A friendly wheelchair basketball game was held in Kyiv between veterans and a professional basketball team
30 September 18:34
on September 28, an important event took place at the Veneto-Sport sports complex in Kyiv (11B Akademika Shalimova St.) – the basketball “Equality Match”. For the first time in Ukraine, a professional basketball team sat in wheelchairs and played with members of the Invictus Games community.
The event was held as part of the cooperation between the Invictus Games project and the Live Toward platform from FUIB Bank. The platform helps to reinvent oneself after returning from war and see new opportunities. It is supported by the Ministry of Veterans Affairs of Ukraine and Stratcom Ukraine.
The event began with a minute of silence in which participants and guests honored the memory of fallen soldiers, including Taras Shpuk, a defender of Ukraine, coach and mentor of the Invictus Games, Warrior Games and the Air Force Trials team in wheelchair basketball and rugby. Taras was the first wheelchair basketball coach in Ukraine for veterans. Today, Ukrainian veterans play rugby and wheelchair basketball thanks to Taras.
At the official opening, speeches were delivered by Ksenia Sikorska (FUIB Marketing Director), Tetiana Kolesnyk (FUIB Social Initiatives Manager), Natalia Kalmykova (Minister of Veterans Affairs), Tetiana Lomakina (Advisor to the Presidential Commissioner for Accessibility) and Alina Frolova (Founder of the Invictus Games in Ukraine, Founder of Stratcom Ukraine).
The breaks were also filled with performances by the organizers, partners and creative teams: Ukrainian cheerleading champions Dragons, dancers of the Ukrainian national parasports dance team Ilona Slugovina and Oleksandr Onyshchenko, and Olena Chynka.
The final part of the event was a performance by the vocal ensemble Cultural Forces.
“The Equality Match will be the start of a new project [Super] Ordinary, initiated by the platforms “Live Towards” and “We Are of the Same Blood” from FUIB. Starting on October 8, this project will provide free introductory training for female and male veterans, helping them recover through adaptive sports. The goal of the project is to show that adaptive sports can be not only a way to recover, but also a way to a new life: with movement, confidence, victories over oneself, and new meanings.
A collection of merchandise was created especially for the [Over]Ordinary – T-shirts and sweatshirts that the guests of the event were the first to try on and buy exclusively.
The mechanics of the project are simple: 1 order = 1 adaptive training. You can order merchandise now at https://lifesavingmerch.com.ua/nadzvychajni, and starting October 8, all sold items of the collection will be converted into adaptive training for veterans.
Although the final whistle of the Equality Match has been blown, this event is only the beginning of the journey. This game became a powerful launching pad for the [Over]Ordinary project. We didn’t just hold a competition – we created a symbol that proves that adaptive sports can be a confident step towards a new life for our veterans. Hundreds of training sessions are ahead to help them regain a sense of strength, confidence and freedom of movement. We urge everyone to join this important mission, because every step, every order of merchandise is a new training session for our [Super]Ordinary Defenders,” summarize the creators of the Live Towards platform.
“The match had a special meaning for me. It was both a tribute to important people like Taras, whom I missed so much at this match, and at the same time a reminder of the power of sport. We go out on the court alongside professional basketball players and get just as excited about the game, about the emotion of competition. This is where the main thing becomes apparent: the barriers between veterans and civilians simply fall away. There is a reciprocity in this: we share our own experience and at the same time learn new things from them. It’s about equality, mutual respect and the fact that we are united by much more than we are divided,” said Mykhailo Damaskin, a veteran, participant of the Invictus Games national selection, participant of the Equality Match as part of the Invictus team.
“Living Toward” is a large-scale platform for the integration of female and male veterans initiated by FUIB in partnership with Veteran HUB, Superhumans, Invictus Games Ukraine and Uklon Inclusive. Its goal is to help those returning from war to integrate into financial processes, labor relations, entrepreneurship and society in general. Initiatives within the platform help create new opportunities for female and male veterans, as well as motivate businesses, communities, and all Ukrainians to take steps towards each other. You can learn more about the platform, implemented and planned activities, and join the initiatives at zhyty-nazustrich.com.ua.
The Invictus Games in Ukraine is a project aimed at supporting and developing veterans and servicemen who were injured, wounded, or fell ill while performing their duties. This is a great opportunity for veterans to unite around sports, become part of a large community and influence veterans across Ukraine.
* The project was created at the initiative of FUIB together with the Adsapience agency.
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