Oleksandr Kucherenko (midfielder, Inhulets Petrove)
When Russia invaded, I knew I could not remain silent. Our team had just returned from a training program on February 23. I began working with volunteer organizations in Lutsk, where my family and I lived and twice drove groups from Kyiv to the Polish border by vehicle. Nothing felt safe: I arranged for my wife, children, and mother-in-law to travel to the Czech Republic, and then pondered my next course of action. I have never handled a pistol, so I decided to get involved in volunteering.
I am primarily from the city of Slavyansk in the Donbas. My parents are still there, and they have been fighting since 2014. The Russians occupied Slavyansk for a long time; my mother and father survived, but my father’s stroke has made things extremely challenging.
Currently, Ukraine controls Slavyansk, but the situation in the region is critical and extremely hazardous. As a result, I began traveling there with humanitarian aid for civilians: the situation was rapidly deteriorating and the frontline was only 15 miles from the city. I traveled to Kramatorsk and the surrounding villages, helping whomever I could, and encountered a large number of soldiers along the way. I resolved to assist them as well.
Combining volunteering with my football career is difficult, but it is what I want to do. I participate in our Premier League events and then travel to Donbas on the weekends. I go to Bakhmut, Soledar – before the latter’s occupation in January – and other frontline cities. The military will call and request, for instance, a thermal imager; I collect funds, locate one, and deliver it to them.
Sergei Lavrienko, our coach at Inhulets until November, was aware of my work and was content for it to continue when the season resumed. After we resumed training in the summer, one of our brigades in Donbas was severely burned, requiring clothing, food, medication, and everything else. The coach instructed me to take as much time as I needed to assist them.
Lutsk found out about my job
Being a football player aids. I do not make a show of it but, when the humanitarian center in Lutsk found out about my job, they trusted me and gave me as many resources as they could. I have also raised funds through social networks by uploading videos of my travels to be as open as possible. There have been instances of imminent peril. When I was a half-mile away from the Russians near Kreminna, I witnessed the neighboring village being bombarded and shelled. I have fallen under fire twice in Bakhmut, once while evacuating people.
I have witnessed the significance of aiding and the extraordinary generosity of those at the front. On my birthday in October, I delivered a Jeep to their trench-dwelling location. They set the table for me, found the finest food they could find, and provided me with the most comfortable sleeping bag for the night.
Sadly, I have witnessed many individuals pass away, including women and children. I feel hatred and rage towards the Russians because they brought us conflict. Perhaps in the future, I will establish my foundation or fund. Football is my career priority, but volunteering ignites something within you.
I mourn my family. When I am in perilous situations, my wife is like a guardian angel because she is constantly concerned about me. If I could travel back in time, I would cherish every moment spent with them even more. I remember that before the war, I did not spend enough time with them because I adore them so much. Sometimes I placed too much importance on the incorrect things, but the past year has opened my eyes.
Ilya Kovalenko (forward, LNZ Cherkasy)
During the initial months of the invasion, I was in a stupor. My family is from a village called Kalanchak in the Kherson region, 20 miles from the border with Crimea; the Russians swiftly occupied it, which meant that my mother, the most important person in my life, was living under occupation. I was unable to ponder, experience joy, or train. I could only wait for her to call and let me know she was okay.
It was difficult to keep in contact because she only had phone service at certain evening hours. Being unable to contact her was akin to a nightmare: all you can think about is the situation there. Although I was riveted by the news, I had no idea what was going on. These were my darkest and most difficult times.
My mother hid in the basement for the majority of that time, only venturing upstairs to cook. She did not tell me at the time. The neighborhood helped one another. Eventually, in June, she departed; her only option was to travel through Russia. She traveled to Simferopol and took a direct bus to the Russian-Latvian frontier, where she stood in the rain for eight hours. I am so incredibly delighted with her.
LNZ Cherkasy
On the 24th of February, I was in Turkey for a training camp with LNZ Cherkasy, but my career was abruptly put into question. I traveled to Poland and was offered a contract with Ekranas in Lithuania. I stayed there for two months and was astounded by everyone’s generosity. My mother was given an apartment by the club president, and a position by our captain. They are delightful and kind individuals, and I cannot thank them enough.
I relocated to Akzhayik, Kazakhstan, for the winter, but I knew I could no longer play abroad. I wished to be here in these difficult times because I missed Ukraine too much. Football has resumed here, so I’m back at LNZ for the second half of the season. I have a task, and I can do it because of the dedication and expertise of our soldiers.
I was elated and inspired when Kherson was freed in November. Constantly, I send money to various charities, and our team at LNZ is independently raising funds for the army. Each of us donates a portion of his salary each month. Our club medic is currently defending Ukraine on the front lines, and we are doing our best to assist him.
Over the past year, I’ve reconsidered family values. I have always placed them first, but now that I know what it’s like to be separated from them, I value them even more. The importance of appreciating the kindness of others, and showing the same qualities, has also hit home. And I value football as well: it is wonderful that we can play and train, even though clubs suffer financially and we cannot invite fans to observe. We enter the bomb shelter when there are sirens during the events. It serves as yet another reminder of the times we are living through. But virtue always triumphs over evil, and I am confident Ukraine will prevail.
Nazariy Fedorivskyi (goalkeeper, Obolon Kyiv)
Football unites. This has never been more evident than over the past year. We needed to be able to restart our league to provide people with an alternative to Russia’s invasion: something to watch and appreciate, even if they couldn’t be in the stadiums, that brought people together. We trust that the fans of our club, Obolon Kyiv, have been pleased: we are currently in first place in the second division, about to enter the midseason break, and are hoping to secure promotion back to the top flight.
That is only a portion of what football has to offer. As players, we have all adapted, attempting to assist, volunteer, and donate in any way we can. I manage a store in Kyiv that sells sneakers, and we have redirected a significant portion of our efforts toward aiding the military effort. We held a charity event last week to raise funds for army canines, and a portion of every sale goes directly to the army.
Since the Russian invasion, my family has remained here. They also attempt to help: my mother owns a large company that manufactures fabric for military uniforms. My father was on Maidan Nezalezhnosti in 2013 during the Euromaidan protests, and we all know what we are working so diligently for.
Our club is well-run
I am fortunate: our club is well-run and has no budgetary issues, which is not the case everywhere. Our pay is not excessive, but it is consistent. But last year, after the invasion, everything felt odd and terrible. I spent four months in Poland with friends and teammates, returning to Kyiv when the Russians departed. Our training ground in Bucharest had been mined, hit by missiles, and breached by tanks; however, due to the extraordinary efforts of our staff, we were able to resume training there in July.
Playing football again felt incredible, but I can’t say if I feel differently about my profession now. I believe I will have a better understanding of this in the future, as we are still experiencing this situation together and it is still incomprehensible. Soon I will return from Lviv, where we have a training camp, and the second half of the season will begin. We anticipate it but have higher hopes for something else. This is a time for courage and for imagining how our army will expel the Russians from our nation. We are awaiting calm.
Vadym Lazorenko (former manager, Lyubomyr Stavyshche)
Shortly after the start of the war, the club I was managing, Lyubomyr Stavyshche in our third division, disbanded. When it began, we were at a training camp in Mukachevo, far to the southwest of Ukraine, and we remained there for another three weeks, rallying and supporting one another. The club president determined that we would cease operations until Ukraine’s victory, our players left for other clubs, and I obtained a new position.
Football has become a symbol of Ukraine’s resilience. It encourages and demonstrates that we continue to live no matter what. Undoubtedly, the sport has taken a step backward in this region: there is less funding, the majority of foreign players have departed, and many clubs have closed. However, it has not yet reached its lowest point: football is still evolving, new players are receiving earlier opportunities at the first-team level, and schools and academies are operating. I feared that things would get much worse, but things are currently looking positive.
Ukrainian football will flourish after the conflict
I am confident that Ukrainian football will flourish after the conflict. Our foundation is in children’s and youth football, and both continue to prosper. Additionally, we have youthful coaches who are both professional and actively growing. Today, I train instructors like these who are pursuing their professional licenses. My job is to motivate them and instruct them on the proper course of action; it is not merely to impart information.
I’ve been around for a while and had already developed certain values, so the conflict hasn’t changed me much. It has merely confirmed to me that one must live for the present, enjoy life to the utmost, perform good deeds, and assist others. In every circumstance, you must maintain your composure and integrity. Since February of last year, I have taken up a new hobby. Writing poetry has helped me, so I’ve begun doing it.
