Although Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk’s Europa League final on May 26 was a 3-2 loss to Spain’s Seville on the pitch in Warsaw, Poland, one can pitch the notion it was a win for Ukrainians everywhere – and a highlight of sports news in 2015.
Fans who could not afford the trip were awarded transportation and tickets by the club. It was a great opportunity for Ukrainian sports fans affected by Russia’s aggression to escape, cheer for their countrymen and lift their spirits. The pro-Ukraine crowd in Warsaw voiced loud displeasure with Russian President Vladimir Putin. The expression of solidarity with Ukraine in the face of Russian aggression – during a major European soccer event that attracts millions of viewers worldwide – was a diplomatic slap in the face to Russia with soccer as the medium. Quite a contrast to Russia using the Sochi Olympics to high-five the “normalcy” of Russian expansionism, only to invade Crimea during the Paralympic Games. It is during times like this that soccer is more than a sport – it can serve as an international venue, a forum on world events – where fans can passionately cheer for their team while exuberantly showing support for their homeland.
In Olympics news, Serhiy Bubka announced on January 29 that he would challenge Sebastian Coe for the presidency of the IAAF. The challenge proved unsuccessful.
A shocker occurred in late November when boxing champion Wladimir Klitschko lost his four heavyweight titles to challenger Tyson Fury. Nonetheless there were many gold medals won, victories to celebrate and sporting events to commemorate during 2015.
Here’s our highlight package in sports, beginning with our sports writer’s annual The Ukrainian Weekly Sports Awards:
• Male Athlete of the Year – Oleg Verniaiev, gymnastics.
• Female Athlete of the Year – Anna Rizatdinova, rhythmic gymnastics.
• Coach of the Year – Serhiy Rebrov, Dynamo Kyiv.
• Team of the Year – Dynamo Kyiv, soccer.
Below, in alphabetical order by sports, is a listing of the top sports achievements of the year.
Ukraine’s women’s team won gold at the ARCHERY World Outdoor Championships in Denmark on August 1, their first ever outdoor victory.
Olesya Povkh won gold in the women’s 60-m race at the Russian Winter IAAF (International Association of ATHLETICS Federations) Indoor Meeting on February 1. Nataliya Pyhyda won gold in the women’s 400-m race on March 5-8 at the European Athletics Indoor Championships in Prague. Alina Fyodorova won first place in the women’s shotput. Anna Mischenko won gold in the women’s 1,500-m race with a time of 4:0709 seconds. Olha Zemlyak won gold in the women’s 400-m race (52.13 seconds) at the AADrink FBK-Games in Hengelo, Netherlands, on May 24. Mischenko won gold in the women’s 1500-m race at the 2015 IAAF World Challenge in Beijing on May 20. Bohdan Bondarenko won gold in high jump (2:24 m) on May 26 at the 54th Ostrava Golden Spike event in the Czech Republic as part of the IAAF World Challenge Meetings. Oleksiy Kasyanov won first place in the men’s long jump and discus throw at the TNTExpress Meeting in men’s decathlon on June 12-13 in Kladno, Czech Republic. Ukraine won 46 medals – eight of them gold – at the Baku 2015 European Games on June 12-28. Ukraine was represented by 241 athletes among 6,000 competitors from 50 nations. Ukraine won 31 medals (eight gold) at the 2015 Gwanju student youth games on July 3-14 in South Korea. Artistic gymnast Oleg Verniaiev won six medals (three gold) – the best total for any individual competitor. First place Ukrainian winners at the IAAF World Challenge Meeting in Italy on September 13 included Anastasia Tkachuk (800 m), Yulia Chumachenko (high jump) and Krystyna Hruskutyna (long jump).
Tampa Bay’s third baseman, Evan Longoria, Ukrainian on his mother Ellie’s side, is a true franchise player – the face of the BASEBALL Rays.
Kelly Olynyk shows lots of promise for the rebuilding Boston Celtics, while Alex Len proved himself worthy of a No. 5 overall National BASKETBALL Association draft pick in his second pro season.
Ukraine’s women’s relay BIATHLON team Juliya Dzhyma, Natalya Burgyda, Valj Semerenko and Iryna Varvynets) won first place in the 4×6-km relay at the IBU Open European championships on January 27-February 3. Anna Kryvonos, 17, won gold in the 10-km individual event at the Junior World Biathlon Championship in Belarus on February 18. Valentyna Semerenko won gold in the women’s 12.5-km mass start, finishing in 34:32.9 seconds at the World Championships in Finland on March 5-15. Varvynets won gold in the women’s 25-km sprint at the IBM Cup in Italy on December 10-13.