SOCCER
Shakhtar advances after wins against Genk
Shakhtar Donetsk won against Belgium’s Genk in the first (2-1) and second legs (2-1) of the third qualifying round of the UEFA Champions League on August 3 and August 10. Scoring for the Ukrainian team were: Tete off a penalty kick in the 63rd minute and Alan Patrick (81st minute) on August 3; and on August 10, Lassina Traore (27th minute) and Marcos Antonio (77th minute). Shakhtar’s next match is scheduled against AS Monaco FC on August 17-18 and August 24-25. Shakhtar released its latest uniforms for the 2021-2022 season, this year sponsored by Puma. Previously, the team’s jerseys were made by Nike. The jerseys can be purchased from the Shakhtar Donetsk online store (https://shop.shakhtar.com/en/), and the team wore the new uniforms in its July 24 match against Inhulets Petrove (Kirovohrad Oblast) in the opening round of the Ukrainian Premier League.
Players announce moves to new clubs
Ukrainian midfielder Yevhenii Makarenko has moved from Belgian club Anderlecht to Hungary’s Fehervar after the 30-year-old signed a two-year contract. Makarenko has 14 caps with Ukraine’s national team and played for Dynamo Kyiv and Hoverla Uzhhorod, with playing experience gained in the UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League and the European Championship. Makarenko played in 2020 to June 2021 while on loan to Kortrijk (Belgium). Roman Yaremchuk has agreed to the terms of a new contract with Portugal’s Benefica club. His departure from Belgium’s Gent is expected to be complete once negotiations between the clubs are finalized. Former Vorskla Poltava forward Vladyslav Kulach has signed a two-year contract with Dynamo Kyiv, with an option to extend the contract an additional year. Dynamo also signed a one-year contract with Senegalese midfielder Samba Diallo, with the player scheduled to begin with Dynamo Kyiv’s U-19 team.
TENNIS
Bondarenko makes comeback in Charleston
Kateryna Bondarenko, 34, was ranked as high as No. 29 on the WTA Tour in 2009, and has two career singles titles to her credit. She was ranked No. 208 on July 29 before she played in the quarterfinal round of the LTP Women’s Open in Charleston, S.C. Displaying some solid play in the past few months, Bondarenko got to the semifinal before losing to finalist Jamie Loeb of the U.S.A. 4-6, 2-6. Along the way Bondarenko defeated Peangtarn Plipuech of Thailand 6-0, 6-3, Maddison Inglis of Australia 6-3, 6-2, and Emma Navarro of the U.S.A. 6-3, 6-3. Her three wins boosted Bondarenko up 19 slots in the rankings to No. 189.
Kozlova falls in Hungary quarterfinal
Kateryna Kozlova played her way into the third round at the WTA’s Hungarian Grand Prix on July 12-18, falling to eventual tournament champion Yulia Putintseva of Kazakhstan 7-6(4), 0-6, 5-7. In earlier action, Kozlova defeated Barbara Haas of Austria 7-6(5), 6-3 and Ana Bogdan of Romania 4-6, 6-4, 6-2. The 27-year-old jumped 13 notches to a World No. 141 ranking after her performance in Budapest.
Playing for Ukraine a big deal for Svitolina
The Olympic motto is “Faster-Higher-Stronger” – exactly the way World No. 6 Elina Svitolina feels when she puts on Ukraine’s iconic yellow top. “It doesn’t matter if it’s the Billie Jean King Cup or the Olympics,” Svitolina said in a mid-July interview with the International Tennis Federation. “It’s always something extra and you find the edge to fight more and try to play better. The Olympics for me are always an important event and I’m extremely proud to represent Ukraine. All the time when we have an Olympic year, I look forward to that and I try to prepare as best as I can. For me, it’s very special when I play for my country.” The 26-year-old headed off to the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games as a newlywed, having married fellow tennis star Gael Monfils on July 16. Svitolina stunned Serena Williams at the 2016 Summer Games. “The goal, for me, is to get that Olympic medal,” she said prior to the Olympics. “I’ll do my best to prepare well and be ready for that. For my country, the Olympics are a big thing. They really support you unbelievably when the athletes are competing in the Olympics, so it’s very special for Ukraine and I definitely will do my best to prepare to get that medal.” She won a bronze medal at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.
Kudla challenges Djokovic at Wimbledon
Wimbledon was always extra special for Dennis Kudla. It has been the one tournament he always dreamt of winning. For a boy with a dream, the Ukrainian has done well, competing in the main draw seven times. Kudla’s problem in this year’s Wimbledon (The Championships held in London from June 28 through July 11) was going up against world No. 1 Novak Djokovic in third-round play. He played him two years ago and lost in a mere 93 minutes. This time around he put up a brave fight, going down 4-6, 3-6 and 6-7 (7-9). Djokovic got up two sets rather quickly, but Kudla broke early in the third and went up 2-0. Djokovic had to battle back from there in a wild third-set tiebreaker. The top-seeded Serb hit eight aces and landed 54 percent of his first serves in. Kudla had 35 unforced errors. In earlier action, the Kyiv-born Kudla defeated Alejandro Davidovich Fokina of Spain. He was down two sets but rallied to win 5-7, 4-6, 7-6 (7-4), 6-3, 6-3, and he beat Andreas Seppi of Italy in straight sets, 6-2, 6-4, 6-2.
Svitolina upset at her Wimbledon performance
“Mentally, for sure, I need to reset…rest,” No. 3 seed Elina Svitolina said after producing 20 fewer winners than her foe in a 6-3, 6-4 loss to relative unknown Magda Linette of Poland in round of 64 play at this year’s Wimbledon tennis tournament. Svitolina followed Marta Kostyuk’s lead in the Grand Slam event, with Kostyuk also bowing out in the second round to Anastasija Sevastova of Latvia 6-1, 4-6, 3-6. Argentine-Ukrainian Nadia Podoroska was a third unfortunate loser in the second round, falling to Tereza Martincova of the Czech Republic 3-6, 6-7. In doubles action, the Ukrainian ladies enjoyed a bit of a better fate. The Nadiya Kichenok/Raluca Olaru (Romania) duo made it into the round of 16 where they lost to Caroline Dolehide (U.S.A.)/Storm Sanders (Australia) 7-6(4), 6-2, while the tandems of Lyudmyla Kichenok-Makoto Ninomiya (Japan) and Marta Kostyuk-Jelena Ostapenko (Latvia) played into the round of 32.
Kostyuk climbs to 65th place in WTA ranking
Ukraine’s tennis player Marta Kostyuk has climbed 16 spots to the 65th position in a new ranking of the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) updated on June 14. Ukraine’s No.1 tennis player Elina Svitolina has remained in sixth place. Ukraine’s Anhelina Kalinina climbed 19 spots to 120th, Katarina Zavatska is 126th, Kateryna Kozlova dropped two spots to 161st and Lesia Tsurenko dropped 23 spots to 163rd. The WTA ranking is headed by Australian Ashleigh Barty. She is followed by Naomi Osaka from Japan and Simona Halep from Romania.
The tennis entries are credited to Ihor Stelmach.