50 Ukrainian veterans to participate in Arnold Classic Europe international sports competition – national team announced

A national team of 50 veterans, servicemen who took part in combat operations, as well as those who were injured and disabled in the line of duty, will represent Ukraine at the Arnold Classic Europe competition, which will be held in Madrid on October 11-13.

The announcement of the national team took place during a press conference at the Media Center Ukraine.

The full roster of the national team is available here.

“Given the fact that we still have a certain stigma in our country when it comes to psychological support, men tend to isolate themselves when they return after demobilization. Sports is a simple and effective way to bring them together, allowing them to communicate and share their experiences and accomplishments. Because in all competitions – and nowadays most veterans are demobilized for health reasons, – you just need to see the competition and see how different they become when they go through all the qualifying stages, how they grow over themselves and show the results,” said Ruslana Velychko-Trifoniuk, Deputy Minister of Veterans Affairs of Ukraine for European Integration.

It is worth mentioning that the Arnold Classic Europe will host the Strong Spirit’s Games, an international sports competition for war veterans. As part of the selection process for the Ukrainian national team to participate in the Arnold Classic Europe, the Strong Spirit’s Games national competition was held in the Carpathian Mountains on September 14, with 163 participants.

“Strong Spirit’s Games is the first international competition under the patronage of Ukraine. Ukraine is launching international competitions that will now take place in Madrid at the Arnold Classic Europe Festival,” said Oleksandr Lashyn, Vice President of the Ukrainian Strongman Federation.

He also noted that the competition will include four events: bench press, air bike, Concept2 rowing machine, and kettlebell lifting.

The formation of the national team was preceded by regional competitions involving more than 1,200 participants. An interagency commission was formed, including representatives from law enforcement agencies. The results of each participant were examined, then the results were summarized and the national team was formed accordingly.

Serhii Konyushok, President of the Strongman Federation of Ukraine, emphasized a transparent and clear approach to the selection of participants and called on veterans to continue participating in such events.

“I would like to emphasize and announce that this approach is completely transparent and clear. We are already announcing official events for the coming years and encourage veterans to participate, earn ranking points, show results, train regularly and bring more of their comrades along. The selection criteria for the national team are realistic and understandable for everyone – the more effort you put in, the more you train, the better your chances of making the team,” he said.

Read more: https://mediacenter.org.ua/news