While carrying out a combat mission as part of a special operations unit, Taras Shpuk was killed in action. He was a renowned coach, athlete, an active participant in the Invictus Games movement, a former employee of the “Come Back Alive” foundation, and a participant in the Revolution of Dignity. He was 34 years old.
Born and raised in Ivano-Frankivsk, Taras’s life was inseparable from sports: he practiced trail running, cycling, hiking. His physical endurance and passion for sports became a calling — helping veterans return to full lives through athletic activity, even after severe injuries.
A participant in the Revolution of Dignity, in 2014 he volunteered to join Ukraine’s defenders. From 2019, he worked at the “Come Back Alive” foundation, where he became one of the founders of the veteran program and a driving force in the development of veteran sports in Ukraine. At that time, the foundation began forming a veteran department, and Taras was among its first employees. He brought the idea of advancing veteran sports and proved its effectiveness in helping wounded soldiers adapt. He was also one of the initiators of the Veteran Forum in Ukraine.
The director of “Come Back Alive,” Taras Chmut, recalls: “He was, in the truest sense, the ‘director of Ukraine.’ He knew everyone, and everyone knew him. Taras Shpuk could resolve any issue, always stepped in, and was a generator of ideas. He developed veteran sports in Ukraine and was the soul of the Invictus Games. He carried enormous operational responsibilities, held the team together, and supported their morale.”
For years, Taras was the coach of Ukraine’s national teams at the Invictus Games and the Warrior Games, serving also as sports manager and team coordinator. He oversaw preparations, organized training, built communication with veterans, coordinated partnerships, and took care of equipment. Thanks to his efforts, Ukrainian teams were able to compete on the international stage, where our veterans won medals and earned admiration worldwide.
A student of American coach Anna Walker, Taras found his personal calling in wheelchair basketball and rugby, becoming the first coach in Ukraine for these sports. At his initiative, veterans with limited mobility not only played team sports but also undertook mountain expeditions in wheelchairs, both in Ukraine and abroad.
In February 2022, after Russia’s full-scale invasion, he remained with “Come Back Alive,” providing frontline units with supplies and delivering equipment under fire. Together with colleagues, he rescued the national team’s sports equipment from war-torn Irpin so that Ukrainian veterans could compete at the Invictus Games in The Hague.
In November 2023, Taras returned to military service, joining military intelligence. He served there until his final day, carrying out combat missions as part of a special unit.
Colleagues and comrades remember him as extraordinarily hardworking, principled, and dedicated to his cause — a man who always took on the hardest tasks and supported others. For veteran sports, he was both a symbol and a driving force; for his brothers-in-arms, he was a loyal, sincere, and reliable friend.
Eternal memory to Taras Shpuk. His life stands as an example of service to Ukraine — on the battlefield and in the realm of sports — an example of devotion and faith in the strength of the human spirit.
Rest in peace, Hero.