Tokyo 2020: Polish javelin star Maria Andrejczyk auctions off Olympic silver medal for a special cause

At the recently concluded Tokyo Olympics 2020, Poland's javelin thrower Maria Andrejczyk won a silver in women's javelin with a best of 64.61m, while China's Liu Shiying claimed the gold medal as she threw a best of 66.34 metres on her first attempt for victory. South African-born Australian Kelsey-Lee Barber won bronze with a throw of 64.56m. 

In a turn of events, Poland's Andrejczyk auctioned off the elusive medal that she won but for a very special cause, which is to help in funding of a life-saving heart surgery for an eight-month-old boy. 

Recently, Andrejczyk posted on her Facebook account that she came across the fundraiser for 8-month-old Miłoszek Małysa, who needs surgery for a serious heart defect. 

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She helped in raising the money for the generous cause and decided to auction off her lone Olympic medal. Andrejczyk had finished fourth at Rio Olympics in 2016 and recovered from bone cancer following a diagnosis in 2018. Her performance at the Tokyo Games earned her praises. 

Andrejczyk, on her Facebook page, wrote, "He already has a head start from Kubus -- a boy who didn't make it in time but whose amazing parents decided to pass on the funds they collected."

She added, "And in this way, I also want to help. It's for him that I am auctioning my Olympic silver medal."

However, in a recent development, Andrejczyk confirmed that a Polish supermarket chain won the auction with a bid of $125,000. 

Now the money that has been raised will allow the boy to get the necessary surgery at Stanford University Medical Center. 

Some media reports have mentioned that Żabka, the Polish supermarket chain, has decided to give her medal back.