The Sybir Memorial Run is a 5 km night run, an event combining sport and commemoration of Polish citizens exiled (in the tsarist times) and deported (by the Soviet authorities) deep into Russia, and later the Soviet Union. It is always held in February to remind us that on February 10, 1940, the first mass deportation of Polish citizens from the areas occupied by the Soviets took place.

The event is organized by the Sybir Memorial Museum and the Białystok Runs Foundation.

6th Sybir Memorial Run — when and where?

Since 2019, the race has been held on-site in Białystok, and from 2023 — also in Wrocław, where many former residents of the Borderland who had spent time in Siberia lived after World War II.

Every year you can take part in the virtual edition, lasting until the end of February and enabling people living anywhere in the world, as well as those in weaker condition, to participate (in this formula, you can run or walk the distance at your own pace).

This year, the event will take place in Białystok on February 10 in the Turczyński Forest, and in Wrocław, in the Osobowicki Forest, on Saturday, February 17 . In both locations, the event is going to start at 6:00 p.m.

The virtual run will last from 10 to 29 February.

This year, the Sybir Memorial Museum gained a partner who supports us in preparing and promoting the on-site race in Wrocław.

The choice of this city for the second on-site race is not accidental. Wrocław became a place of settlement for many former inhabitants of the lands lost by Poland to the Soviets after 1945. Many Sybiraks, who had nowhere to return to after leaving the Soviet Union also lived here — their hometowns were outside Poland.

History Centre Zajezdnia and its ‘Golgotha ​​of the East’

History Centre Zajezdnia, run by the ‘Remembrance and Future’ Center, has been operating in Wrocław since 2007. The Centre is involved in documenting and popularizing the post-war history of Wrocław and Lower Silesia. It conducts scientific research, organizes exhibitions and conferences, and offers a wide range of educational activities.

‘Zajezdnia’ invites visitors to its three branches. In the main office — the former tram depot in Grabiszyńska Street — it presents the exhibition devoted to the history of Wrocław in the years 1945-2016. Edith Stein House operates in Nowowiejska Street. In turn, at 10 Wittig Street there is the Sanctuary of Golgotha of the East. The exhibition talks about Siberia and presents Siberian souvenirs. This made History Centre Zajezdnia a natural partner for the Sybir Memorial Museum to popularize the idea of ​​the Sybir Memoial Run in Lower Silesia.

This is how Zajezdnia describes its Siberian exhibition:

‘Golgotha ​​of the East’ exhibition covers an area of ​​over 260 m2 and consists of two spaces. The first introduces the subject of repression related to deportations to Siberia, from the 17th to the 19th century. The second section is the main core of the exhibition, concerning exiles during World War II, initiated by the deportation on February 10, 1940. The exhibition also covers other topics important for understanding the martyrdom of Poles in the East, such as the Katyn massacre. The exhibition, however, is not fully focused only on the dimension of suffering, there are many threads showing the steadfastness, fortitude, and ingenuity of compatriots in surviving and escaping from this inhospitable land.’

Proposals for the Run participants

You can register for the 6th Sybir Memorial Run at www.biegpamiecisybiru.pl/rejestracja

As always, there will be some atmospheric arrangements along the on-site run route, which are so appreciated and praised by the participants of the event every year. Each registered participant will receive a starting package, and for those who finish the race — a commemorative medal presenting another exhibit of the Sybir Memorial Museum.

The Sybir Memorial Museum especially encourages you to participate in the ‘Run for a Sybirak’ campaign related to the Run. At the stage of registration, you can indicate which Sybirak you would like to dedicate your efforts to. You can provide the name of a person you know or a relative, or use the suggestions prepared by the Museum. Information about the selected person will be included in your starting number.

1,608 people took part in the previous, 5th edition of the Sybir Memorial Run in total: 879 in Białystok, 301 in Wrocław and 428 virtually. In this way, the memory of Sybiraks was honored, among others: in Great Britain, New Zealand and the USA. Some runners ran multiple times, adding kilometers to their total results. The record holder ran 542 km. In total, all participants of the 5th Sybir Memorial Run covered 17,925 km, a distance corresponding to the route from Białystok to the eastern edge of Eurasia.