Ukrainian football legend Andriy Shevchenko told AFP that sport was giving “new dreams and goals” to Ukrainian veterans injured in the war with Russia.
Some of these veteran players are currently playing for the Ukrainian national team taking part in the Euro 2024 amputee football championship in France.
Shevchenko, the 2004 Ballon d’Or winner and son of a “military man”, is president of the Ukrainian Football Association (UFA) and conceived the project to help war veterans who have lost limbs in June last year.
Shevchenko, 47, said Ukrainians owe a great debt to veterans who have made huge sacrifices to resist Russian military might since Russian President Vladimir Putin launched his invasion in February 2022.
“Sport makes us feel alive even in difficult times,” Shevchenko told AFP in an email.
“Sports is a powerful tool for the physical and mental recovery of veterans, and it also gives them new dreams and goals.”
“Thanks to our veterans we are alive today and have the opportunity to continue developing Ukrainian football.”
The former Dynamo Kyiv, AC Milan and Chelsea striker said there are currently “around 70,000 amputees” in Ukraine, “the majority of whom are military veterans”.
“One of the UFA’s strategic objectives is to help players return to active football.
“We are currently putting together a roadmap of projects for the next five years on developing amputee football across the country.”
Currently there are Lviv, Cherkasy and two teams in Kyiv, including Shakhtar Donetsk.
For now, all eyes are on the Amputee National Team, which will feature “four or five” veteran players for Euro 2024 and opened the season with a 1-0 loss to hosts France in Evian-les-Bains on Saturday.
Coach Dmytro Ruzondovskiy told AFP the veterans were a huge inspiration to the team’s civilian amputees.
But at the same time, Rudzhondowski says civilian players also have their own role to play in helping traumatized veterans.
“Civilian players are proud to play alongside injured veterans,” Rudzhondovskyi told AFP by phone from Kiev ahead of the tournament.
“It’s unbelievable for them. (Civilians) say, ‘These are our heroes, our heroes are our soldiers.’
“For a civilian player, this is incredible.
“But they also need to help our soldiers come home and adjust to this life.”
– “Traumatic Injury” –
Rudzhandovskiy acknowledged Ukraine was in a tough group for the nine-day tournament, which will feature 50-minute matches with six field players, a goalkeeper who is missing an arm and six substitutes.
But morale was boosted two weeks ago when Oleksandr Usyk beat Tyson Fury to win the world heavyweight title.
“Usyk is our soul, the soul of Ukraine, our strength. We are very proud of Oleksandr,” said Rzhondovskiy, who played football with Usyk as a child.
“His victory was very important for our country.”
Rudzhondowski, who also coaches the women’s amputee team, knows what it takes to win a title.
The former Dynamo Kyiv academy player won the Lawyers World Cup “Mundiavokat” in Barcelona in 2018, scoring in the semi-final and final.
The 35-year-old, born in Prague as the son of a Ukrainian soldier, has never served in a war and says this is his way of contributing to his country’s effort.
“They are heroes. I am not a soldier, but I am a Ukrainian who helps female and male soldiers recover from trauma and adapt to life,” he said.
“For me, it’s an honor to know these people.”
Mr Rudzhondowski, who cooked meals for soldiers with a friend who ran a pub in the early days of the war, said he was passionate about his work.
He will also be coaching the women’s amputee team at the World Cup in Barranquilla, Colombia, from Nov. 2-11.
But he’s not sure he’ll get there.
“This project is very important to me because right now I’m not in the middle of a war, I’m in Kiev, but I don’t know where I’ll be tomorrow,” he said.
“It’s a difficult situation because we may have to go to war.
“This is not Russia’s house, this is our house. We want to live in peace in Ukraine, our land.”
Pi/gigajoule
