An athlete, coach and defender Ilia Izman was killed in one of the most difficult spot on the frontline – Bakhmut sector.
He was born on August 9, 1984. Until 2015, he lived in Malohvardiysk, Luhansk region, but had to leave his home due to the Russian offensive and occupation. Then Ilia moved to Sofiivska Borshchahivka and began to glorify Kyiv region in sports. He was a champion of Ukraine in armwrestling, a participant of the European and World championships, and had the title of Master of Sports of Ukraine. In the capital, he was actively involved in coaching, taking care of children with disabilities, who competed in armwrestling at the international level. He could have done a lot more for the development of the sport, if the war had not started…
From the first days of the full-scale Russian invasion, Ilia joined the local Territorial Defence Forces. Later he voluntarily joined the Armed Forces of Ukraine. He defended his homeland in the hottest spots on the frontline. But, unfortunately, on November 8, 2022, near Bakhmut, the heart of the brave and fearless 37-year-old defender Ilia Izman stopped beating forever… In January 2023, his friends organized an armwrestling tournament in Kyiv region in memory of the Hero.