A man who snatched a hat gifted by tennis star Kamil Majchrzak to a young boy at the US Open 2025 has been identified as Polish millionaire Piotr Szczerek.
Majchrzak had just defeated ninth seed Karen Khachanov before the viral incident on Thursday, with a video showing the tennis star signing autographs and then removing his cap for a young boy named Brock.
“Obviously it was some kind of confusion,” the Polish tennis star told The Post, revealing that Szczerek is a sponsor for his country’s tennis federation.
“I was pointing, giving the hat, but I had a lot going on after my match, after being super tired and super excited for the win. I just missed it.
“I had like a dead look if you know what I mean. I’m sure the guy was also acting in the moment of heat, in the moment of emotions.”
Szczerek, who is the CEO of paving company Drogbruk, was allegedly captured pinching the memento intended for a young fan, though Majchrzak continued to sign autographs and did not recognise that the hat was taken by an unintended recipient.
The businessman could then be seen placing the prized hat into his companion’s bag, with the young boy visibly devastated. And it has been reported that Szczerek has since deactivated his social media accounts following the incident, with widespread uproar from tennis fans on social media.
Majchrzak has claimed that Szczerek has since reached out to the fan and his family in a bid to smooth things over.
“He also wanted to make things right, so I gave him the credentials for Brock’s mom on the same social media I was using to contact her,” Majchrzak added. “So, maybe he can make things right himself.”
Szczerek co-founded Drogbruck with his wife in 1999 and has been described as a leader in the industry.
Majchrzak has since reached out to the young fan, leaning on the “power of the internet” to find him and gift him a signed cap to replace the one he did not receive on court, while giving him a series of other keepsakes.
“Today after warm up I had a nice meeting,” Majchrzak wrote, adding a hands up emoji. “Do you recognize?”
The 29-year-old then shared a photo of himself with the boy, adding: “Hello World, Together with Brock we wish you a great day!”
