On the hundredth anniversary of establishing the “Rzeczpospolita” daily, the newspaper’s editorial staff presented awards to distinguished representatives of science, culture and sport, philanthropists, and respectable institutions. The ceremonious Eagles Gala took place on June 25 in the Kraków Opera. The Rzeczpospolita’s centenary Eagle statuette in the category of science went to Prof. Henryk Skarżyński, founder and director of the Institute of Physiology and Pathology of Hearing.

In the laudation, the Award Committee stresses that “Prof. Henryk Skarżyński is one of the most important Polish doctors and scientists. He bravely carries the torch of knowledge and education to advance the field he has been working in for many decades. Moreover, he is a skillful manager able to organize his work perfectly. Otolaryngologist, audiologist and phoniatrist. The founder and director of the Institute of Physiology and Pathology of Hearing and the World Hearing Centre in Kajetany. In 1992, he was the first surgeon in Poland and Central-Eastern Europe to perform a cochlear implantation surgery that brought hearing back to a deaf person, thus launching a Polish hearing implant program. On July 12, 2002, he was the first in the world to perform, using his own PDCI method, a cochlear implantation surgery on an adult with partial deafness, and later, in 2004, also on a child, giving them a chance to improve the quality of their life significantly. He is the author and co-author of over 1000 scientific research papers. Since 2011, he has served as the National Consultant in the field of otolaryngology. And above all, he is a good and devoted physician and person.

– Thank you for a unique distinction awarded in extraordinary circumstances – 100^th anniversary of the first daily newspaper in the reborn home country, in such a distinguished company of laureates. Thank you for recognizing my clinical, scientific, teaching, and organizational work spanning over 40 years. As a doctor and microsurgeon, I try to make sure that Polish patients are among the first in the world with access to state-of-the-art technologies – in the first quarter of this year alone, the number of specific highly specialized procedures I performed together with my team was larger than in all the centers in the USA combined.  For around 20 years, we have carried out the most hearing improvement operations in the world – said Prof.  H. Skarżyński receiving the award.

Among Rzeczpospolita’s centenary Eagle winners were: Andrzej Stasiuk (literature), Zbigniew Preisner (music), Agata Kulesza, Janusz Gajos (film and theatre), Narodowy Stary Teatr (cultural institution), PGNiG (patron of culture), Anna Dymna (charitable activity), Grupa Lotos (patron of  sport), Caritas Polska (charitable  institution), Wisła Kraków (sports institution), Agnieszka Radwańska, Adam Małysz (sport), Polish Academy of Sciences (scientific institution).

The laureates were selected by a committee composed of the management of the “Rzeczpospolita” editorial staff. The ceremony of awarding centenary Eagle statuettes ended with a concert “Arias of the operas of the world” featuring the renowned baritone Artur Ruciński.