19-year old Ukrainian biathlete Yevhen Maylshev was killed serving in the Ukrainian military, the International Biathlon Union stated on Wednesday. The Ukrainian Biathlon Federation also issued a press release on Maylshev’s passing. The young athlete was a member of the national team and Kharkiv juniors before retiring from the sport in 2020.
The exact circumstances of Malyshev’s death are unclear, but the International Biathlon Union said Wednesday he “died this week serving in the Ukrainian military.”
“We express our deepest condolences to his family, friends and loved ones. Eternal memory,” the statement reads.
“How many more lives need to be lost before sports implements meaningful sanctions?” the Athletes of Ukraine and Global Athlete said in their statement.
Maylshev once competed on the national team of Ukraine and the Kharkiv junior team before ending his career in 2020. He was one of many Ukrainian athletes who have joined the fight to protect their homeland.
Ukrainian tennis star Sergiy Stakhovsky said Tuesday he left his family in Hungary to join the army.
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Vitali Klitschko, the mayor of Ukraine’s capital city of Kyiv and a member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame has said he would fight in the streets amid Russia’s invasion of his country. His brother, Wladimir Klitschko, has already vowed to fight for Ukraine, having enlisted in the Ukrainian reserve army earlier this month, Reuters reported.
