Soccer
• On October 16, Ukraine, represented by the Ukrainian American Sports Club Tryzub, won 4-3 in penalty kicks after the match ended in a scoreless draw against the U.S.A, in the quarterfinal of the Philadelphia International Unity Cup at La Salle University in Philadelphia. Ukraine advances to the semifinal against the Ivory Coast on October 23 at Temple University. In the knockout round, Ukraine won 8-0 against Italy on October 8. In the group stage, Ukraine won 3-2 against Guatemala on September 10, won 5-0 against Sudan on September 18 and won 6-0 against Bhutan on September 25. The final match is scheduled for November 5 at Citizens Bank Park.
• Ukraine won 3-0 against Kosovo (one point) on October 9 and tied 2-2 with Turkey (fourth place, two points) on October 6 as part of the UEFA European Qualifiers. (The match was played in Krakow, Poland, because Ukraine does not officially recognize Kosovo as an independent state.) Other teams in Group I include Croatia (seven points), Finland (one point) and Iceland (seven points). Ukraine is in third place with five points. Ukraine tied 1-1 against Iceland on September 5 in a match that was played behind closed doors at Olympic Stadium (that holds nearly 80,000 fans) due to an infraction by Ukraine fans with the disciplinary measure issued by FIFA, the world governing body for soccer. Ukraine plays against Finland on November 12, and in 2017 against Croatia on March 24, against Finland on June 11, against Turkey on September 2 and against Iceland on September 5, then against Kosovo on October 6 and against Croatia on October 9.
• Ukraine’s women’s team lost 1-2 against Romania in the UEFA Women’s Euro match on September 15 in Cluj-Napoca, Romania. Ukraine finished in third place with 13 points after eight matches played, with 14 goals for and 12 against and a record of four wins, one draw and three losses. France topped the group with 24 points, followed by Romania (16 points), Greece (six points) and Albania (zero points). France advances to the round of 16, and Romania plays against Portugal on October 17 and October 25, with the winner advancing. The final is scheduled for August 6 in Enshede, the Netherlands.
• Ukraine’s U-19 women’s team won 2-1 against Azerbaijan on September 15 in Baku in the qualifying round of Group 8 in the UEFA U-19 Women’s Championship. Ukraine finished in second place with three points. Ukraine lost 0-5 against Spain on September 20 and won 5-2 against Latvia on September 17.
• Ukraine’s men’s U-19 team won 2-0 against Iceland on October 6 in its Group 13 qualifying match of the UEFA U-19 Championship. Ukraine leads the group with six points after three matches played. Ukraine then won 3-0 against Latvia on October 8 and lost 1-3 against Turkey on October 11.
• Ukraine’s men’s under-21 team is in fourth place with 11 points after nine matches in the UEFA U-21 Championships. Ukraine lost 2-4 against Iceland on October 11, Ukraine tied 1-1 with Northern Ireland (sixth place, two points) on October 6, won 4-0 against Scotland (in fifth place, eight points) on September 6 and won 1-0 against France (in third place, 17 points) on September 2 in Kyiv as part of Group 3 match play. Ukraine lost 0-2 against Macedonia (18 points) on May 27. The top team in each group and the top-four runner-up teams in the entire competition advance to the play-off round.
• In the UEFA Champions League, Dynamo Kyiv qualified for Group B after finishing in first place in the Ukrainian Premier League for 2015-2016. Dynamo, in third place after two matches, lost 1-2 against Napoli on September 13 in Kyiv, and tied 1-1 with Turkey’s Besiktas on September 28. Dynamo lost 0-2 against Portugal’s Benefica on October 19 and Dynamo plays against Benefica again on November 1, against Napoli on November 23 and against Besiktas on December 6. Shakhtar Donetsk was eliminated during the third qualifying round after losing against the Young Boys (Switzerland) 2-4 after penalty kicks. Shakhtar won the first-leg match 2-0 and lost 0-2 in the second leg match, forcing penalty kicks after a 2-2 aggregate score. Shakhtar plays in Group H of the UEFA Europa League.
• In the UEFA Europa League, Zorya Luhansk, in fourth place (one point) of Group A, tied 1-1 with Fehnerbace (Turkey) on September 15 and lost 0-1 against Manchester United (England) on September 29 and lost 0-1 against Feyenoord on October 20. Zorya plays against Feyenoord again on November 3, against Fenerbahce on November 24, and against Manchester United on December 8. Shakhtar Donetsk, in first place (six points) in Group H, won 1-0 against Konyaspor (Turkey) on September 15 in Turkey and won 2-0 against SC Braga (Portugal) on September 29. Shakhtar won 5-0 against KAA Gent (Belgium) on October 20. On November 3 Shakhtar plays against Gent again, and aganst Konyaspor on November 24 and against Braga on December 8. Eliminated during the third-round qualifier were Vorskla Poltava and FC Oleksandriya – with Poltava losing to Lokomotiva of Croatia (2-3 on aggregate after 0-0 in the first-leg and 2-3 in the second-leg matches that concluded on August 3) and Oleksandriya lost 1-6 on aggregate against Hajduk Split of Croatia (0-3 in the first-leg match, 1-3 in the second-leg match). Dnipro would have qualified for the Europa League group stage as the third-placed team of the Ukrainian Premier League for 2015-2016, but was excluded from participating in the 2016-2017 European competitions by the UEFA Club Financial Control Body. As a result, the fourth-place team, Zorya Luhansk entered the group stage instead of the third qualifying round, and the third qualifying round berth was given to sixth-place team FC Oleksandriya.
• Ukraine’s youth team is in first place (nine points) in Group 1 with France (four points), Scotland (three points) and Malta (one point, group host) in the UEFA Regions Cup for 2017. Ukraine, represented by Ingulee, Kirovohrad Region, won its opening match on October 5 against France’s Ligue Paris Ile de France 2-1, Ukraine won 3-0 against East West Central Scotland on October 7 and won 3-1 against Gozo Region (Malta) on October 9. Ukraine now advances to the final round of the tournament that is scheduled for June 2017.
• Andriy Shevchenko, 39, who used to play for Dynamo Kyiv, SC Milan, Chelsea and the Ukrainian national team, was elected the head coach of the men’s Ukrainian national team on July 15. The unanimous vote came from the Executive Committee of the Football Federation of Ukraine. Former coach Mykhailo Fomenko resigned from his post in July, following the team’s failure to move beyond the group stage of the 2016 Euro Cup in France. Fomenko, 67, has coached the team since 2012, and was not offered a contract extension following the disappointing results of the team at the 2016 Euro Cup.
• Dnipro midfielder Roman Bezus, 25, who plays for the Ukrainian national team, officially was signed on for a one-year contract to play for Belgian club St. Trudien. The announcement was made on July 12 via the official site of the Belgian club.
• Dnipro oligarch Ihor Kolomoisky, president of the Dnipro Football Club, dismissed rumors that the club was to be liquidated. Kolomoisky admitted that the club was facing financial difficulties, but said the club was being revamped. “The club will not exist in the same form as before. It is not normal to spend crazy amounts of money when the coefficient of useful activity equals zero. Approaches must be reviewed when ‘millionaire’ players lose to a team of postmen [a reference to Northern Ireland’s victory over Ukraine’s national team at the 2016 Euro Cup in France],” Kolomoisky said.
• In the UEFA Women’s Champions League, WFC Kharkiv finished in third place in Group 6 of the qualifying round and was eliminated from the competition. Other teams in Group 6 included SFK 2000 Sarajevo (who finished in first place), WFC Ramat Hasharon and Rigas Futbola Skola. Kharkiv won 2-0 against Riga on August 23, lost 0-1 on August 25, and tied 2-2 with Sarajevo on August 28.
• Ukraine’s UEFA Youth League team Dynamo Kyiv (in first place with seven points) tied 3-3 with Turkish club Besiktas on September 28 in Istanbul. Dynamo tied with Benefica in Group B after two matches played with four points each. Dynamo won 4-1 against Napoli on September 13. Dynamo won 2-1 against Benefica on October 19 and plays against Benefica on November 1, against Napoli on November 23, and against Besiktas on December 6.
Beach soccer
Ukraine is in first place of Group F of Division of the 2016 Euro Beach Soccer League. Ukraine lost 3-4 against Poland on September 7, won 9-0 against the Czech Republic on September 6, and won 8-5 against Georgia on September 2. Ukraine advanced to Stage 2, Group 3, and won 7-2 in a match against Moldova. In the second match, Ukraine lost 3-4 in extra time. In the play-offs, Ukraine won 3-2 against Germany, and finished in 10th place after a 1-3 loss to Spain. Poland won the final 6-3 against Switzerland.
Judo
• Ukraine’s judoka won two medals at the Judo Grand Prix in Zagreb, Croatia, on September 23-25 as part of the International Judo Federation tour. Dmytro Kanivets (73 kg) won gold after winning against Tommy Macias of Sweden; Stanislav Bondarenko (100 kg) won bronze after winning against Vito Dragic of Slovenia in the third-place match. Vadym Synyavsky (90 kg) finished in seventh place in a draw with Patryk Ciechomski. In the medals rankings, Ukraine was in fifth place out of 31 participating countries.
• Ukraine finished in fourth place with five medals (one gold, one silver and three bronze) at the Judo Grand Prix in Budapest, Hungary, on June 25-26 in a competition that attracted competitors from 55 countries. Stanislav Bondarenko (+100 kg) won gold after defeating Katsuma Euda of Japan in the final, Dmytro Kanivets (73 kg) won silver after a loss in the final against Rok Draksic of Slovenia, and Anton Savytskiy (100 kg), Artem Khomula (73 kg) and Iryna Kindzerska (+78 kg) won bronze. Khomula won the third-place match against Faye Njie of Gambia, Savytskiy won against Karl-Richard Frey of Germany, and Kindzerska won against Santa Pakenyte of Lithuania. In addition, Yelyzaveta Kalanina (+78 kg) finished in fifth place, and Oleksandr Romanyuk (100 kg) finished in seventh place.
Boxing
Heavyweight Alexander Dimitrenko (38-3-0, 24 KO) lost in the third round against Joseph Parker (21-0-0, 18 KO) of New Zealand on October 1 at Vodafone Events Center in Maukau, New Zealand. Dimitrenko, who is contesting the decision, complained to the referee that he was pushed and then punched by Parker while he had one knee on the canvas. The referee, Marlon Wright, did not see what Dimitrenko described, but stopped the fight at 1:38 of the third round after counting out Dimitrenko. Video evidence supports Dimitrenko’s claim. The Ukrainian, who holds German citizenship, was born in Yevpatoria, Crimea, and had hit the canvas three prior times. The WBO, which sanctioned the fight, said that officials had determined that Dimitrenko was attempting to fool the referee and the judges with his acting performance on the canvas. The decision is not likely to be overturned, as Parker, who is the No. 1 in the IBF and WBO ranking, had dominated the fight up to that point and was credited with a third-round knockout.
• Cruiserweight Oleksandr Usyk (10-0-0, 9 KO) won by unanimous decision after 12 rounds against Krysztof Glowacki (26-1-0, 16 KO) of Poland on September 17 at Ergo Arena in Gdansk, Poland. Both fighters were undefeated going into the fight and Usyk won the WBO cruiserweight title. Judges scored the fight in favor of Usyk 109-119, 111-117, 111-117.
• Cruiserweight Roman Golovashchenko (16-1-0, 14 KO) won against Gogita Gorgiladze (32-13-0, 27 KO) of Georgia on September 3 in Vinnytsia, Ukraine. Golovashchenko won by ninth-round TKO in a fight that was scheduled for 12 rounds.
• Light heavyweight Vyacheslav Shabranskyy (17-0-0, 14 KO) won by third-round TKO against Oscar Riojas (10-6-1, 3 KO) of Mexico on Augsut 19 at Belasco Theater in Los Angeles. The fight was scheduled for eight rounds.
• Lightweight Ivan Redkach (19-2-1, 15 KO) lost by unanimous decision after 10 rounds against Tevin Fermer (22-4-1, 5 KO) of the U.S.A. on July 30 at Barclay’s Center in Brooklyn. Judges scored 98-90, 98-90, 98-90.
• Heavyweight Andrey Rudenko (29-2, 19 KO) won by third-round knockout against Marcelo Luiz Nazcimento (22-14-0, 19 KO) of Brazil on July 24 in Odesa. The fight was scheduled for 10 rounds.
• Three Ukrainian boxers fought on July 23 at the MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas. Super lightweight Viktor Postol (28-1-0, 12 KO) lost by unanimous decision against Terence Crawford (29-0-0, 20 KO) of the U.S.A. Judges scored the fight for Crawford 118-107, 117-108-118-107. Light heavyweight Oleksandr Gvozdyk (10-0-0, 8 KO) won by sixth-round TKO against Tommy Karpency (26-5-1, 15 KO) of the U.S.A. in a fight scheduled for 10 rounds. Middleweight Stanyslav Skorohod (10-1-0, 8 KO) won by unanimous decision against Hikim Bryant (6-0-0, 4 KO) of the U.S.A. After six rounds, judges scored 59-53, 60-52, 60-52 for Skorohod.
• Two Ukrainian middleweight boxers fought on July 21 at Foxwood Casino Resort. Sergiy Derevyanchenko (9-0-0, 7 KO) won by second-round TKO (in a fight scheduled for 12 rounds) against Sam Soliman (44-14-0, 18 KO) of Australia, and Evhen Ktrov (13-0-0, 11 KO) won by ninth-round TKO (in a fight scheduled for 10 rounds) against Pail Mendez (19-2-2, 9 KO) of the U.S.A.
• Super lightweight Denys Lazarev (6-0-0, 2 KO) won by unanimous decision after eight rounds against Alexander Kotov (4-1-0, 2 KO) of Russia on July 11 at DIVS in Yekateri nburg, Russian Federation. Judges scored 77-75, 79-73, 79-73.
• Former heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko and the current WBO, IBO and WBA titleholder Tyson Fury are scheduled to fight on October 29 at Manchester Arena in England. The July 9 fight was rescheduled after Fury pulled out amid controversy with some speculating it was due to a shoulder injury during training, while others cite a failed doping test.
Fury was stripped of the IBF title after agreeing to a rematch against Klitschko rather than face mandatory challenger Vyacheslav Glazkov of Luhansk. Glazkov lost by third-round TKO against Charles Martin of the U.S.A. on January 16, and Martin picked up the vacant IBF title. Martin lost the title with a second-round knockout on April 9 against Anthony Joshua (17-0, 17 KO) of Great Britain. Fury also holds The Ring Magazine honorary title belt.
IBF contenders against Joshua’s scheduled defense on November 26 in Manchester include Joseph Parker of New Zealand and Kubrat Pulev of Bulgaria (Pulev lost to Klitschko in 2014), with the winner of that fight challenging Klitschko if he wins against Fury. Deontay Wilder (37-0, 36 KO) of the U.S.A. has held the WBC heavyweight title since 2015, with his latest defense on July 16 against Chris Arreola of the U.S.A., who retired in the eighth round.