CCRF is organizing a second Viktory for Kids ice show (08/10/03)

CCRF is organizing a second Viktory for Kids ice show

DANBURY, Conn. - Olympic Cham-pion Viktor Petrenko will host an all-star cast of Olympic figure skaters in a charity skating gala, Viktory for Kids, to benefit children who are still being affected by the 1986 nuclear explosion in Chornobyl, Ukraine.

Viktory for Kids will be held at the Danbury Ice Arena in Danbury, Conn., on Saturday, October 4, at 7 p.m. and will feature skating's brightest stars including: Olympic champion Brian Boitano, Olympic pairs champions Oksana Kazakova and Artur Dmitriev, Two-time Olympic pairs champion Ekaterina Gordeeva, Olympic champion Ilia Kulik, Olympic silver medalist Evgeni Plushenko, Olympic bronze medalist Timothy Goebel, world silver medalist Elena Sokolova, Ukrainian National Ice Dance champions Elena Grushina and Ruslan Goncharov, and the acrobatic team of Vladimir Besedin and Oleskiy Polischuk.

Mr. Petrenko initiated the Viktory for Kids campaign in 2001 in a broad-based effort to bring life-saving relief to his homeland. The nuclear disaster in Chornobyl still devastates the lives of people in Ukraine and causes the country to have one of the highest infant mortality rates in Europe. The first Viktory for Kids raised over $100,000 and the funds were used to build a neonatal intensive care unit in the Children's Hospital in Mr. Petrenko's hometown of Odesa, Ukraine.

This year the Viktory for Kids is working to provide training and new technology to save children, who are born with congenital heart defects (whose incidence averages over 6,000 per year in Ukraine), in addition to expanding cancer screening programs for both adults and children from the contaminated zones.

"It is an honor for me to be able to give something back to my home country," Mr. Petrenko said. "Being a father, I understand the importance of healthcare for all children and hope to give that opportunity to the children of Ukraine. I am also grateful to my friends in figure skating, who have dedicated their efforts to this cause."

Viktory for Kids will also feature a VIP fund-raising reception with a celebrity auction at the Colorado Brewery and Steakhouse in Danbury. All proceeds from the event will benefit the Children of Chornobyl Relief Fund (CCRF). Tickets will go on sale beginning August 19 at the Danbury Ice Arena; for information call (203) 794-1704.

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