About Władysław Komar Władysław Komar (April 11, 1940 – August 17, 1998) was a Polish shot put champion, who was born in Kaunas. Competing in three Summer Olympics, he won the gold medal (21.18 m) at Munich in 1972. Komar later became an actor, starring Roman Polanski's 1986 film Pirates. He later ran for political office as a candidate for the Polish Party of Beer Lovers in 1993. (Komar was known for his womanizing and drunkenness.) He died in a car crash in 1998 along with another Polish Olympic champion, Tadeusz Ślusarski.