In BOXING, cruiserweight Alexander Usyk defeated Andrey Kayazev on April 18 in Kyiv when the challenger showed no more fight in him after seven punishing rounds. The win earned Usyk the WBO Intercontinental title. Wladimir Klitschko outpointed Bryant Jennings in the champion’s first U.S. fight in seven years, successfully defending his five heavyweight titles with a unanimous decision on April 25. The heavyweight title fight held in New York’s Madison Square Garden was almost as much about the Ukrainian fight against separatists/Russia as it was about boxing. Ukrainian flags, posters, chants and songs garnered much exposure in print, local and cable television, as well as social media. Featherweight WBO champion Vasyl Lomachenko won by ninth-round KO against Gamaliaer Rodriguez on May 2 in Las Vegas, a bout more exciting than the hyped Mayweather-Pacquiao headliner fight. Usyk bested Johnny Muller in a 3-round TKO on August 29 in Kyiv to retain his WBO Intercontinental title. Viktor Postol won by KO against Lucas Martin Mtthysse on October 3 in Carson, Calif., winning the WBC super lightweight title. Welterweight Taras Shelestyuk won by unanimous decision against Aslanbek Kozaev on November 6 in Las Vegas. Shelestyuk holds the WBA, WBO and NABO welterweight titles. Lomachenko retained his featherweight title against Romulo Koasicha on November 7 in Las Vegas. In a shocking result, heavyweight champ Wladimir Klitschko was outpointed by Tyson Fury in Dusseldorf, Germany on November 28, losing his WBA, IBF, IBO and WBO titles. It was his first loss since April 2004. Usyk retained his cruiserweight title by 7th round TKO of Pedro Rodriguez in Cuba on December 12.
NOCU
WBO Intercontinental Title champion Oleksander Usyk sports a title belt after winning against Andrey Knyazev of Russia at the Sports Palace in Kyiv on April 18.
Dmytro Ianchuk and Taras Mishchuk won gold in the men’s 1,000-m CANOE sprint at the European Canoe Association Championships in the Czech Republic on May 1-3. A four-member Ukrainian team won first place in the men’s U-23 C-4 Canoe Sprint (500 m) at the International Canoe Federation’s Canoe Sprint Championships in Portugal on July 23-26. Ukraine’s junior competitors won seven medals (one gold) and the under-23 team won three medals (two gold). Liudmyla Luzan won first place in the junior women’s 500-m C-1 race.
Maria Muzychuk won the CHESS world championship in Sochi, Russia on April 5, earning the title of Grandmaster with a FIDE score of 2528. Nataliya Buksa, 19, won the World Junior U-20 Championships in Russia on September 1-16, finishing with 10 points in the final. Veronika Veremyuk, 8, won the European Chess Junior Championship in Croatia on September 20-October 1.
In CYCLING, Andrei Grivko raced in the 2015 Tour de France and continues to be outspoken in his support for his homeland’s ongoing conflict with the separatists and Russia.
Ukraine’s women’s saber team (Olga Kharlan, Alina Komashchuk, Olena Kravatska and Olga Zhovnir ) won first place at the World Cup in Athens on February 2. Kharlan won first place at the Moscow Saber Grand Prix on May 29-31 in Moscow. Kharlan won first place in the women’s saber event at the FENCING Grand Prix in South Korea on March 28. Ukraine’s women’s saber team (Kharlan, Olena Voronina, Kravatska and Halyna Pundyk) won the World Cup of Fencing in Orleans, France, on November 1. Ukraine’s junior men’s epee team won gold at the World Cup team challenge in Slovakia on November 28.
GYMNASTICS saw Oleh Verniaiev win first place in the AT&T American Cup on March 7 with a score of 90.597 pts., including first place in parallel bars. Verniaiev won gold at the 2015 World Challenge Cup final in Slovenia on April 3-5. Rhythmic gymnast Anna Rizatdinova won gold in Padna, Italy, on December 5. Angelina Kysla and Verniaiev won first place in the combined team event at the Swiss Cup in Zurich on November 8. Verniaiev won first place in the men’s all-around (four events) at the 32nd Arthur Gander Memorial tournament in Switzerland on November 4.
Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame
A young Terry Sawchuk
Look for Jayce Hawryluk on the Florida Panthers’ roster in the National HOCKEY League in 2016-17 after he completes his goal-filled juniors career. Two-time Stanley Cup champion Ruslan Fedotenko fled the KHL to sign with Minnesota’s AHL affiliate, Iowa Wild, in hopes of returning to the NHL. Curtis Lazar (Ottawa), Hunter Shinkaruk (Vancouver) and Morgan Klimchuk (Calgary) were three young Ukrainians selected in the first round of the 2013 NHL draft. Arguably the best goaltender ever to play in the NHL, Terry Sawchuk, is having his story told in the form of a movie being produced by Winnipeg-native Danny Schur. Goalie Devan Dubnyk’s resurgence led to a new, six-year $25 million contract with Minnesota. The Islanders rewarded Johnny Boychuk with a seven-year, $42 million deal in mid-March.