Hubert Aleksander Wagner (a.k.a. Hubert Jerzy Wagner) (4 March 1941 – 13 March 2002) was a Polish volleyball player and coach. He was a member of the Poland national team from 1963 to 1971, a participant in the Mexico 1968 Olympics, and a bronze medallist at the 1967 European Championship. As a head coach, he led Poland to become the 1974 World Champions and the 1976 Olympic Champions.

Hubert Wagner
Personal information
Full nameHubert Aleksander Wagner
NicknameJurek, Gruby, Kat
Born(1941-03-04)4 March 1941
Poznań, Poland
Died13 March 2002(2002-03-13) (aged 61)
Warsaw, Poland
Coaching information
Previous teams coached
YearsTeams
1973–1976
1977–1985
1978–1979
1983–1985
1986–1987
1987–1988
1991–1993
1994–1995
1996–1997
1996–1998
1997–1998
1997–1999
1999–2000
Poland
Legia Warsaw
Poland (W)
Poland
Filament Bursa
Tunisia
Halkbank Ankara
Stilon Gorzów Wielkopolski
Skra Warsaw (W)
Poland
Dick Black Andrychów (W)
Morze Bałtyk Szczecin
Legia Warsaw
Career
YearsTeams
000000000AZS Poznań
AZS AWF Warsaw
Skra Warsaw
National team
1963–1971 Poland (194)
Honours
Men's volleyball
Representing  Poland
CEV European Championship
Bronze medal – third place 1967 Turkey
Head coach  Poland
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place 1976 Montreal
FIVB World Championship
Gold medal – first place 1974 Mexico
CEV European Championship
Silver medal – second place 1975 Yugoslavia
Silver medal – second place 1983 East Germany
Head coach  Tunisia
CAVB African Championship
Gold medal – first place 1987 Tunisia

Personal life

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Wagner was born in Poznań. His parents were Romuald and Zofia (née Kotlińska). He had two younger siblings, Elżbieta (born 1946) and Leszek.

Wagner was married twice. On 15 October 1963, he married Danuta Kordaczuk, an Olympic medal winning volleyball player with medals in the World and European Championships. The couple had one son, Grzegorz Wagner (born 1965), a professional volleyball setter and coach.[1] The couple divorced in 1978.

In 1979, he married Anna Baraniecka. In the last two years of his life, his partner was Danuta Marzec. He had three grandchildren: Iwo (born 1991), who played as a setter and is now a scout; Jakub (born 1993), who is also a volleyball player; and Sara (born 2003).[2]

Coaching

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In 1973, he became head coach of the Polish men's national volleyball team at 32 years old. He was demanding and greatly valued physical preparation of his players. In 1974, he led the team to win the Volleyball Men's World Championship.[3] In the subsequent year, they won silver in the European Championship 1975 held in Yugoslavia.

On 30 July 1976, the national men's volleyball team became the 1976 Olympic Champions.[4] Despite Polish volleyball players spending 11 and a half hours on the court while their opponents only spent five hours, Wagner's team still beat the Soviet Union in a tie-break. Two months after this success, he left the national team.

Honours

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As a player

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  • Domestic
    • 1962–63   Polish Championship, with AZS AWF Warsaw
    • 1964–65   Polish Championship, with AZS AWF Warsaw
    • 1965–66   Polish Championship, with AZS AWF Warsaw
    • 1967–68   Polish Championship, with AZS AWF Warsaw

As a coach

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  • Domestic

Death

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On 13 March 2002, after a meeting with the Polish Association of Volleyball in Warsaw, Wagner suffered a car accident triggered by a heart attack.[5] Despite rapid resuscitation, he died. An autopsy showed advanced coronary artery disease. He was buried at the Northern Communal Cemetery in Warsaw.[6]

Legacy

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The Memorial of Hubert Jerzy Wagner is an annual three-day volleyball tournament with four national teams invited by Poland held since 2003.

Wagner was admitted to the International Volleyball Hall of Fame in 2010.[7]

Five schools and two sports arenas in Poland are named after him.

References

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  1. ^ Fragment: "KAT. Biografia Huberta Wagnera" Grzegorz Wagner, Krzysztof Mecner – onet.pl – 27-06-2014
  2. ^ Jaki ojciec, taki syn, czyli tymi samymi śladami na siatkarskim szlaku – sportowefakty.pl – 27-09-2014
  3. ^ Historia MŚ: Meksyk 1974 - historyczny triumf reprezentacji Polski pod wodzą Huberta Wagnera – sportowefakty.pl – 12-08-2014
  4. ^ Drużyna siatkarzy – onet.pl – 17-04-2012
  5. ^ Trener siatkarski Hubert Wagner nie żyje – wp.pl – 22-06-2002
  6. ^ "Pożegnanie Huberta Wagnera". Dziennik Polski (in Polish). March 22, 2002.
  7. ^ Hubert Wagner – International Hall of Fame – volleyball.org
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Sporting positions
Preceded by
  Tadeusz Szlagor
Head coach of Poland
1973–1976
Succeeded by
  Jerzy Welcz
Preceded by Head coach of Poland
1983–1986
Succeeded by
Preceded by
  Wiktor Krebok
Head coach of Poland
1996–1998
Succeeded by
  Ireneusz Mazur