SOCCER
Ukraine draws the Netherlands in Euro 2020
Ukraine was placed in Group C with the Netherlands (group hosts) as part of the group stage of the UEFA Euro 2020. The remaining two teams in Group C are to be named based on results of the play-offs (if Romania wins Path A of the play-offs it will be placed in Group C, otherwise the remaining teams – Bulgaria, Hungary and Iceland – will be placed in Group F, with the play-off finals on March 31, 2020; should the latter happen, the winner of Path D play-offs will advance to Group C, if Romania wins Path A, the winner of Path D – Georgia, Belarus, North Macedonia, Kosovo – will enter Group F). Matches are set for June 14, 18, 22, and if Ukraine finishes in first or second place in its group, will advance to the Round of 16, which begins on June 27. Ukraine’s goalkeeper, Andriy Pyatov, was ranked in 19th place (1,459 points) among the best players of the qualification tournament. The ranking was determined by the FedEx Performance Zone algorithm, which evaluated the contribution of players to the success of their national teams.
U-19 men’s team advance to Euro elite round
Ukraine’s Under-19 men’s team won 2-1 against Sweden in the qualifying round of the 2020 UEFA European U-19 Championships on November 19. The Elite Round matches resume in the spring 2020, with the final stage of the tournament held in Northern Ireland.
Rada investigates FFU head Pavelko
Some 260 members of Parliament voted to create a provisional commission for investigation into alleged abuse by Andriy Pavelko, president of the Football Federation of Ukraine. The investigation focuses on issues of financing and implementation of construction of football pitches with artificial turf in Ukraine in 2017-2018. The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine reported on June 2018 that such an investigation was underway and that the NBU searched the premises of the FFU in June of this year. Investigative journalists from Bihus.info said that the price per square meter of artificial turf proposed by FFU Production was 3-4 euros higher than its competitors, which import their products to Ukraine from abroad, also the majority of the 300 tenders for the contracts were held without open auctions for competitive bidding.
Ukraine wins 1-0 against Estonia in friendly
Ukraine won 1-0 against Estonia in an international friendly match on November 14 in Zaporizhia. Roman Bezus scored the lone goal late in the match in extra time of the second half at 90+2 minutes. Statistically, Ukraine dominated the match, with 67 percent ball possession, 91 percent passing accuracy, nine corner kicks, five shots on target, and one yellow card shown the Ukrainian side. Estonia was shown three yellow cards during the match.
Yaremchuk to continue playing for Gent
Roman Yaremchuk, who plays for Ukraine’s national team, said he was not going to move to another European club in the near future, after extending his contract with Gent. He said his thoughts are focused on this team. “I like everything here.”
Dynamo fined 500k hryvnia for fan behavior
Dynamo Kyiv was fined 500,000 UAH and will play a match in an empty stadium after a ruling by the Control and Disciplinary Committee of the Ukrainian Association of Football found its fans guilty of misconduct during the Ukrainian Premier League match against Shakhtar Donetsk on November 10. Shakhtar midfielder Taison was disqualified for one match and suspended for two more after he gave the middle finger to Dynamo fans during the same match. Ihor Hryshchenko, a member of the committee, said the reports of the match delegate and the security officer stated that Dynamo fans had chanted racist monkey chanting.
BOXING
Slavinskyi wins by unanimous decision
Super featherweight Viktor Slavinskyi (11-0-1, 6 KO) won by unanimous decision after six rounds against Rigoberto Hermosillo (11-2-1, 8 KO) of the U.S.A. on November 23 at the MGM Grand Casino in Las Vegas. Judges scored the fight 60-54, 59-55, 58-56. Slavinskyi was an undercard of the Deontay Wilder-Luis Ortiz re-match.
JUDO
Second-place finish at cadet championships
Ukraine finished in second place with three gold, three silver and four bronze medals at the Cadet European Judo Cup in Gyor, Hungary, on November 15-17. Gold medalists were Iia Kuchava (52 kg), Yuliia Kurchenko (70 kg) and Yana Zinchenko (57 kg). Silver medalists were Yelyzaveta Lytvynenko (70 kg), Danylo Tokar (60 kg) and Rostyslav Berezhnyi (66 kg). Yevhen Honcharko (66 kg), Nazar Kulieshov (66 kg), Danylo Kulinych (55 kg) and Hahik Martirosian (50 kg) won bronze. Ukraine fielded a team of 31 male and 17 female athletes, and the competition attracted 461 athletes from 30 countries.
Bilodid wins gold at Abu Dhabi
Daria Bilodid (48 kg) won gold and Yakiv Khammo (+100 kg) won silver at the Grand Slam Abu Dhabi on October 25-27 in the United Arab Emirates. In the final matches, Bilodid won against Marusa Stangar of Slovenia, and Khammo lost against Roy Meyer of the Netherlands.
Cadets win gold and two silver in Slovenia
Anton Kleinos (60 kg) won gold and Heorhii Kurkoid (55 kg) and Ivan Shcherba (+90 kg) took silver. In the final, Kleinos won against Simone Aversa of Italy. Kurkoid lost against Mikhail Neliubin of Russia and Shcherba lost against Aleksandar Stojkov of Serbia.
Three gold, five silver, two bronze at worlds
Ukraine’s veteran judo athletes won 10 medals – three gold, five silver and two bronze – and finished in fourth place in the medals standings at the World Judo Championships for Veterans in Marrakesh, Morocco, on October 18-20. Illya Chymchyuri (90 kg), Nugzar Mesablishvili (100 kg) and Dmytro Selezen (+100 kg) won gold; silver medalists were Oleksii Ovcharenko (100 kg), Mykola Dankanych (66 kg), Volodymyr Ivanenko (+100 kg), Oleksandr Venher (66 kg) and Vitaliy Yuzhakov (66 kg); and bronze medalists were Ievgenii Suprun (90 kg) and Georgii Pyshniak (81 kg).
Two silver, one bronze at Cadet Worlds
Rsotylsav Berezhnyi (66 kg) and Tymur Valieiev (90 kg) won silver medals at the World Championship Cadets in Almaty, Turkey, on September 28-29. Mykyta Holoborodko (50 kg) won bronze.
Ukraine wins third at blind grand prix
Ukraine won third place in the medals standings (one gold and one bronze) at the IBSA Judo Grand Prix (for blind athletes) in Tashkent on September 21-22. Inna Cherniak (B3, 52 kg) won gold in the final against Priscilla Gagne of Canada and Davyd Khorava (B2, 66 kg) won bronze against Sergio Ibanez Banon of Spain.
Khammo and Cherniak win bronze
Yakiv Khammo (+100 kg) and Maryna Cherniak (48 kg) won bronze medals at the Judo Grand Prix in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, on September 20-22. In their respective bronze medal matches, Khammo won against Temur Rakhimov of Tajikistan and Cherniak won against Shushila Devi Likmabam of India.
Vehera wins Junior Euro championships
Yevhen Vehera (100 kg) won silver at the Junior European Judo Championships in Vantaa, Finland, on September 12-14. In the final, Vehera lost to Illia Sulamanidze of Georgia. Vehera won the semifinal against Tanou Keita of France. Ukraine fielded a team of nine male and seven female athletes, and the tournament attracted 342 athletes from 44 countries.
Bilodid wins gold at World Championships
Daria Bilodid (48 kg) won gold at the World Judo Championship in Tokyo on August 24-25. Bilodid won the final against Funa Tonaki of Japan. Ukraine finished in second place in the medals standings with one gold. The tournament attracted 839 athletes (509 men and 330 women) from 47 countries.
Team tops medals table at Junior Euro
Ukraine topped the medals table with 12 medals (three gold, two silver and seven bronze) at the Junior European Judo Cup in Cluj-Napoca, Romania, on August 17-18. Gold medalists were Yevheniy Balyevskyy (+100 kg), Vadim Velkov (90 kg) and Nataliia Chystiakova (78 kg). Silver medalists were Yaroslva Knysh (+100 kg) and Ruslana Bulavina (+78 kg); and bronze medalists were Serhii Bilets (90 kg), Stanislav Hulenkov (73 kg), Stanislav Semkov (66 kg), Stanislav Shapovalov (81 kg), Denys Tupytskyi (60 kg), Oleh Veredyba (60 kg) and Yevhenii Verkush (100 kg). The tournament attracted 234 athletes from 27 countries.
FENCING
Women’s épée team wins European Cup
Ukraine’s women’s épée fencing team – Kataryna Chentsova, Anna Taranenko, Oleksandra Seniuta and Daria Myroniuk – won gold in the team competition at the European Cup in Bucharest on September 29-29.
Wheelchair fencing team at Worlds
Ukraine won 10 medals at the Wheelchair Fencing World Championships in Cheongju, South Korea, on September 17-23. Individual gold medals were won by Serhiy Shavkun and Anna Pashkova, while in team competition, gold medalists were Andriy Demchuk, Artem Manko, Dmytro Seryozhenko and Anton Datsko. Bronze medalists included Natalia Morkvych, Oleh Naumenko, Nadia Dioloh, Serhiy Shavkun, Pashkova and Yevhenia Breus; in team competition, Morvych, Breus, Olena Fedota and Dioloh. The tournament attracted more than 200 athletes from 30 countries. Fifteen represented Ukraine.
Kharkova wins silver in women’s épée
Vlada Kharkova won silver in the women’s épée and countryman Anfisa Pochkalova won bronze in the same event at the fencing tournament in Bratislava, Slovakia, on September 14-15. In the semifinal, Kharkova won 15-12 against Pochkalova, and in the final, Kharkova lost 14-15 against Dorina Budai of Hungary.
WRESTLING
Women’s team third at Junior Worlds
Ukraine’s junior wrestlers won nine medals at the World Junior Wrestling Championships in Tallinn, Estonia, on August 12-18. In the men’s freestyle division, Erik Arushanian (70 kg) won gold and Andrii Dzhelep (61 kg) won silver. In Greco-Roman, Igor Bychkov (72 kg) and Dmitri Vasetski (77 kg) won bronze medals. In the women’s freestyle, Alina Akobiyian (57 kg) won silver, and bronze medalists were Maria Vynnyk (50 kg), Kateryna Zelenykh (59 kg) and Anastasiia Alpyeva (72 kg). In the junior women’s division, Alina Akobiia (57 kg) won silver.
Beleniuk is champion in Greco-Roman
Zhan Beleniuk (87 kg) was named champion of the world in Greco-Roman wrestling for 2019. In 2019, Beleniuk won gold at both the European Championships and at the second European Games.
TENNIS
Svitolina runner-up at Shiseido WTA Finals
Elina Svitolina won 7-6, 14-12, 6-4 against Karolina Pliskova of the Czech Republic at the Shiseido WTA Finals in Shenzhen, China, on October 27-November 3. Svitolina won 7-5, 6-3 against Simona Halep of Romania, and won 7-5, 7-6(12-10) against Sofia Kenin of the U.S.A. In the semifinal, Svitolina won 5-7, 6-3, 4-1 against Belinda Bencic of Switzerland, who retired in the third set. In the final the Ukrainian lost 4-6, 3-6 against Ashleigh Barty of Australia.
ATHLETICS
Mahuchikh, Bekh-Romanchuk win silver
High jumper Yaroslava Mahuchikh won silver in the women’s high jump (2.04 meters) at the World Athletics Championships in Doha, Qatar, on September 27 through October 6. Maryna Bekh-Romanchuk won silver in the women’s long jump (6.92 meters).
Protsenko wins silver at Meeting de Paris
Andriy Protsenko won silver in the men’s high jump (2.28 meters) at the Meeting de Paris on August 24. His best result this season was 2.32 meters for gold at the IAAF Diamond League final in Zurich on August 29, which gave him a wild card entry for the 2019 World Athletics Championships in Doha.
SWIMMING
Romanchuk wins gold in 1,500-meters
Mykhailo Romanchuk won gold in the men’s 1,500-meter freestyle (14:51.61 seconds) at the seventh FINA Swimming World Cup in Doha, Qatar, on November 7-9. The result set a world cup record. Romanchuk also won silver in the men’s 400-meter freestyle.
Bukhov wins gold at Junior Worlds
Vladyslav Bukhov won gold in the men’s 50-meter freestyle (22.13 seconds) at the Seventh FINA World Junior Swimming Championships in August 20-25 in Budapest.
GYMNASTICS
Three spots for Tokyo 2020
Ukraine secured three licenses in rhythmic gymnastics after its first-place win at the Rhythmic Gymnastics World Championships in Baku on September 16-22. Vlada Nikolchenko won bronze in clubs and finished in fifth place in the individual qualification (66 points total; hoop, ball, clubs and ribbon) and Chrystyna Pohranychna also qualified (59.950 points) in 22nd place. Nikolchenko finished in fifth place in the all-around and Pohranychna finished in 12th place. Ukraine also qualified a team for group competition.
VOLLEYBALL
Ukraine upset by Serbia in quarterfinal
Ukraine lost 2-3 against Serbia in the quarterfinal of the European Championships in Antwerp, Belgium, on September 24. Ukraine won 3-2 against Belgium in the round of 16. Serbia finished as the tournament winner and Ukraine finished in seventh place.
HOCKEY
Tkachuk signs three-year, $21M deal
The Calgary Flames signed forward Matthew Tkachuk to a three-year bridge deal with an average annual value of $7 million one week before the start of the 2019-2020 NHL season. The extension makes him the highest-paid Flames player for the upcoming campaign and keeps him with the team through 2021-2022. His contract is back-loaded in salary with the third year paying him $9 million, ensuring his qualifying offer will be huge. The restricted free agent has scored 71 goals and 174 points in 224 regular season NHL games since being drafted sixth overall by Calgary in 2016. He’s added two goals and one assist in nine playoff matches. The son of former NHL-er Keith Tkachuk and older brother of Ottawa Senators winger Brady Tkachuk put up career highs in goals (34), assists (43) and points (77) last season.
Mahura with three assists in three minutes
Josh Mahura, 21, a young Ukrainian, spearheaded a spirited Anaheim Ducks victory 7-4 against the Winnipeg Jets on October 29. During the second period, he got an assisted goal after a long pass to Troy Terry for a breakaway goal in the eighth minute. During the same period, he set up goals for Adam Henrique (6:18) and Derek Grant (9:10). Mahura is the fourth rookie (of seven) in Ducks history to record three assists in a game. During his time with the Ducks in the 2018-2019 season, he had one goal and four assists in 17 games.
CYCLING
Starikova wins bronze in Glasgow
Olena Starikova won bronze in the women’s sprint (11:44.1 and 11:27.6 seconds) at the Tissot UCI Track Cycling World Cup race in Glasgow, Scotland, on November 8-10. In the final race, Starikova won against Lea Sophie Friedrich of Germany.