1992: A LOOK BACK: A year of Olympic proportions (12/27/92)

1992: A LOOK BACK

A year of Olympic proportions

This year was a watershed in Ukrainian sports, with the new political reality leaving its mark on the scene.

Ivan Kyrychenko of Mariupil brought in the new year, with his arrival in the port of Miami on January 1, concluding a 7,500 mile solo journey in his 27-foot sloop, having set out from Ukraine three days after it had declared independence on August 24, 1991.

On the Olympic front, the stage had been set by the Ukrainian Supreme Council's formal request to the International Olympic Committee, made in December 1991, to grant full status to Ukraine's team. Serhiy Bubka continued to be the athlete at the forefront of demands for separate representation, when he asked, at a press conference in January: "Why not compete for Ukraine? ... I don't understand why we must be one team of 11 countries."

However, for the Winter Olympiad in Albertville, France, which took place in February, the interval was too brief, both in terms of IOC approval, and in terms of Ukrainian team organization. As a result, figure-skater Viktor Petrenko, who was billed everywhere as "the gold medal winner from Ukraine" competed as a representative of the EUN (Equipe Unifiee/Unified Team), and listened to the Olympic anthem as the five-ringed flag was raised during his medal ceremony.

Oleksiy Zhytnyk of Kiev was a member of the EUN Olympic champions in hockey. Dan Ratushney of Nepean was part of the Canadian silver medal-winner hockey team. Michael Slipchuk, a Ukrainian Canadian from Edmonton, placed ninth in the men's singles figure skating event.

On March 9, in Lausanne, Switzerland, the IOC made the formal decision to grant Ukraine provisional membership, which enabled its athletes in non-team events to compete independently in Barcelona, but in team sports they would continue to participate under the aegis of the "Unified Team." IOC President Juan Antonio Samaranch conceded that all the newly independent republics "wanted to go independently, but ... the most important thing was to stick to the principle that the best athletes from all 12 republics should participate in Barcelona." This was the sports version of the "Chicken Kiev" speech. However, the Olympic oligarch also added that Ukraine and the other republics will be free to compete as independent countries at the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer, Norway.

In the end, some of the demands put forward by Valeriy Borzov, head of Ukraine's National Olympic Committee and currently the minister of sport, were accepted. These included a Ukrainian contingent marching together under a Ukrainian flag within the "Unies" group at the opening and closing ceremonies, separate competition in individual events, and the raising of the national flag and playing of the national anthem when athletes won individual golds.

Also in March, Ukraine became a temporary member of FIFA, the international soccer federation, along with Georgia, Slovenia and Croatia. This decision enabled Ukraine to play in regional cup matches starting in 1993, and initiate contacts with other federations for non-status contests. However, it will not be able to field a team in the 1994 World Cup, because the drawings for that competition took place in 1991.

Mike Bossy, a Montreal native and right-winger for 10 years for the New York Islanders until forced out of active play by back injuries in 1987, was known for his brilliant "ice sense" and skating ability, amazingly accurate shot and scoring touch, and gentlemanly approach to the game. Instrumental in his team's four successive Stanley Cup championships, his number, 22, was retired at Nassau Coliseum on March 3.

Visiting teams

In April, the rinks of Canada and the U.S. were visited by a hockey tornado called Team Druzhba '78. This was a band of 18 young players from Kharkiv, age 12-13 ("78" denoted their year of birth), coached by Ivan Pravilov, a former hockey and soccer competitor. Their play dazzled audiences, scouts and coaches in Quebec City, Toronto and Washington. This group from Kharkiv is ranked as the best in the world for its age group, a fact underscored by the lopsided scores in their favor. It bodes well for Ukraine's hockey program.

FIFA's decision to grant Ukraine's National Soccer Team provisional membership bore fruit on June 27, when the squad filed onto the pitch in Rutgers Stadium to face the U.S. Nationals. Last-minute difficulties with the team's visas (still processed in Moscow at the time) delayed its arrival, but it acquitted itself well, playing to a scoreless tie. Acting coach Viktor Prokopenko said: "We've been waiting for this game for 90 years," reflecting the enthusiasm that prompted Oleh Lytovchenko of Olympia Greece and Oleksa Zavorovy of Nancy France, to seek brief leaves from their professional commitments to play in the match.

At IOC meetings in Toronto in early July, it was decided that the Ukrainian Olympic Committee would be given full independent status on January 1, 1993. Various press reports concerning the closure of many of Ukraine's training facilities and the difficulties engendered by the decentralization of the massive Soviet sports system, prompted the formation of a Toronto-based Olympic fund to aid Ukraine's athletes.

On August 12, the Canadian Ukrainian Sports Hall of Fame was launched at a gala dinner in Vancouver, B.C. Founded as a charitable non-profit corporation to recognize and pay tribute to Canadian Ukrainian athletes competing in the gamut of sports, from hockey and football to figure skating and track and field, it is expected to be formally registered by March 1993. The driving force in the creation of this hall is Bo Fodchuk of Vancouver, currently the chairman of its executive. A location for the exhibits is still being sought, and the collection is still being assembled.

On August 21, John Michaluk, a former linebacker (1966-1969) with the Hamilton Tiger Cats of the Canadian Football League, was named the club's president. Mr. Michaluk had been a Hamilton radio broadcaster, working a post-game show and then providing color commentary on the Tabbies' games since 1971.

Summer Olympics

The crowning event of the summer, and of the whole year, was the XXV Summer Olympiad in Barcelona. The first to see the blue-and-yellow rise to the strains of "Shche ne Vmerla..." was Oleh Kucherenko, a wrestler from Luhanske. The most prominent winner was Tetiana Gutsu of Odessa, who won the individual gymnastics gold under a blaze of TV cameras. All in all, the Ukrainian flag and anthem were brought out four times. Of course, it should have been five. Serhiy Bubka, the seemingly invincible pole-vaulter, was Ukraine's mighty Casey, and he struck out with a "no height" performance that stunned the world.

Ukraine's individual athletes also took in 11 silver medals and four bronze, and its contingent contributed to six of the EUN team golds and three of the team bronzes. Their performance impressed many media analysts, as did the efforts of UOC chief Mr. Borzov, who was the subject of an NBC profile during the Games. The focus of a Weekly profile, U.S. women's volleyball coach Taras Liskevych skippered his team to a respectable bronze in Barcelona.

Mr. Petrenko's year finished on somewhat of a down note, as he fell three times and came last at the World Professional Skating Championships in Landover, Md., on December 12. However, also in December, Evhen Pliuta of Ukraine won the gold medal in the men's singles at the World Junior Figure Skating Championships held in Seoul, Korea.

To conclude on a positive note for Mr. Bubka, the outspoken supporter of independent Ukrainian sports, he did not have an entirely disappointing year. He signed an almost baseball-like incentives contract with Nike (guaranteeing him $50,000 every time he breaks a record) and broke Paavo Nurmi's mark of 29 world records in track and field events. He now has 32, and counting, after rebounding from his debacle in Barcelona by setting new marks in Padua (August, 20'1") and Tokyo (September, 20' 11/2").

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