Tennis
• Elina Svitolina won the Italian Open tournament in Rome on May 20-21 after winning 4-6, 7-5, 6-1 against Simona Halep of Romania in the final. Svitolina is ranked by the WTA in sixth place amongst the best tennis players in women’s singles. In the 2016-2017 tour, Svitolina tops the rankings, and with her fourth major title win this season, she leads the tour with 31 match wins. In the quarterfinal, Svitolina won 6-3, 7-6(9) against Karolina Pliskova of the Czech Republic. Svitolina is set to play in the Roland Garros tournament, known as the French Open, that begins on May 27 and ends on June 11. She is seeded in fifth place in the tournament. Svitolina won 6-2, 6-4 against Elise Mertens of Belgium at the BNP Paribas Istanbul Cup on April 24-30. This was her third title win for 2017, with the other wins including the Taiwan Open and the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships. Her next tournament in the Porsche Race to Singapore tour will be at the BNP Paribas WTA Final in Singapore on October 22-29. Svitolina lost 2-6, 7-6(4), 6-3 against SaiSai Zheng of China in the round of 64 at the Madrid Open on May 5-14. Lesia Tsurenko lost 6(5)-7, 2-6, 6-2 against Pliskova in the round of 64.
• Illya Marchenko lost 2-6, 4-6 against Thomas Fabbiano of Italy in the round of 32 at the FILA Seoul Open Challenger in Seoul, South Korea, on May 8-14.
• Sergiy Stakhovsky lost 2-6, 4-6 against Yuki Bhambri of India in the quarterfinal of the Karashi Challenger in Karashi, Uzbekistan, on May 8-13. Stakhovsky won 6-4, 7-6(5) against Karim-Mohammed Maamoun of Egypt in the round of 16, and won 6-2, 6-3 against Vladimir Ivanov of Estonia in the round of 32. In doubles, Stakhovsky and Denys Molchanov of Ukraine won 6-4, 7-6(7) in the final against Kevin Krawietz of Germany and Adrian Menendez-Maceiras of Spain. In the semifinal Stakhovsky-Molchanov won 7-6(1), 6-4; and in the quarterfinals, won 7-6(4), 6-2 against Sergey Betov and Yaraslav Shyla, both of Belarus. In the round of 16, Stakhovsky-Molchanov won 6-4, 6-2 against Vladislav Manafov of Ukraine and Aleksandr Nedovyesov of Kazakhstan.
• Illya Marchenko lost 1-6, 5-7 against Akira Staillan of Japan in the round of 16 at the Gimcheon Challenger in Gimcheon, South Korea, on May 1-7. Marchenko won 5-7, 7-5, 6-1 against Marko Tepavac of Serbia in the round of 32.
• Lesia Tsurenko lost 4-6, 3-6 in the first round against Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia at the J&T Bank Prague Open on April 29 through May 6. In doubles, Nadiaa Kichenok and Eva Hrdinova of the Czech Republic lost 5-7, 6-2, 9-11 against Maria Irigoyen of Argentina and Paula Kania of Poland in the first round.
• Sergiy Stakhovsky and Mikhail Kukushkin of Kazakhstan lost 6-7(4), 4-6, 5-10 against Julio Peralta of Chile and Horacio Zeballos of Argentina in the quarterfinal of the BMW Open by FWU in Munich on May 1-7.
• Sergiy Stakhovsky lost 4-6, 4-6 in the round of 32 against Tommy Robredo of Spain at the Grand Prix Hassan II in Marrakesh, Morocco, on April 10-16.
• Lesia Tsurenko lost 7-6(6), 2-6, 6-7(4) against Laura Siegemund of Germany at the Volovo Car Open on April 3-9 in Charleston, S.C.
• Yevhen Zukin was elected to the board of the European Tennis Federation at its 43rd annual general meeting on March 23-25 in Sochi, Russia. The meeting was attended by 89 delegates representing 39 member states of the International Tennis Federation. Vladimir Dmitriev of Russia was elected as the board president and his term expires in 2020. Joining the new board are Luisanna Fodde (Italy), Allar Hint (Estonia), Christian Jolissant (Switzerland), Ivo Kaderka (Czech Republic), David Rawlinson (Great Britain), Attila Richter (Hungary), and Eva-Maria Schneider (Germany).
• Elina Svitolina lost 5-7, 6-4 against Bethanie Mattek-Sands of the U.S.A. in the round of 64 at the Miami Open on March 21 through April 2. Svitolina earned a bye in the round of 128. Lesia Tsurenko lost 2-3 against Beatriz Maddad Maia of Brazil in the round of 128.
• Alexandr Dolgopolov lost 6-7(4) against Malek Jaziri of Tunisia after retiring after the first set in the first round of the Miami Open on March 20 to April 4.
• Sergiy Stakhovsky lost 5-7, 3-6 against Tobias Kamke of Germany in the quarterfinal of the Open Harmonie Mutuelle in St. Brieuc, France, on March 27 through April 2. In doubles, Stakhovsky and Lukas Lacko of Slovakia lost 6-7(5), 1-6 in the quarterfinal against Oscar Otte of Germany and Franko Skugor of Croatia.
• Illya Marchenko lost 2-6, 4-6 against Karen Khakhanov of Russia in the round of 32 at the 2017 BMW of Dallas Irving Tennis Classic in Irving, Tex., on March 13-19.
• Alexandr Dolgopolov retired during the second set (6-7(3), 1-1) in the round of 64 against Phillipp Kohlschreiber of Germany at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, Calif., on March 6-19. Dologopolov won 64-61 against Viktor Troicki of Slovenia in the round of 128.
• Elina Svitlina lost 6-7(5), 6-1, 0-6 against Garbine Muguruza of Spain in the round of 16 at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, Calif., on March 8-19. Lesia Tsurenko lost 2-6, 6-2, 5-7 against Shuai Peng of China in the round of 128.
• Elina Svitolina lost in a walkover against Nao Hibino of Japan in the round of 16 at the Alya Malayasia Open in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on February 27 through March 5.
• Lesia Tsurenko won 6-1, 7-5 against Kristina Mladenovic of France at the Abierto Mexicano TELCEL tournament in Acapulco, Mexico, on February 27 through March 4. In the semifinal, Tsurenko won 5-0 against Mirjana Lucic-Baroni of Croatia and in the quarterfinal, Tsurenko won 6-3, 7-6(5) against Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia.
• Elina Svitolina won 6-4, 6-2 against Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark at the WTA tournament in Dubai, U.A.E. on February 19-25. Svitolina won 6-3, 7-6(3) in the semifinal against Angelique Kerber of Germany and won 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 against Kristin Michael of the U.S.A. in the quarterfinal. With this latest win, Svitolina, who turned pro in 2010, overtook Britain’s Johanna Konta, being the first Ukrainian to ever break into the top-10 singles female tennis players. Kateryna Bondarenko lost 6-3, 2-6, 3-6 in the round of 16 against Wozniacki. In doubles, Svitolina and Bondarenko lost 7-5, 6(3)-7, 6-10 in the round of 32 against Irina-Camelia Begu of Romania and Daria Kasatkina of Russia. Lesia Tsurenko lost 1-6, 1-6 in the round of 64 against Shuai Peng of China.
• At the Fed Cup in Ukraine on February 11, Elina Svitolina won 4-6, 6-1, 6-2 against Ashleigh Barty of Australia and 6-3, 6-2 against Daria Gavrilova of Australia. Lesia Tsurenko won 6-3, 6-3 against Gavrilova in the first round. In week two of the playoff round, Svitolina won 6-4, 6-2 against Angelique Kerber of Germany, and in the second round, Svitolina lost 6-4, 1-6, 4-6 against Julia Görges of Germany in Germany on April 22-23. Tsurenko lost 4-6, 4-6 against Görges and lost 1-6, 4-6 against Kerber.
• At the Qatar Total Open on February 13-18 in Doha, Kateryna Bondarenko of Ukraine and Elena Vesnina of Russia lost 1-6, 6-3, 10-12 in the round of 16 against Gabriela Dabrowski of Canada and Darija Jurak of Croatia. In singles, Bondarenko lost 5-7, 1-6 against Christina McHale of the U.S.A. in the round of 16.
• Olga Savchuk of Ukraine and Raluca Olaru of Romania lost 2-6, 4-6 against Jelena Ostapenko and Alicja Rosolska at the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy on January 30 through February 5. Nadiia and Lyudmyla Kichenok of Ukraine lost 3-6, 6-4, 6-10 against Darja Jurak of Croatia and Xenia Knoll of Switzerland.
• Alexander Dolgopolov won 6-4, 6-4 against David Ferrer of Spain at the ATP tournament in Rio on February 20-26. Dolgolpolov won 7-6(4), 4-6, 6-4 against Horacio Zeballos of Argentina in the round of 16, and lost in the quarterfinal against Pablo Carreno Busta of Spain after retiring in the third set (losing 6-7(4), 7-6(2), 0-1).
• Alexander Dolgopolov won 7-6(4), 6-4 against Kei Nishikori of Japan at the Argentina Open in Buenos Aires on February 13-19. Dologopolov won 7-5, 6-2 against Pablo Carrero Busta of Spain in the semifinal; won 7-5, 6-4 against Gerald Melzer of Australia in the quarterfinal, and won 6-3, -76(4) against Pablo Cuevas of Uruguay in the round of 16.
• Illya Marchenko lost 3-6, 7-6(2), 3-6 against Maxime Janvier of France in the round of 32 at the Challenger La Manche in Cherbourg, France, on February 13-19.
Soccer
• Shakhtar won 1-0 against Dynamo on May 17 in the Ukrainian Cup 2016-2017 final at Metalist Stadium in Kharkiv. Marlos scored in the 81st minute after a setup by goalkeeper teammate Andriy Pyatov, with a pass by Facundo Ferreyra. It was the 11th time that Shakhtar had hoisted the Ukrainian Cup trophy, and this year marked the “golden double” win for the team, as it won the Ukrainian Premier League title this year as well. In the semifinal round on April 26, Dynamo Kyiv won 4-0 against MFC Mykolayiv, with three goals by Andriy Yarmolenko (46th, 81st on a penalty kick, and 91st minute) and one by Tamas Kadar (62nd minute). Shakhtar Donetsk won 1-0 against FC Dnipro, with Taison scoring in the 68th minute.
• For the 10th time Shakhtar Donetsk won the Ukrainian Premier League Championship, as Shakhtar won 3-2 against Zorya Luhansk in the 28th round of the Ukrainian Premier League on May 6 at Metalist Stadium in Kharkiv. Scoring for Shakhtar were Facundo Ferreyra (38th minute) , Ismaily (52nd) and Ivan Ordets (55th). Ihor Kharatin scored in the 80th minute and Dennis Bonaventure scored in the 88th minute for Zorya. Shakhtar, coached by Paulo Fonseca of Portugal since May 31, 2016, previously won the championship title in 2014 under coach Mircea Lucescu of Romania, who now is manager of Zenit St. Petersburg. Dynamo Kyiv, the defending champion, has won the UPL championship title 15 times and finished this year with 61 points (19 wins, four draws and five losses, with 62 goals for and 26 against). Shakhtar finished the 2016-2017 season with 75 points (24 wins, three draws and one loss, with 59 goals for and 19 against), Zorya finished in third place with 42 points (12 wins, six draws and 10 losses, with 39 goals for and 29 against). With the 10th championship win for Shakhtar, the team’s crest will gain a star to mark the achievement.
• In the FIFA World Cup qualifiers, Ukraine is in third place (two wins, two draws and one loss, seven goals for and three against) in Group I with eight points after five matches played. Also in Group I are Turkey (eight points), Kosovo (one point), Finland (one point), Croatia (13 points) and Iceland (10 points). Ukraine lost 0-1 against Croatia on March 24. Ukraine plays against Turkey on September 2, against Iceland on September 5, against Kosovo on October 6, and again against Croatia on October 9.
• Shakhtar Donetsk lost 0-2 against Celta Vigo in Spain on February 24 as part of the (round of 32) knockout stage of the UEFA Europa League and was eliminated from the competition after losing 2-1 on aggregate goals. Shakhtar won 1-0 in the first-leg match on February 23 at Metalist Stadium in Kharkiv. Shakhtar was relegated to the Europa League after being eliminated from the UEFA Champions League during the group stage.
• In the UEFA Youth League, Dynamo Kyiv advanced to the round of 16, where it lost 0-3 against Ajax of the Netherlands on February 21. The loss eliminated Dynamo from the competition.
• Roman Zozulya, who played for Spanish club Real Betis and was recently transferred to Rayo Valleecano, had his transfer put on hold because of suspicious rumors about a lapel pin he had worn that had a tryzub (trident, the national symbol of Ukraine), and accusations of Nazism. Ukraine’s Ministry of Information Policy contacted the Spanish Secretariat to clarify the matter that he was wearing a pin with the stylized trident or tryzub – the national symbol of Ukraine.
• Anatoliy Tymoshchuk, former player for the Ukrainian National Team, announced a stop in his playing career on the field. Having passed his pro coaching license on February 17, the 37-year-old, who set a record by playing 144 matches for the national team, is looking forward to enjoying a vacation. Tymoshchuk ignited controversy after he made an appearance, with a St. George ribbon, in St. Petersburg, Russia, to mark Victory Day on May 9 with his former club Zenit St. Petersburg. Among those in attendance was Shakhtar Donetsk former coach Mircea Lucescu.
• Ukraine’s women’s national team was ranked by FIFA in 27th place (1,726 points) as of April. The women’s team is ranked in 16th place among UEFA member states. Ukraine’s men’s national team is ranked in 37th place (761 points), six steps lower than in the previous month’s rankings by FIFA. Topping the list are: Brazil (1,661 points), Argentina (1,603), Germany (1,464), Chile (1,403), France (1,294), Belgium (1,281), Portugal (1,259), Switzerland (1,212) and Spain (1,204).
• In the UEFA Under-17 European Championships, Ukraine won 2-0 against Norway on May 10, lost 0-4 against England on May 7, lost 0-1 against the Netherlands on May 4 and finished in third place in Group D of the final stage. In the Elite Round group stage, Ukraine finished in second place in Group 6 after it won 2-1 against Sweden on March 23, lost1-3 against France on March 25 and won 2-1 against group host Austria on March 28.
• Ukraine was eliminated from the UEFA Under-19 European Championship after finishing in fourth place in Group 1 of the Elite Round of the tournament. Ukraine, with three points after three matches played, won 2-0 against Greece (four points) on March 23, lost 0-2 against the Netherlands (seven points) on March 25, and lost 1-2 against Finland (three points) on March 28. The tournament final is to be hosted by Georgia on July 15.
• In the women’s UEFA Under-19 European Championship, Ukraine in Group 4 of the elite round, lost 0-5 against Finland on April 4, and lost 0-2 against Ireland (group and tournament final host) on April 6 and lost 0-5 against Scotland on April 9. The final match is set for August 20 in Northern Ireland. Ukraine finished in fourth place in Group 4 with zero points, with zero goals for and 12 against.
• In the FIFA Women’s World Cup, Ukraine, in Group 4 of the qualifying round, is set to play against Croatia on September 15 and against Hungary on November 24. Matches resume in 2018, with Ukraine against Croatia on April 5, against Denmark on April 9 and June 8, against Sweden on June 12 and August 30, and against Hungary on September 4.
Futsal
• Ukraine, in Group C, advanced to the final stage round of the UEFA Euro Cup 2018 after winning 2-1 against Croatia on April 11. Other teams that have secured their spots in the final stage round include Azerbaijan, Italy, Kazakhstan, Russia, Portugal and tournament final host Slovenia. Ukraine (group host) won 1-0 against Belgium on April 8 and won 4-2 against Montenegro on April 9, and finished with nine points (three wins, with seven goals for and three against). Other teams who are set to begin playoff matches on September 10-13 and September 24-27 are Georgia, Hungary, Croatia, Romania, Serbia, Poland, the Czech Republic and France. The final stage of the tournament will have 12 teams competing. Ljubljana, Slovenia, will host the tournament final stage beginning on January 30, 2018, and ending on February 10, 2018.
Boxing
• Former Heavyweight Champion Wladimir Klitschko (64-5, 53 KO) is set for a rematch against the current IBF, WBA, IBO Champion Anthony Joshua (19-0, 19 KO) of Great Britain this fall, with a date of late October being the earliest likely date. Klitschko, as per his fight contract terms, has until early June to decide whether to pursue the rematch. Joshua has a mandatory IBF title defense against Kubrat Pulev (25-1, 13 KO) of Bulgaria.
• WBO Super featherweight champion Vasyl Lomachenko (8-1, 6 KO) is set for a rematch against Orlando Salido (43-13-4, 30 KO). Top Rank promoter Bob Arum expects the fight to take place this summer with a location to be announced.
• Lightweight Ivan Redkach (20-2-1, 16 KO) lost by split decision against Argenia Mendez (23-5-1, 12 KO) of the Dominican Republic on May 2 at Sportsman’s Lodge in Studio City, Calif. Redkach was deducted a point for head-butting, with judges scoring 95-94, 93-96, 94-95.
• Flyweight Artem Dalakian (14-0-0, 10 KO)) won by sixth round knockout against Luis Manuel Macias (9-4-2, 3 KO) of Mexico at Parkovy Convention Center in Kyiv on April 22. Also on the fight card, super-bantamweight Oleksandr Yehorov (18-1-1, 9 KO) won by third-round TKO against Lucas Rafael Baez (30-16-4, 15 KO) of Argentina and featherweight Oleg Yefimovych (29-2-1, 16 KO) won by seventh-round knockout against Urbano Guiliani (9-2-0, 2 KO) of Belgium. Each of the Ukrainian fighters won the WBA Continental title in his respective weight class.
• Super middleweight Max Bursak (33-5-1, 15 KO) lost by unanimous decision after 12 rounds against WBO World Super Middleweight Champion Gilberto Ramirez (35-0-0, 24 KO) of Mexico on April 22 at Stub Hub Center in Carson, Calif.
• Heavyweight Alexander Dimitrenko (40-3, 26 KO) won by first-round knockout against Adrian Granat (14-1, 13 KO) of Sweden on March 18 at Baltiska Hallen in Malmo, Sweden.
• Welterweight Serhii Bohachuk (3-0-0, 3 KO) won by third-round TKO against Yasmani Perdroso (1-1-0, 1 KO) of Cuba on March 18 at Madison Square Garden in New York. The fight was scheduled for four rounds.
• Middleweight Serhiy Derevyanchenko (10-0, 8 KO) won by fifth-round TKO against Kemahl Russel (10-1, 8 KO) of Jamaica on March 14 at Fitzgerald’s Casino and Hotel in Tunica, Miss. Derevyanchenko (10-0, 8 KO) is set to fight against Tureano Johnson (20-1, 14 KO) in a mandatory IBF challenge, with a date to be announced. The winner will then fight against the winner of the title unifier bout on September 16 in Las Vegas between Saul “Canelo” Alvarez (49-1, 34 KO) of Mexico and Gennadiy Golovkin (37-0, 33 KO) of Kazakhstan, who holds the IBF, WBC and WBA middleweight titles. Alvarez holds the honorary Ring Magazine title.
• Flyweight Oksana Romanova (9-19-1, 2 KO) lost on points in a six-round fight against Anne Sophie Da Costa (22-2-0, 10 KO) of France at Salle Rene-Tys in Reims, Marne, France, on March 4.
• Welterweight Vladyslav Baranov (5-2-1, 4 KO) lost by split decision after 10 rounds against Vaginak Tamrazyan (11-3, 3 KO) of Russia at the Sports Complex in Berezovsky, Russia, on March 4. Judges scored 93-97, 92-98, 97-93.