Tadeusz Kraus (born 22 October 1932 in Třinec

Trinec

Třinec is a town in Frýdek-Místek District, Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic. It lies on the Olza River, in the historical region of Cieszyn Silesia. The town has 37,405 inhabitants as of 2009, in 2001 17.7% of the population were Poles...

 (Trzyniec)) is a former Polish footballer from Zaolzie

Zaolzie

Zaolzie is the Polish name for an area now in the Czech Republic which was disputed between interwar Poland and Czechoslovakia. The name means "lands beyond the Olza River"; it is also called Śląsk zaolziański, meaning "trans-Olza Silesia". Equivalent terms in other languages include Zaolší in...

, who represented Czechoslovakia

Czechoslovakia national football team

The Czechoslovakia national football team was the national association football team of Czechoslovakia from 1922 to 1993. At the dissolution of Czechoslovakia at the end of 1992, the team was participating in UEFA qualifying Group 4 for the 1994 World Cup; it completed this campaign under the name...

. He is considered the best Polish football player from Zaolzie ever.

His father Wilhelm was a metallurgist worker in Třinec Iron and Steel Works

Trinec Iron and Steel Works

Třinec Iron and Steel Works is a producer of long rolled steel products in Třinec, Moravian-Silesian Region, Czech Republic. TŽ produces over a third of all steel produced in the Czech Republic . Since its establishment, Třinecké železárny's plants have produced more than 150 million tons of...

 and also a footballer and activist in Siła Trzyniec, local Polish sport club. Wife of Tadeusz Kraus, Anna, was a skilled gymnast who ended fourth at the 1956 Olympic Games

1956 Summer Olympics

The 1956 Melbourne Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVI Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was held in Melbourne, Australia, in 1956, with the exception of the equestrian events, which could not be held in Australia due to quarantine regulations...

.

He was raised in football by the Siła Trzyniec. In 1951 he left the club and went to the university in Prague

Prague

Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...

. He played for several clubs and from 1955 played for Dukla Prague. Another year Kraus joined Sparta Prague where he played for another 10 years, 4 years was a team captain. He then played for several other minor clubs and in 1971 started coaching. In the 1970s and 1980s coached Cypriot

Cyprus

Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...

 club Aris Limassol for six years.

Tadeusz Kraus played for Czechoslovakia national team (23 matches/6 goals) and was a participant at the two World Cups, 1954 FIFA World Cup

1954 FIFA World Cup

The 1954 FIFA World Cup, the fifth staging of the FIFA World Cup, was held in Switzerland from 16 June to 4 July. Switzerland was chosen as hosts in July 1946. The tournament set a number of all-time records for goal-scoring, including the highest average goals scored per game...

 and 1958 FIFA World Cup

1958 FIFA World Cup

The 1958 FIFA World Cup, the sixth staging of the World Cup, was hosted by Sweden from 8 June to 29 June. The tournament was won by Brazil, who beat Sweden 5–2 in the final for their first title. To date, this marks the only occasion that a World Cup staged in Europe was not won by a European...

.