What to do while in Ukraine

Andriy Shevchenko, first among goal scorers in his part of the world, is leaving soccer to become a politician. He gave Ukraine a victory over Sweden with two sharp, superbly angled headers in Kiev during the Euro 2012 tournament last month. But those goals — taking him to 48 in 111 national team appearances — were the last of a career that made him one of the best, and richest, strikers of his time. The mind, as we saw in Kiev, was still sharp. But the body was telling him to go before he deteriorated further still. His back was aching, his thigh was strained. And after he suffered a kick to his knee, not even Shevchenko could lift Ukraine to another victory. So what does a revered former player, one enriched by his moves to Milan and to Chelsea and then back to his first club, Kiev, do with the rest of his life? “Probably I will shock all of you,” Shevchenko announced via the Dynamo Kiev club Web site. “My future will not be linked to football in any way. It will...

The 2012 London  Olympics  are officially underway, though for those following the football at this year's Games, action had already started prior to the opening ceremony. The Olympics represent a different style of tournament compared to what we're used to seeing in world football—namely with the fact that the competition centers around players under the age of 23, with nations only able to include three players over that age. For some, this will possibly turn them away from engaging with the tournament and following the competition as closely as they would have originally done. In fact, many will say that they preferred the recent 2012 European Championships to the 2012 London Olympics because it featured more talent and more skill, as well as boasting the biggest names of football. However, it simply isn't true. The 2012 London Olympics are not a step down from the European Championships, nor are they to be considered as a "secondary" tournament.  ...

The Britain's hopes of a golden start to the Olympics suffered a setback when cyclist Mark Cavendish failed to land a medal. The sprinter began the day as one of Team GB's best hopes for a gold and thousands of people lined the route of the men's road race through Surrey into central London. While the 250km route was packed with spectators, the Games' organisers Locog launched an investigation into empty seats at venues on the Olympic Park. In the Aquatic Centre - which saw a surprise visit by the Queen - there were hundreds of empty seats despite all public tickets having been sold. A Locog spokesman said: "We are aware that some venues have empty seats this morning. We believe the empty seats are in accredited seating areas, and we are in the process of finding out who should have been in the seats and why they weren't there." Cavendish missed out on a podium finish amid dramatic scenes, coming in almost a minute behind the leaders. However...

Within EuroFashion Project a bright Ukrainian designer Olga Alonova held her art-installation “Elegant Support” on the location of Mystetskyi Arsenal. The designer engaged to her project the wives of Ukrainian football players Tetyana Alieva, Olesya Guseva, Kateryna Gay, Iryna Kucher, Yulia Voronina, Sniegeanna Garmash, Victoria Konoplyanka, Valeria Mykhalyk, Inna Yarmolenko and Alla Seleznyova, as well as celebrities Iryna Turbaevska, Olga Navrotska, Yulia Kavtardze, Maria Sobko, Tana Vorzheva, Illya Chichkan and MC Rybik. The project “Elegant Support” is the result of the cooperation between the designer and a young artist Sasha Chichkan. The presented collection dedicated to the coming football season is based on collage, the top trend of the season. The collection is based on the prints of the portraits of each player of the National football team. According to the designer, a true woman will try to have a feminine, elegant and bright look even at the stadium. Olga Alonova...

UEFA has announced two changes to the Regulations of the UEFA European Football Championship 2010–12, related to abandoned matches and friendly international fixtures scheduled in the run-up to the tournament. Paragraph 10.08 has been amended and paragraph 10.09 added to stipulate that if a match is abandoned, only the remaining part of the game must be completed the following day – unless the case is referred to the UEFA Control and Disciplinary Body. If it cannot be completed the following day, the UEFA administration will take a final decision. Players substituted or sent off in the abandoned match may not be included on the match sheet when it re-starts. And those players in play at the time of the abandonment may not be included as substitutes when the match is resumed. Teams can make only the number of substitutions available to them when the game was abandoned. The other decision refers to paragraph 2.08, which prohibits t...

Ukrainian boxers in the Cossack style prepared for the London Olympics Game, for the official opening which will be held tomorrow, July 27. It is not just about the physical form, but also about the outlook - some of them cut their hair in the Cossack style. Ukraine boxer hair. Before flying to London boxers have decided to emphasize the image of the strong people.

Women's Team North Korea has refused to go on the field in a match against a team from the Olympic tournament Colombia due to the fact that organizers of events at the stadium in Glasgow, mixed flags. Instead, the flag of North Korea on the scoreboard was the flag of South Korea. The teams entered the field an hour later required, after the organizers apologized to the Korean football player, according to AP.

Flag of Ukraine, symbolizing that the state is ready for the Olympics, raised in the Olympic village in London . It is reported by the National Olympic Committee. Together with our state  flag    were raised  the flags  of Argentina, Hong Kong, Turkey. The ceremony, which lasted no more than 30 minutes, started in theateral-acrobatic act. After the official speeches and the immediate flag-raising procedure, the mayor of the Olympic Village  handed  to President Sergey Bubka and Olympic Committee chief of mission at the Games the NOC XXX Olympiad Nina Umanets symbolic gift, and they handed - Ukrainian souvenirs. "Ukrainian Olympians ready for an honest and uncompromising struggle to compete at the Olympic Games", - said Bubka. In raising the national flag was also attended by Ukraine's ambassador in Britain, Vladimir Khandogiy, as well as coaches, athletes, which were  already arrived in the Olympic village. Flag raising ceremony - one of t...

The  UEFA ‘s decision to choose Poland and Ukraine as hosts for the Euro 2012 was dealt with criticism and rightfully so: The two countries are known for their hostile attitudes. Poland, where 96.7% of population is pure Polish, is ranked number 14 in the list of the most racist countries in Europe. Ukraine, which has a whopping 78% of pure Ukrainians, has bagged the 23rd position on the list. However, we were not aware of the situation regarding racism inUkraine and Poland before the release of the famous  BBC documentary “Stadiums of Hate”. Asian countries are often stereotyped as terrorism-infested and are deprived from sporting events. However, take a brief look at the events in these two host nations; the murder of an Irish fan, open warning from Ukraine racist groups to the English supporters, and riots with the police. Let’s not forget the brutal overcharging of the tourists. Despite all of these hate-filled incidents, these countries...

As the Euro 2012 euphoria settles, many are assessing the legacy of the football championship co-hosted by Ukraine and Poland last month. One of the most overlooked costs, however, is the deadly price that the country paid for the three-week party. At least six people died and two were seriously injured while building two of the nation’s fanciest and most expensive stadiums – Olympic in Kyiv and Donbass in Donetsk. For Tetyana Samoiluk, Euro 2012 was not a joy, but a reminder of her tragedy. Samoiluk is from the small village of Kamyanka in Khmelnytsky Oblast. Her husband  Serhiy was killed building Olympic Stadium. Now, two years after his tragic death, she still cannot speak about what happened without tears.  “I got a call Wednesday morning. A man from the construction company where my husband worked told me there was an accident the day before and my husband was crushed by a concrete panel. The next day they brought his body home,” Samoiluk said with a trembling...

LONDON  - Former England captain John Terry was found not guilty of racially abusing fellow player Anton Ferdinand on Friday after a five day case which cast a spotlight on racism in football and could have had a huge impact on his career. The 31-year-old Chelsea captain, who earns a reported 150,000 pounds a week, was in Westminster Magistrates' Court to hear chief magistrate Howard Riddle read his verdict. The high-profile case, focusing on foul language from both players during a Premier League game last October, triggered the resignation in February of England's Italian manager Fabio Capello after the FA decided to strip Terry of the captain's armband for Euro 2012. Terry had denied committing a racially aggravated public order offence when he had an expletive-littered exchange with Ferdinand on the field of play when Chelsea visited QPR's Loftus Road ground. Although, in evidence, he admitted using the highly offensive words, he maintained he was sarcast...

Text of Euro 2012 song by Jim Daly: Another summer of football at an end Another summer where Spain win again They with no striker but had no problems scoring Some even had the nerve to label Spain a bit boring Balotelli always had a smile on his face (apart from in the final) Ronaldo's hair was rarely out of place (grease ball prat) His head had more grease than a piece of donna meat The Greece team collapsed quicker than their economy Some fans wore red and some fans wore blue When Ronaldo scored he fondled a pair of invisible boobs Karagounis was angry he's the same height as a small boy Joachim Low spent his time bullying ballboys Ireland were so shit their fans couldn't bear to see Thousands protested at Martin Keown's commentary The Poles started strong in their opening games And no-one could pronounce any of their names But then for Poland it all fell apart And Ukraine, well they also had a good start But Shevchenko and kids with terrible hair Co...

With an average of 2.45 goals per game, Euro 2012 was the most low-scoring European Championship for 16 years, but what it lacked in rippling nets, it made up for in excitement and technical quality. After a build-up dogged by concerns about infrastructural problems and the potential for fan violence, the competition caught the attention from the opening game. Robert Lewandowski claimed the tournament's first goal for co-hosts Poland at Warsaw's National Stadium, but their opponents Greece secured a 1-1 draw in a breathless game that saw both sides finish with 10 men. Poland were to entertain again, sharing a thrillingly open 1-1 draw with Russia in their second Group A game before falling to the Czech Republic and exiting the competition. Fellow hosts Ukraine also bade their farewells in the group phase, but they could at least treasure the sight of 35-year-old national icon Andrei Shevchenko claiming a match-winning brace in the opening 2-1 defeat of Sweden. By...