In February 2024, Ukrainian judoka, coach, and judge Kostiantyn Matviienko was killed.
He was from a honored coach`s family Eduard Matviienko, so his love for sports was instilled since his early childhood. He took up judo, participated in national competitions and also competed abroad, and won many awards. He held the title of candidate master of sports and devoted his entire life to the development of his favorite sport in Sumy region. Kostiantyn was a coach and a referee.
In his busy sports schedule, he also found time for music education. His wife Svitlana, he met in 2010, says that Kostiantyn was a very good singer. He was a friendly, cheerful and loving husband and father of two sons born by their couple.
After the full-scale Russian invasion began, Kostiantyn sent his family out of Sumy and stayed in the city to help people. In March, he and a friend enlisted in the army, but he didn’t tell his wife right away. According to her, she found out about it from a friend who told her that she had seen her husband in a military uniform. In May, Kostiantyn asked Svitlana to come home. As it turned out, he had prepared a surprise – he proposed to his beloved, and they got married.
He didn’t tell Svitlana much about his service and where he was stationed so that she wouldn’t worry. He called often, and in the fall of 2023, he had a short vacation, which fell within his and son’s birthday.
On February 15, 2024, Kostiantyn called his wife very often, almost every hour. He said he had time to talk. The last time they spoke was at 4:47 pm. The next day, Svitlana was waiting to hear the call, but he did not. The silence of the next few days was stressful and frightening. Eventually, the phone rang, but instead of her beloved’s voice, it was the voices of his comrades. On February 18, 2024, they called Svitlana to tell her the terrible news that 43-year-old Kostiantyn Matviienko had been killed while saving his comrades near Vuhledar, Donetsk region. He was digging out Ukrainian soldiers who were covered with earth when the Russian occupiers struck again. Shrapnel hit him in the arm and also got under his body armor. Despite his injuries, he fought for his life to the last, managed to crawl a considerable distance to his comrades, but, unfortunately, he died…