Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski recminded during the press conference that the first Polish flight into space took place in 1978. 'We were the fourth country in space. As a child raised in the 1980s, I could only dream of becoming an astronaut myself. My childhood dream is now coming true', he confessed.

He emphasised that he was born on April 12 - on the 23rd anniversary of Yuri Gagarin's first flight into space. 'On every birthday, my mother wished me all the best for Astronaut Day', the Polish astronaut recalled.

He added: 'Today I represent Poland and an entire generation of Poles - scientists, teachers, students. All those who contribute to the development of science at the local and global level. We want to show that space is not just for the greatest, it is for everyone'.

Peggy Whitson, American commander of the Axiom-4 mission, also reminded that over 40 years had passed since the first astronauts from India, Poland and Hungary - the predecessors of the Axiom-4 mission participants - flew into space. According to Whitson, commercial space flights accelerate space programmes in each of these three countries and create new paths of technological progress.

She emphasised that the international crew would inspire a completely new generation of young people, and added that the two weeks planned on board the International Space Station would be filled with scientific and technological programmes from each government.

She said that the crew had been training since August 2024, learning about the systems of the ISS and the Dragon spacecraft that would carry astronauts into orbit, and how to deal with emergency situations.

She explained that one of her main goals was to transform this diverse group into a high-performance team and assured that the team were well on their way to achieving that goal.

She admitted that pronouncing the name 'Sławosz' was difficult for her and the other crew members, so the Pole was nicknamed 'Slav' by his colleagues. 'If you think he’s a nerd, you don’t know the half of it', she joked during the crew presentation.

Like his colleagues, Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski admitted that the Axiom-4 crew was like family to him. He mentioned feeling connected to the astronauts who flew into orbit before him, especially to the late Mirosław Hermaszewski - the first Pole in space: 'He supported me a lot during the selection process, (...) he was the first person to call me the morning after I was selected. He congratulated me. I really feel a great connection to him and his space flight'.

He added: 'I can proudly say that I will take the flag that Hermaszewski had on his spacesuit when he flew into space in 1978 with me on board the spacecraft. It is a great honour for me. I am very happy to take part in this relay and continue Poland's involvement in the space flight programme. I hope that I am not the last on this journey for many decades to come', Uznański said.

He announced that he would also take a Polish dish to the ISS. 'I have experience from the mountains, where food (...) brings mental comfort. When I started working at Axiom, I learned that I could participate in a project to prepare food that we would take with us to the ISS. I started working with a small Polish family business. Today I can say that for the first time we will take Polish pierogi into space', he said.

He said that together with pierogi manufacturers, he developed a technological process that would allow to 'dry freeze' them: 'We worked for several weeks and the company mastered this process. (…) Thanks to this - I hope - pierogi in space will be as tasty as they are on Earth'.

Polish astronaut's space mission is planned for the spring of 2025. He will fly to the ISS together with Peggy Whitson (USA) - mission commander, Shubhanshu Shukla (India) - mission pilot and Tibor Kapu (Hungary) - mission specialist.

Anna Bugajska, Aleksander Rajewski (PAP)

abu/ arw/ bar/ mhr/