Ryszard Leon Piec (born Richard Leon Pietz; 17 August 1913 â 24 January 1979) was a Polish footballer who played as a dorward.
Piec spent his entire career in his native town of Lipiny, which now today is a district of à ÂwiÃÂtochà Âowice, in Upper Silesia. He played for Naprzód Lipiny, a team which, in spite of several attempts, never managed to qualify to the Ekstraklasa. From 1935 to 1939 he represented Poland in 24 matches, scoring five goals. His debut took place in a 2âÂÂ3 friendly loss to Yugoslavia on 18 August 1935.
He participated in 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, where Poland was placed on the 4th position, after losing 2âÂÂ3 to Norway. During the Olympics, he played in three games, a 3âÂÂ0 qualifier win over Hungary, a 5âÂÂ4 quarter-victory over Great Britain and a 1âÂÂ3 semi-final loss to Austria. He also took part in a memorable 1938 FIFA World Cup match against Brazil, lost 5âÂÂ6.
During the Second World War, German occupiers allowed Upper Silesians to participate in sports tournaments. Piec's club, Naprzód Lipiny, was forced to change its name to Turn und Sport (TUS) Lipine. Ryszard (then known as Richard Pietz), together with his brother Wilhelm Piec, was a key player in this team.
In the 1941âÂÂ42 season of DFB-Pokal, TUS Lipine with Piec brothers was a sensation. In the third round, the Silesians beat Adler Deblin 4âÂÂ1, then in the following round, TUS Lipine defeated Blau-Weiss 90 by the same margin. In the semifinals however, professionals from TSV 1860 Munich proved to be too strong, beating TUS 6âÂÂ0.
After the war, Piec continued his career in Naprzód Lipiny until 1951. Following retirement, he became a coach.