Soccer
• Ukraine has drawn Group B, with Lithuania, Luxembourg, Portugal and Serbia, as part of the 2020 European Soccer Championships. The draw was made in Dublin, Ireland, on December 2. The qualifying rounds begin on March 21 and end in November. The 10 group winners and runners-up automatically qualify for the final stage of the tournament. The final four spots will be won by a play-off round among the 16 UEFA Nations League group winners.
• Oleksandriya bumped Dynamo Kyiv to third place in the Ukrainian Premier League after Dynamo lost 1-2 against Oleksandriya on November 25. Oleksandriya has been on a winning streak in the UPL with five wins and two draws, and hold second place in the standings with 33 points to Dynamo’s 32. Shakhtar Donetsk holds the top spot with 41 points.
• Shakhtar Donetsk, in Group F of the UEFA Champions League group stage, won 3-2 against 1899 Hoffenheim on November 27, lost 0-6 against Manchester City on November 7, lost 0-3 against Manchester City on October 23, tied 2-2 with Lyon on October 2 and tied 2-2 with Hoffenheim on September 19. Oleksandr Zinchenko, who plays for Ukraine’s national team, plays for Manchester City, as does ex-Shakhtar player Fernandinho. Shakhtar, in third place in the group with five points, plays against Lyon on December 12.
• Ukraine tied 1-1 with Italy on October 10 at Stadio Communale Luigi Ferraris as part of an international friendly match. The Italian side’s opening goal in the 55th minute was hard won after a scoreless first half. Ukraine kept the pressure on after it equalized in the 62nd minute. On November 20, Ukraine tied 0-0 with Turkey in an international friendly in Antalya, Turkey.
• In the UEFA Europa League, Vorskla Poltava, in third place in Group E with four points, lost 0-3 against Arsenal (England) on November 29, lost 0-1 against Qarabag (Azerbaijan) on November 8, won 1-0 against Qarabag on October 25, lost 1-2 against Sporting CP (Portugal) on October 4, lost 2-4 against Arsenal on September 20. Poltava plays against Sporting on December 13. Vorskla had its November 29 match moved from Poltava to Kyiv after martial law was declared in 10 oblasts, following the Russian attack on Ukrainian naval vessels. UEFA, following its emergency committee meeting, said it would monitor and evaluate the situation in Ukraine in the coming days before making any decision on the possible transfer of other matches. Dynamo Kyiv, in first place in Group K with 11 points, won 1-0 against Astana (Kazakhstan) on November 29, won 3-1 against Rennes (France) on November 8, won 2-1 against Rennes on October 25, tied 2-2 with Jablonec (Czech Republic) on October 4, and tied 2-2 with Astana on September 20. Dynamo plays against Jablonec on December 13. The top two teams in each group advance to the knockout stage.
• Dynamo Kyiv tied 0-0 with Ajax (the Netherlands) on August 28 in Kyiv during its second-leg match of the UEFA Champions League after losing 1-3 on August 22 in Amsterdam in the first-leg match. Dynamo has been relegated to the UEFA Europa League. Zorya Luhansk was eliminated after its 2-3 aggregate loss against RB Leipzig. Zorya tied 0-0 with RB Leipzig on August 23 in Zaporizhia, and Zorya lost 2-3 in the second-leg playoff match on August 30 in Leipzig.
• Ukraine, in League B, Group 1 of the UEFA Nations League, won 1-0 against the Czech Republic on October 16 and won 2-1 on September 6, and won 1-0 against Slovakia on September 9. Ukraine, as the top team in the group, earned a promotion to League A. Ukraine lost 1-4 against Slovakia on November 16. Slovakia was relegated to League C.
• Ukraine’s women’s team won 2-0 against Hungary on September 4 as part of the UEFA qualifier group stage for the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2019. Ukraine lost 0-3 against Sweden on August 30 in Gothenburg, Sweden, and after eight matches played, finished in third place in Group 4 qualifiers for the 2019 FIFA women’s World Cup. Ukraine did not advance.
• Ukraine’s women’s club WFC Zhytlobud-1 Kharkiv is in first place of Group 6 of the UEFA Champions League, with nine points (3-0-0, with 16 goals for and three against) after three matches played. Kharkiv won 8-0 against Birkirkara (Malta) on August 7, won 5-2 on August 10 against Cardiff Met Ladies (Wales), and won 3-1 on August 13 against Olimpia Cluj (Romania). In the knockout stage, Kharkiv lost 1-6 against Linkoping (Sweden) on September 12 in the first leg and 0-4 on September 26 in the second-leg match.
• Ukraine’s men’s U-21 team finished in third place in Group 4 of the UEFA U-21 Championship. After 10 matches played, Ukraine had five wins, two losses and three draws, with 18 goals for and 12 against. Ukraine lost 0-3 against the Netherlands on October 16, won 3-1 against Scotland on October 12, won 1-0 against Andorra on September 11, and won 3-2 against Latvia on September 7.
• Ukraine’s men’s U-19 team, in Group 8 of the UEFA U-19 Championships, won 1-0 against Albania on October 10, lost 1-2 against Norway on October 13 and won 4-1 against Slovakia on October 16. Ukraine topped Group 8 with six points and advanced to the Elite Round.
• Ukraine’s men’s U-17 team, in Group 2 of the UEFA Under-17 Championships qualifiers, lost 0-2 against Iceland on October 10, won 11-0 against Gibraltar on October 13, lost 0-4 against Denmark on October 15 and won 3-2 against Bosnia and Herzegovina on October 16. Ukraine tops Group 2, with seven points and a 12-goal differential (16 for, four against), and advanced to the Elite Round.
• Ukraine’s women’s under-19 team, in second place in Group 8 in the UEFA Women’s U-19 Championship, won 4-0 against the Faroe Islands on October 2, won 2-0 against Lithuania (group host) on October 5 and lost 0-3 against Ireland on October 8. The top two teams in each group advance to the Elite round, while third-place finishers, if among the two best third-place teams, advance to the Elite round.
• Ukraine’s women’s U-17 team, in the Group 1 of the UEFA Women’s U-17 Championship qualifiers, lost 0-2 against the Czech Republic on October 18, lost 0-4 against Denmark and won 4-1 against the Faroe Islands on October 21. Ukraine finished in third place in Group 1 with three points.
• Lviv Oblast (group host), finished in second place in Group 6 of the UEFA Regions’ Cup, lost 0-1 on October 8 against Castile and Leon (Spain), won 1-0 on October 5 against KaaPo (Finland), and won 4-0 against Ugur (Azerbaijan) on October 2. The top team of each group advanced to the final tournament.
• Shakhtar Donetsk finished in fourth place of Group F after it tied 1-1 with Hoffenheim on November 27, lost 1-4 against Manchester again on November 7, tied 1-1 with Manchester City on October 23 and lost 0-2 against Lyon on October 2 and lost 1-2 against Hoffenheim on September 19 as part of the group stage of the UEFA Youth League. Shakhtar plays against Lyon on December 12. Dynamo Kyiv qualified for the round of 32, where it won 2-1 against Anderlecht on November 27, tied 1-1 with Anderlecht on November 6, won 5-1 on October 24 against Septemvri (Bulgaria) and won 1-0 against Septemvri on October 3.
• Luka Modric (Croatia) was honored as the Best FIFA Men’s Player at its award ceremony on September 24 in London. Modric, 33, won the award after Ukraine’s voting members, Andriy Shevchenko, Ukrainian National Team coach, and Andriy Pyatov, UNT team captain, voted for the Real Madrid midfielder. Modric displayed solidarity with Ukraine during Croatia’s 2018 World Cup win over Russia.
• The Football Federation of Ukraine was fined 35,000 euros following a UEFA Nation’s League match between Ukraine and the Czech Republic on September 6. Eight Ukrainian fans were detained after they invaded the pitch, following Ukraine’s 2-1 victory. Additional funds reported as losses for the Czech team are also to be compensated by the FFU.
Futsal
• Ukraine has drawn Group 4 of the UEFA U-19 Futsal European Championship, with Romania, Belgium and Macedonia. Matches are scheduled for March 26-31, 2019. The seven group winners will join host Latvia for the final stage of the tournament on September 8-14, 2019, in Riga. The group stage draw was made on November 1 in Nyon, France.
• Ukraine, group host and winner of Group 3 of the UEFA Women’s Futsal Euro Cup, tied 4-4 with Hungary on September 12, won 4-2 against Belarus on September 13 and won 7-0 against Kazakhstan on September 15. Ukraine, with seven points in Group 3, advances to the semifinal for February 14-17, 2019. Other teams in the final stage include Portugal, Russia and Spain.
• Ukraine’s P. Kherson club, in Group 2 of the UEFA Futsal Champions League, lost 0-3 against Inter (Spain) on October 3, lost 2-3 against Ekonomac Kragujevac (Serbia) on October 4, and lost 0-1 against Chrudim (Czech Republic) on October 6.
Tennis
• Lyudmyla and Nadiia Kichenok won the WTA Elite Trophy in Chuhai, China, on October 30 through November 4. In the final, the Kichenok sisters won 6-4, 3-6, 10-7 against Shuko Aoyama of Japan and Lidziya Marozava of Belarus.
• Dayana Yastremska, 18, won the WTA tournament in Hong Kong on October 14. Yastremska won 6-2, 6-1 in the final against Wang Qiang of China. It was the Ukrainian player’s first WTA title in her career, earning a ranking of 66th.
• Elina Svitolina (5,350 points) moved up one spot to fourth place in the December 3 WTA rankings. Lesia Tsurenko (1,755) is in 27th place, Dayana Yestremska (967) ranks 58th and Kateryna Kozlova (630) ranks 97th.
• Lesia Tsurenko lost 1-6, 1-6 in the quarterfinals of the U.S. Open against Naomi Osaka of Japan, who would become the 2018 tournament champion. Tsurenko won 6-7(3-7), 7-5, 6-2 against Marketa Vondrousova of the Czech Republic in the fourth round. Tsurenko complained of a viral illness on the morning of the quarterfinal.
• Ukrainian twin tennis player brothers Gleb and Vadim Alekseenko received lifetime bans and were fined $250,000 each for allegedly fixing multiple matches. Based on an investigation by the Tennis Integrity Unity, Richard McLaren, an independent anti-corruption hearing officer, made the ruling on October 15. The cited offenses took place at tournaments in Romania, Russia, Germany and Turkey between June 2015 and January 2016. The lifetime ban includes prohibition against playing as well as attending matches sanctioned by ATP/WTA events or recognized by the governing bodies of the sport.
Boxing
• Cruiserweight champion Oleksandr Usyk (16-0, 12 KO) defended his WBC, IBF, WBO and WBA titles against Tony Bellew (29-3-1, 19 KO) of Great Britain with an eighth-round knockout in a fight scheduled for 12 rounds on November 10 at Manchester Arena in Manchester, England. Referee Terry O’Connor stopped his count and waved off the fight after Bellew was flattened by a left cross from the undefeated southpaw. Experts speculate that Usyk plans to move up to the heavyweight division, following a respite with family during his time off. Usyk is ranked third by BoxRec, while Vasyl Lomachenko was ranked fifth.
• Super lightweight Viktor Postol (30-2, 12 KO) won by points 99-91 after 10 rounds against Siar Ozgul (14-2, 3 KO) of Turkey on November 3 at the SSE Hydro in Glasgow, Scotland. Ozgul resides in Great Britain.
• Middleweight Sergey Derevyanchenko (11-1, 9 KO) lost by split decision after 12 rounds against Daniel Jacobs (35-2, 29 KO) of the U.S.A. on October 27 at Madison Square Garden in New York. Jacobs stripped Derevyanckenko of his IBF middleweight title, and judges scored the fight 113-114, 115-112, 115-112 in favor of Jacobs.
• Middleweight Andriy Velykovskiy (12-2-1, 7 KO) fought to a 12-round split decision draw against Maikalai Vesialou (8-0-1, 4 KO) of Belarus on October 14 at the Sport Hall Energia in Narva, Estonia. Judges scored the fight 113-110 (in favor of Velykovskiy), 113-113, 112-114 (in favor of Vesialou), with the European WBA middleweight title on the line.
• The World Boxing Council convention was held in Kyiv on October 1-5. Opening ceremonies were held on Poshtova Square. The convention attracted 700 participants from 160 countries, and included boxing legends Wladimir Klitschko, Lennox Lewis, Evander Holyfield, Julio Cesar Chavez, Tony Bellew and Oscar De La Hoya, as well as Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko. Mauricio Suleiman, chairman of the WBC convention, stated that the Olympic National Sports Complex in Kyiv, which seats 80,000 fans, would host a championship fight between cruiserweight champion Oleksandr Usyk and his next challenger. Mr. Suleiman noted that having the WBC convention in Ukraine was a sign of Ukraine’s authority in the global boxing community. The convention hosted fund-raisers for the reconstruction of a boxing hall in Mariupol, including a visit to a children’s hospital for a charity event and an autograph session with the boxing champions mentioned.
• Vitali and Wladimir Klitschko were included in the Guinness World Records for 2019 as champion brothers who had the largest number of fights at 116 (Wladimir: 69 fights, 64 wins, five losses – four by KO, 53 KO; Vitali: 47 fights, 45 wins, two losses by KO, 41 KO). The presentation was made on October 1 during a gala evening at the WBC convention in Kyiv. Mayor Vitali Klitschko stated: “This award is a surprise for me. Our record with Wladimir is a record for all those who supported the Klitschko brothers, who rooted for us and for Ukraine. We have always defended the honor of our country.”
• Heavyweight Iago Kiladze (26-4, 18 KO) lost by fifth-round TKO against Joseph Joyce (6-0, 6 KO) of Great Britain on September 30 at Citizens Business Bank Arena in Ontario, Calif. The fight was stopped by the referee in the fifth round.
• Heavyweight Sergiej Werwejko (8-2, 6 KO) lost by eighth-round TKO against Ali Eren Demrenzen (10-0, 10 KO) of Turkey on September 29 at Hansehalle in Lubeck, Germany. Demrenzen won the European WBO title in a fight that was scheduled for 10 rounds.
• Middleweight Oleksandr Stretsky (6-1-1, 3 KO) won by majority decision after 10 rounds against Bartlomiej Grafka (21-31-3, 10 KO) of Poland on September 8 in Poznan, Poland. The judges scored the fight 96-94, 95-95, 97-93.