Valentyn Dondikov, the coach of the Ukrainian Paralympic shooting team, was killed in Kherson region.
He was born on 19 March 1983. His life was closely connected with sports. He was a multiple champion of Ukraine in shooting, held the title of international master of sports and became a coach after his sports career. He was a coach of the Paralympic team and over the years he became an honoured coach of Ukraine. In his peaceful pre-war life, Valentyn worked with Ukrainian para shooters for many years, training future champions of international competitions. In 2020, his athletes competed at the Paralympic Games in Tokyo, where they won 6 medals.
He could have raised more than one generation of champions, but the war began. After the start of the full-scale Russian invasion in March 2022, he stood up to defend Ukraine. He served as an anti-tank platoon commander. According to his comrades, Valentyn has been on many combat missions. He not only performed tasks, but also trained the others. He was a true professional for whom nothing was impossible.
On 19 March 2024, Valentyn celebrated his 41st birthday, and less than a month later, the sad news of his fate came from the frontline. On 6 April, on the International Day of Sport for Development and Peace, Valentyn Dondikov was killed while performing a combat operation in Kherson region… On 12 April, the farewell ceremony for Valentyn Dondikov, the fallen Hero of Ukraine, has been attended by his family, friends, colleagues and athletes. In the summer of 2024, athletes were trained by him will take part in the Paralympic Games in Paris, where, unfortunately, they will go without their coach…