The President of Ukraine has deprived Serhiy Bubka and two other Olympic medalists from the Donetsk region of state scholarships
Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a decree terminating the payment of state scholarships to eight Ukrainian athletes – champions and medalists of the Olympic and Deaflympics Games. The document was published on the head of state’s website.
The list includes, in particular, three athletes associated with the Donetsk region: Yuriy Yermakov, Valery Lozyk, and Serhiy Bubka. Yevhen Braslavets, Ilya Kvasha, Yana Klochkova, Igor Matvienko, and Inna Frolova were also stripped of their scholarships.
Yuriy Yermakov is a native of Makiivka who won «bronze» in the team gymnastics competition at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics; he has been receiving the scholarship since December 25, 2003. Valeriy Lozyk from Shakhtarsk won «bronze» at the 1988 Seoul Olympics in the 4×100-meter medley relay; his scholarship was also awarded from December 25, 2003.
Separate mention is made of Serhiy Bubka, the 1988 Seoul Olympic champion in pole vaulting and former head of the Ukrainian NOC. The article notes that after the start of the full-scale invasion, he left Ukraine, and in 2022 he left his post amid public criticism.
It was also reported about contracts of the Bubok family business company – the «Montblanc» – for the sale of fuel to Russian structures and the so-called «DPR»; Bubka later denied any ties to the temporarily occupied territories.
