Soccer
• Shakhtar Donetsk was eliminated from the UEFA Europa League after its 3-1 loss against Sevilla on May 5 in the semifinal second-leg match. Shakhtar tied 2-2 with Sevilla in the first-leg semifinal match on April 28 at Arena Lviv. Shakhtar won 3-0 against Braga of Portugal on April 14 in the second-leg match quarterfinal, and Shakhtar won 2-1 against Braga in the first-leg quarterfinal match on April 7 in Portugal.
• Oleksandr Kucher (Shakhtar Donetsk) and Andriy Yarmolenko (Dynamo Kyiv) were each fined 50,000 hrv after a fight between the two teams following the 24th round of the Ukrainian Premier League Championship. Each player is also suspended for three matches, following a ruling by the Control and Disciplinary Committee of the Football Federation of Ukraine.
• In the Ukrainian Premier League, Dynamo Kyiv (20-1-1) leads the standings with 61 points after 10 matches played. Shakhtar Donetsk (18-2-2) is in second place with 56 points. Prior to the season coming to a close, Dynamo secured the Ukrainian championship soccer title (the 15th title for Dynamo since Ukraine regained independence) after its 1-0 win against Vorskla Poltava at Olympic Stadium in Kyiv on April 24. Junior Moraes scored the lone goal in the 36th minute with an assist by Andriy Yarmolenko.
• Ukraine’s women’s national team lost 0-4 against France on April 11 in its Group 3 qualifying match for the UEFA Women’s Euro 2017. Ukraine won 2-0 against Albania (last place, zero points) on April 8 at Arena Lviv. Daryna Apanaschenko scored in the 15th minute and in the 74th on a penalty kick after Tamila Khimich was fouled by Albania’s Albina Rrahmani in the penalty area. After six matches played, Ukraine (3-1-1, 11 goals for and six against) is in second place (10 points) in the group that includes France (leader, with 18 points), Romania (third place, seven points) and Greece (fourth place, six points). Ukraine is to play against Greece on June 7 in Lviv and against Romania on September 15.
• FIFA released the rankings for June 2016, and Ukraine’s wins in April in international friendly matches against Cyprus and Wales (both ended 1-0) boosted its standings to No. 22.
• Ukraine’s U-21 team is in fifth place in the Group 3 of the qualifying round of the UEFA U-19 Championships that are to be played in Poland. After six matches played, Ukraine’s record stands at one win, one draw and four losses, for a total of four points with four goals for and nine against. France leads the group with 14 points, followed by Iceland (12 points), Macedonia (12 points), Scotland (eight points) and Northern Ireland (one point). Ukraine lost 0-2 against Macedonia on May 27 in Kyiv. Ukraine plays against France on September 2, against Scotland on September 6, against Northern Ireland on October 6 and against Iceland on October 11.
• Ukraine’s U-17 women’s team was eliminated from the Elite Round of the UEFA women’s U-17 Championship after finishing in fourth place in Group 2. Ukraine tied 0-0 with Northern Ireland on March 17, lost 0-4 against Spain (group leader with nine points) on March 22 and lost 0-7 against Denmark (second place with six points) of March 24.
• Ukraine won 2-0 against Northern Ireland on March 29 during the U-19 UEFA Championship elite round for Group 4. Ukraine tied 0-0 with Poland on March 26. Ukraine, in third place in the group with four points, will not advance to the playoff round. The Netherlands tops the group with seven points.
• Ukraine’s men’s U-17 team as part of the UEFA U-17 Championships in Group B finished in fourth place. Ukraine lost two matches (2-1 against Bosnia-Herzegovina on May 11 and against Austria 0-2 on May 8) and tied with Germany 2-2 on May 5.
• Ukraine’s women’s team won 3-1 against Greece on March 8 during the Group 3 Women’s Euro qualifier match in Athens. Ukraine is in second place in the group with 10 points after six matches played. Ukraine won 2-0 against Albania on April 8, lost 0-4 against France on April 11 and is set to play against Greece on June 7 and against Romania on September 15.
Futsal
• Ukraine won 5-1 against Slovakia on April 12 at the Odesa Sports Palace in Odesa as part of the FIFA Futsal World Cup playoff stage. In the first-leg match, Ukraine won 6-0 against Slovakia on March 22 at Sprtova Hala Klokocina in Nitra, Slovakia. Ukraine finished in first place in Group 1 with nine points after three matches played, against England, Belgium and Hungary. Slovakia finished in second place in Group 7. Ukraine advances to the final tournament to be held on September 14 through October 2 in Colombia. Other teams affiliated with UEFA that advanced include Kazakhstan, Russia, Italy, Azerbaijan, Spain and Portugal. Other teams that qualified include Australia, Iran, Thailand, Uzbekistan, Vietnam, Egypt, Morocco, Mozambique, Colombia, Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and the Solomon Islands. Four teams from the CONCACAF (Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football) are Cuba, Guatemala, Costa Rica and Panama.
Boxing
• Light heavyweight Sergey Demchenko (16-10-1, 12 KO) lost against Mehdi Amar (33-4-2, 16 KO) of France by unanimous decision after 12 rounds for the EBU title in Paris at Cirque d’Hiver. Judges scored 116-111, 115-111, 115-112. Welterweight Viktor Plotnikov (34-4-0, 16 KO) lost against Ahmed El Mousaoui (24-2-1, 6 KO) of France after the Frenchman knocked out the Ukrainian in the second round in a fight that was scheduled to go 10 rounds.
• Welterweight Taras Shelestyuk (14-0-0, 8 KO) won against Erick Daniel Martinez (11-5-1, 5 KO) of Mexico on May 20 at the Doubletree Hotel in Ontario, Calif. Shelestyuk won after Martinez retired in the third round of a fight that was scheduled for 10 rounds.
• Flyweight Artem Dalakian (13-0-0, 9 KO) won by eighth-round TKO against Silvio Olteanu of Romania (15-10-1, 6 KO) for the WBA continental title on May 14 at Parkovy Convention Center in Kyiv. Super Bantamweight Oleksandr Yehorov (16-1-1, 8 KO) won by unanimous decision (117-11, 116-12, 116-112) after 12 rounds against Andrey Isael (29-6-0, 9 KO) of Belarus. Yehorov won the vacant WBA continental title. Featherweight Oleg Yefimovych (28-22-0, 15 KO) won by third-round KO against Eugen Sorin Tanasie (19-2-1, 9KO) of Romania for the WBA continental title. Welterweight Dmytro Fedas (7-0-2, 4 KO) and Vladyslav Baranov (4-1-1, 3 KO) fought to a split-decision draw after six rounds, with judges scoring 57-56, 56-56, 56-57.
• On May 6 in Odesa, heavyweight Andrey Rudenko (28-2-0, 18 KO) won against Mike Mollo (21-6-1, 13 KO) of the U.S.A. for the vacant WBC international silver heavyweight title after Mollo retired in the seventh round out of 12 scheduled rounds. Judges scored 69-64, 69-64, 68-65. Super welterweight Eduard Skavinskyy (4-0-0, 2 KO) won by fifth-round KO against Andriy Velykovskiy (6-1-0, 2 KO) in a fight that was scheduled to go 10 rounds.
• Ukraine’s Sports Palace hosted a boxing night on April 23 in Kyiv. Super lightweight Denys Berinchyk (4-0-0, 3 KO) won by fourth-round TKO (in a fight scheduled for six rounds) against Emiliano Martin Garcia (12-1-0, 10 KO) of Argentina. Featherweight Oleg Malinovsky (18-0-0, 5 KO) won by majority decision after 10 rounds against Ruslan Berchuk (13-6-0, 6 KO) of Russia for the WBO European title. Judges scored 98-92, 96-94, 95-95. Super lightweight Mishiko Beselia (13-0-0, 9 KO) won by unanimous decision after eight rounds against Innocent Anyanwu (22-16-3, 13 KO), with judges scoring 80-72, 80-72, 80-72. Super middleweight Petr Ivanov (5-0-0, 2 KO) won by first-round TKO (out of six scheduled rounds) against Davit Ribakoni (11-12-5, 2 KO) of Georgia. Middleweight Maxim Bursak (33-4-1, 15 KO) won by unanimous decision after eight rounds against fellow countryman Ruslan Schelev (12-5-0, 6 KO). Judges scored 79-73, 78-74, 78-74. Light heavyweight Volodymyr Romanenko (4-3-0, 4 KO) lost against Salambek Baysangurov (7-0-0, 4 KO) of Russia with a third-round TKO (out of four scheduled rounds).
• Lightweight Ivan Redkach (19-1-1, 15 KO) fought Luis Cruz (22-4-1, 16) of Puerto Rico to a draw on April 19 as Sands Casino Resort in Bethlehem, Pa. Judges scored 93-94, 94-94, 94-93.
• Ukraine’s amateur-ranked boxers competed in the AIBA European Olympic Qualifier in Samsun, Turkey, on April 9-17. Oleksandr Khyzhiak (81 kg), Tetiana Kob (51 kg), Mykola Bucenko (56 kg), and Gevorg Manykian (91 kg) won bronze medals. Other quarterfinalists for Ukraine were Dmytro Zamotaev (49 kg), Ihor Sopinskyi (52 kg) and Dmytro Mytrofanov (75 kg), all finished in fifth place. Tymur Beliak (60 kg) was eliminated after losing 0-3 in the quarterfinal against Volkan Gokcek of Turkey.
• Light heavyweight Vyacheslav Shabranskyy (16-0-0, 12 KO) won against Derrick Findley (23-19-1, 15 KO) of the U.S.A. on April 15 at Belasco Theater in Los Angeles. Findley retired in the third of eight scheduled rounds.
• Light heavyweight Oleksandr Chervyak (15-6-1, 5 KO) lost by unanimous decision after 12 rounds against Enrico Koeling (22-1-0, 6 KO) of Germany on April 9 at MBS Arena in Potsdam, Germany, for the WBA Intercontinental title. Judges scored 119-109, 117-112, 118-110.
• Light heavyweight Oleksandr Gvozdyk (8-0-0, 6 KO) won by second-round KO against Nadjib Mohammedi (37-4-0, 23 KO) of France on April 9 at the MGM Grand Casino in Las Vegas. The fight was scheduled for 10 rounds.
• Super welterweight Arem Karpets (21-2-0, 6 KO) lost against Isaac Real (15-1-1, 8 KO) of Spain on April 1 at the Pabellon de la Vall d’Hebron in Barcelona. Karpets retired in the fourth round (out of 10 scheduled rounds) with judges scoring 40-35, 40-37, 39-37 in favor of the Spaniard.
• Welterweight Ivan Golub (11-0-0, 8 KO) won in the sixth round Marlon Aguas (9-1-0, 6 KO) of Ecuador at Buffalo Run Casino in Miami on March 25. Aguas retired in the sixth round in a fight scheduled for eight rounds.
• A night of boxing was held on March 18 at the KIHO Event Hall in Lviv. Welterweight Valentin Golovka (23-1-0 15 KO) won by no contest in the second round (out of eight scheduled) against Valentyn Kuts (22-6-0, 8 KO), both of Ukraine; welterweight Denys Lazarev (4-0-0, 1 KO) won against Giorgi Gujejiani (6-1-1, 4 KO) of Georgia after Gujejiani retired in the third round (out of eight rounds scheduled); super welterweight Artur Shamaida (0-4-0, 0 KO) lost against Shamil Galaev (1-0-0, 1 KO) of Russia after a first-round knockout (out of four scheduled rounds); super lightweight Pavel Petrov (3-3-0, 2 KO) won by second-round TKO (out of four scheduled rounds) against Mykyta Rodychenko (0-1-0, 0 KO); and cruiserweight Kostyantyn Dovbyshchenko (3-0-0, 1 KO) won by second-round TKO (out of four scheduled rounds) against Illia Berezhnoi (0-1-0, 0 KO).
• Middleweight Sergiy Derevyanchenko (8-0-0, 6 KO) won by eighth-round TKO against Mike Guy (8-2-1, 4 KO) of the U.S.A. on March 15 at Robinson Rancheria Resort and Casino in Nice, Calif. The fight was scheduled for eight rounds.
• Super welterweight Stanyslav Skorohod (10-1-0, 7 KO) won against Vladimir Borovski (21-61-2, 10 KO at the Art Prichal gallery in Kyiv on March 12. Borovski retired in the third round in a fight that was scheduled for six rounds.
• Light heavyweight Sergey Demchenko (16-9-0, 12 KO) won by 10th-round TKO against Mirco Ricci (17-3-0, 5 KO) of Italy at Palaboxe Amerigo Vespucci in Rome. Referee Massimiliano Bianco called the fight in favor of the Ukrainian after Ricci was tied up on the ropes with a barrage of unanswered blows, sparking a riot that erupted following the stoppage of the fight. Demchenko, 36, picked up the vacant EBU light heavyweight title.
• Super welterweight Ihor Fanin (15-11-2, 7 KO) lost by unanimous decision after 10 rounds against Sergio Garcia (20-0-0, 11 KO) of Spain at Poliderportivo Vicente Trueba in Torrelavega, Spain, on March 12.
• Light heavyweight Oleksandr Gvozdyk (80-0, 6 KO) won by second-round KO against Nadjib Mohammedi (37-4-0, 23 KO) on April 9 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. The fight was scheduled for 10 rounds.
• Middleweight Evhen Khytrov (13-0-0, 11 KO) maintained his undefeated record with a unanimous decision win after 10 rounds against Kenneth McNeil (9-2-0, 6 KO) of the U.S.A. on March 5 at Sands Casino in Bethlehem, Pa. Judges scored the fight 99-90, 97-92, 97-92.
• In the amateur World Series of Boxing, Ukraine Otamans are in second place in Group A (3-3-0). In the quarterfinal, the Otamans were handed a 4-1 loss against the British Lionhearts 4-1 on April 21-22 in London. Ukraine lost 1-4 against the Turkiye Conquerors on April 2 in Istanbul; Ukraine lost 0-5 against the Cuba Domadores (Group A leaders) on March 31 in Havana; and Ukraine lost 1-4 to the China Dragons (third place,) on March 12 in Chongqing, China. Ukraine’s top competitors include: Maksym Fatych (52 kg, third place, 2-0), Viktor Slavinskyi (60 kg, fifth place, 1-2), Serhii Bohachuk (69 kg, fourth place, 2-0), and Rostyslav Arkhypenko (+91 kg, third place, 2-0).
• A rematch is being finalized between former world heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko (64-4, 53 KO) and current champion Tyson Fury (25-0, 18 KO), with a proposed date of July 9 in Manchester, England, the latest suggested date and place.
Swimming/Diving
• Ukraine won 20 medals (five gold, 10 silver and five bronze) at the LEN European Aquatics Championships in London on May 9-22. Illya Kvasha won gold in the men’s one-meter springboard event and two bronze medals (three-meter springboard and three-meter synchronized springboard) with Oleksandr Horoshkovozov; Horoshkovozov and Maksym Dolhov won bronze medals in the men’s 10-meter synchronized platform. Yulia Prokopchuk won gold in the women’s 10-meter platform; and Hanna Krasochlyk and Vlada Tatsenko won silver in the women’s 10-meter platform synchronized. In mixed diving teams, Prokopchuk and Dolhov won gold in the 10-meter synchronized platform, and Prokopchuk and Horshkovozov won silver in the team event that featured 10-meter platform and three-meter springboard events. In the diving standings, Ukraine won third place with eight medals (three gold, two silver and three bronze). In synchronized swimming, Ukraine’s free routine team (Lolita Ananasova, Olena Grechykhina, Daria Iushko, Oleksandra Sabada, Kaderyna Sadurska, Anastasiya Savchuk, Kseniya Sydorenko and Anna Voloshyna) won gold; Voloshyna won silver in the solo free routine and in the solo technical routine, as well as the duet free routine and duet technical routine with Ananasova. Ukraine’s technical team routine and combined routine (Ananasova, Grechykina, Iushko, Sabada, Sadurska, Savchuk, Sydorenko and Voloshyna in the technical; Ananasova, Grechykhina, Iushko, Ekaterina Reznik, Sabada, Sadurska, Savchuk, Sydorenko, Voloshyna and Olha Zolotarova in the combined routine), both won silver. In synchronized swimming, Ukraine won second place with seven medals (one gold and six silver medals).
• Ukraine’s synchronized swimming team – Lolita Anansova, Olena Grechykhina, Kateryna Reznik, Kateryna Sadurska, Kseniya Sydorenko, Daria Iushko, Oleksandra Sabada and Anastasiya Savchuk – qualified for the 2016 Rio Olympic Summer Games during a Rio tournament on March 2-6 at Maria Lenk Aquatic Center. In team technical competition, Ukraine finished in second place with 72.9316 points, Ukraine won gold in the team free routine with 186.7855 points. Among the other qualifying teams are: Japan, Italy, Brazil, Russia, China, Australia and Egypt. Ukraine also qualified for the free duet segment.