a hard life. Who knows at what point in his journey the dream of life flowering into something more died. He was probably still chasing it when he left his homeland and arrived in Dublin sometime in the last 20 years. As is the often the way with troubled souls it's hard to know where the searching ended and the running began. This week, he was laid to rest in a ceremony fit for a pope. Alice Leahy brought up the departed pontiff at the graveside. 'Pope Francis will be buried at the weekend but all we know about him would say that while the whole world will be at his funeral, he would probably prefer to be at one for somebody like Piotr,' she said. The observation was profound and timely and a nod to humanity of the departed head of a billion Catholics. Alice Leahy: 'Pope Francis will be buried at the weekend but all we know about him would say that while the whole world will be at his funeral, he would probably prefer to be at one for somebody like Piotr.' Photo: Gareth Chaney Piotr was a fan of Pope Francis. Nobody was certain, but there was a general feeling that Piotr was in the Capuchin Centre that day in 2018 when the pope dropped in to Brother Kevin. Piotr carried with him a small photo of the pope. On his regular visits to the Trust premises, for a cup of tea or a wash, he often showed the photo around, pleased with himself, expressing his admiration. There were 10 people present when the hearse pulled up near the Alice Leahy Trust plot in Glasnevin cemetery just before 1pm. The plot sits in the shadow of a drooping evergreen oak tree, a resting place for mainly men who lived on the streets and died without the benefit of a loved one to take care of burial. Fanagan's undertakers provided their services. Piotr's body had lain in the city morgue since soon after his death last November. He was 41. When his body wasn't claimed the people in the Trust set the wheels in motion to bring him to his final resting place. The funeral procession was simple and sparse. As the hearse drove across Bride Road it stopped briefly outside the gate to the Trust premises, in the basement of the Iveagh hostel. This was where Piotr came regularly to feel human. The burial of Piotr Torng in Glasnevin Cemetery, Dublin. There were 10 people present when the hearse pulled up near the Alice Leahy Trust plot in Glasnevin cemetery just before 1pm. Photo: Gareth Chaney He knew everybody in there and was habitually on his best behaviour, reserved, gentle and always, always fastidious about his appearance. Life might have consigned him to an itinerant existence but he strove to look like a million dollars. 'There were two things he really liked,' remembered Mark Duff from Trust. 'He loved washing his feet, getting into a fresh pair of socks. And he loved his hair. He'd be down in the backroom for ages listening to AC/DC, always it was AC/DC and washing his hair. "He also had great respect for the place. The first thing he did every day he walked in was to wipe his feet.' Four men lifted the coffin from the hearse and brought it across to the grave, laying it on a stand. Fr Padraig Daly stepped forward to offer a few prayers. He knew Piotr well, encountered him regularly when Piotr would hang around after 11am mass in the Liberties, usually trying to tap up the priest for a couple of euro. He was believed to be from Lithuania, but like much about his existence that couldn't be confirmed. Father Patrick Daly leads the funeral of Piotr Torng in Glasnevin Cemetery, Dublin. Photo: Gareth Chaney 'He would tell you he was from different places and one day he said he was Russian and I teased him about Putin but he just spat out the name. So he wasn't a fan of Putin whatever he was.' Fr Daly led the prayers and finished by suggesting that 'we pray for all who are buried in this grave'. A poet of some renown, the Augustinian friar revealed that he had written a poem about Piotr a while back when the man came asking him for a reference for a job. He has found a place in the church Away from others who gather at radiators Until the hostel opens He speaks with Russian gutterals Begs me to find him work. He will be diligent, forget the drinking. I tell him he has failed too often. His eyes reproach me Like a mistreated spaniel's. The coffin was lowered into the grave and Mark Duff stepped up to say a few words about the departed man, how his presence was always agreeable and humour was often lurking with intent. 'I was very fond of him even though he did my head in,' Mark said. 'The last thing he would say to you before leaving every time was 'who loves ya, baby'.' Nobody tried to avoid the darkness that shadowed Piotr. He frequently showed up at the Trust in a bad state, obviously having received some form of a beating. Mark Duff lays flowers during the burial of Piotr Torng in Glasnevin Cemetery, Dublin. Photo: Gareth Chaney His weakness for drink, the laws that govern the streets, maybe his personality when drunk, whatever it was, Piotr often encountered the worst of humankind. As the years wore on, his health deteriorated. Alice Leahy remembered trying to get him to seek out medical assistance. 'My last words to him were 'you're going to be found dead on the street',' she said. 'I asked him to just go and get help and after he left I contacted some of the local guards who said they'd keep an eye out for him. He was found in a bad way that night and he was brought to St James so at least he had a hospital bed, but that was where he died.' The burial of Piotr Torng in Glasnevin Cemetery, Dublin. The plot sits in the shadow of a drooping evergreen oak tree, a resting place for mainly men who lived on the streets and died without the benefit of a loved one to take care of burial. Photo: Gareth Chaney Others shared a few memories and a single bunch of flowers was thrown in on top of the coffin. Towards the end a man by the name of Joe, who knew the same streets as Piotr, arrived on a bicycle. He wanted to pay his final respects. 'Ah he was a lovely fella,' Joe said. 'Kept to himself, never bothered anybody but…just addiction.' It was all over in 20 minutes. The fragments of a life had been assembled in order to say goodbye, and the respect and affection that permeated the graveside was as strong as might have been the case had it been a pope who was being buried.
