Career
Born in Warsaw into the family of a railroad worker, Janusz Kusociński, or Kusy as he was nicknamed, played football for various Warsaw clubs as a schoolboy. He took up athletics in 1928 after joining the sport club "Sarmata". His coach there was the famous Estonian, decathlete Aleksander Klumberg.
He missed the next season, because he was called to duty by the Polish army, but he came back stronger than ever.
In 1932 Kusociński was working as a gardener in a park in Warsaw. Just about a month before the Los Angeles Olympics, Kusociński ran a new world record in the 3000 m (8:188) and later that year, he set a new unofficial world record in running 4 miles in a time of 19:02.6.
After finishing second in the first European Championships at Turin in the 5000 m, Kusociński decided to retire from athletics, but made a comeback in 1939 by winning the 10 000 m at the Polish National Championships. Kusociński volunteered for the Polish army after Poland was attacked by the Germans and was wounded twice.
Janusz Kusociński was arrested by the Gestapo on 26 March 1940 during the Bachelor of Arts Action and imprisoned in Mokotów prison.
He was executed three months later in Palmiry, near Warsaw. An annual athletics competition, the Kusociński Memorial, is held in Poland in his honour. lieutenant was in its 55th edition in 2009.