Atleti ucraini che scappano dal paradiso ucraino
Two more athletes refuse to return to Ukraine
Published: 26 Jan 2025 | 13:47 GMT
Evgeny and Darya Pilipyuk have apparently cut ties with their home country after a youth karate tournament in Venice, Italy
© Getty Images / Westend61
Ukrainian karate athletes Evgeny and Darya Pilipyuk have been kicked out of the country’s Karate Federation for refusing to return home after taking part in an international youth tournament, the sports governing body has said.
The athletes were stripped of their membership in the organization for
“non-return to Ukraine and violation of the rules of mobilization,” according to a statement posted on the federation’s Facebook page earlier this week.
The governing body also said it is planning to seek a lifetime disqualification from the World Karate Federation (WFK) for the Pilipyuks, as well as the annulment of their awards, adding that their actions are
“damaging the reputation of Ukrainian karate.”
The 2024 Karate 1 Youth League, organized by the WKF, took place in early December in Venice, Italy.
Aleksandr Pikulin, the president of the Karate Federation of the city of Chernovtsi, told the media that he trained Evgeny Pilipyuk for 19 years and feels partly responsible for what happened.
“They did not get in touch with me, we tried to contact in different ways, through other athletes, we wanted to persuade him to return, but the efforts were in vain,” he said.
Earlier this month, Larisa Zhalinskaya, a Ukrainian rower and former member of Ukraine’s national team, told RT that she fled the country and moved to Russia via Poland and Belarus. She claimed that she was forced to join the Ukrainian National Guard amid the conflict with Russia.