Discipline, Aggression Reduction, and Communication: How Sports Help Veterans Live After the Frontline

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During April 23, 2023, the weather in London changed at least four times. The sun shone, then it rained, then it dawned again and it rained again. On other days, there would be many complaints about such vagaries of the weather. But this time, almost 50 thousand people from all over the world, who ran through the streets, were grateful for the coolness and freshness. All of them are participants of the London Marathon. Among the runners are Ukrainian military personnel Serhii Dovbysh from Chernihiv and Roman Kashpur from Khmelnytskyi. The last run with a prosthesis: he lost his leg in 2019 near Olenivka in Donetsk region. The participation of three veterans in the marathon was paid for by the Invictus Games Foundation. But the third soldier – Oleksiy Rubtsov from Azov – did not live to see the start. His wife Iryna ran in memory of the Hero. Veterans and volunteers told “UP.Zhyttia” how sports help military men recover physically and psychologically. Sports among ex-servicemen The non-governmental organization SUVIATO was one of the first in Ukraine to introduce sports for the rehabilitation of war veterans in the east of Ukraine. In 2016, together with the All-Ukrainian Bowling Federation, they held the first tournament among the military. The veterans liked this idea so much that they began to hold it regularly. Later, the veterans began to compete in kayaking. One of the owners of the kayak-canoe center in Kyiv paid for their training. “We have seen that such classes have a wonderful effect. After all, it is communication with nature, spending time with family, meeting with fellow citizens. In addition to veterans from Kyiv, those who were undergoing treatment in the capital also swam. They came during their free time from procedures. And this, it turns out, was also part of the recovery,” says the chief coordinator of the organization, Olga Kharkina. Eventually, from these activities, SUVIATO started the Veterans League: until 2022, they held tournaments in bowling, go-karting and kayaking. Veterans who lost limbs also took part in the competition. In general, the League popularized healthy leisure and an active lifestyle among veterans. Then the idea arose to involve Ukrainian veterans in international competitions. In particular, to the Invictus Games and Warrior Games. “One of our active veterans, Serhiy Dovbysh, began to develop the veteran sports movement in Chernihiv. He trained a team, arranged for free gyms. He himself worked with guys who had amputations: he ran with them, joined training in the gym. And then representatives of the Chernihiv region went abroad to international competitions and brought back many awards. It was a good long-term story,” Olga recalls. Veteran Serhii Dovbysh: “It is necessary to create conditions for the rehabilitation of military personnel now” Veteran Serhii Dovbysh Serhii Dovbysh dreamed of a military career since childhood. He began to implement it at the age of 15, when he entered the military-patriotic school of a young paratrooper in Zhytomyr. Then there was study at the institute, work in military units, participation in UN peacekeeping missions in Liberia and Congo, ATO… Having retired from service in 2019, Serhiy decided to devote himself to the development of the veteran movement and volunteering. In 2020, the man started running. And somehow I felt that this sport helps to relax, relieve aggression and irritation that often get to the throat. Every evening after a run, Serhiy felt “zeroed”. And so he realized from his own experience that the psyche restores itself during classes. The veteran began to encourage other military personnel to play sports. And through the competition – to draw attention to the problems of veterans in general. In particular, in 2020, together with the local club “Running Chernihiv”, Serhiy organized the All-Ukrainian race “I honor the soldiers – I run for Ukraine” in the city. At the end of the same year, he arranged for veterans to prepare for the “Invincible Games” competition in the sports halls of Chernihiv for free. “You see, in Kyiv there were competitions and free training for veterans. But in the regional centers, no one was involved in this. I agreed on training halls. Then I began to invite veterans to training. And so a certain movement began in the city. But in villages and small towns there was and still is no organized veteran sport,” says Serhiy Dovbysh. Many veterans gladly accepted the initiative. Therefore, from the first Warrior Games in 2021, the Chernihiv team of 8 people brought home 17 awards, 13 of which were gold. In the same 2021, Serhiy Dovbysh opened a local branch of SUVIATO in Chernihiv. Then he started the Sports Federation of War Veterans in the city. I planned that any veteran could go there and get support, information about training, competitions, etc. However, the federation did not have time to fully function due to a full-scale invasion. And Serhiy went to war again after February 24, 2022. Serhiy Dovbysh at the London Marathon “For Ukrainian veterans, sport is a more familiar way to recover than a psychologist, for example. Although it is also definitely needed. It’s just a mental habit that ex-servicemen mostly experience trauma in themselves. And training and competition help to release it.” – explains the serviceman. In his opinion, it is already necessary to create halls where veterans could exercise and communicate. This should be done not only in large, but also in small towns and villages. There is a request for rehabilitation right now, in the midst of hostilities. After all, part of the military is already being discharged from the army due to injuries. In addition, when the conditional million people return home from the war, all conditions must be created for them to adapt to peaceful life and become part of civil society. The world already has experience on how to do it right. In particular, in Israel, the Brothers for Life organization takes care of the rehabilitation of veterans: there, wounded soldiers provide various assistance to the same ones. They also have their experiences in the USA and Great Britain. And all that is needed, in Serhii’s opinion, is to gather all this experience and adapt it to Ukrainian realities. This is what he plans to do. “I experienced for myself what the rehabilitation of the military was like until 2022. I saw those state sanatoriums where veterans are offered to recover… Everything that surrounds a person there does not contribute to this. I also have experience of rehabilitation abroad and in a center organized by volunteers. This is a completely different thing: there are conditions, and treatment, and work with psychologists separately for veterans, wives, and children. Of course, there are no such conditions now, and creating them takes time and millions. But sport, in principle, is available to everyone. The main thing is – motivate yourself and cooperate with like-minded people,” Serhii Dovbysh is confident. Record holder Roman Kashpur: “I don’t put up with the fact that without a limb you have to put a cross on yourself” Record holder Roman Kashpur Roman Kashpur became the first Ukrainian veteran who overcame the marathon distance with a prosthesis. But this is not the man’s only record. In 2021, he moved a 16-ton An-26 aircraft from its place. I also did it on a prosthesis. As Roman says, all this was successful, because after the injury and amputation of his leg in 2019, he firmly decided: he will not give up and will lead an active life with a prosthesis. “I didn’t put up and I don’t put up with the fact that without a limb I have to put a cross on myself. When a doctor in Kharkiv told me that I needed to amputate my leg higher in order to install a prosthesis in which I could actively do sports, I agreed without hesitation . Told him: cut as much as you need. I was fitted with the first prosthesis 6 weeks after the injury. It was temporary, I had to learn to walk on it. But I quickly broke it. In 9 months, I was fitted with a permanent one,” says Roman. On that prosthesis, the man won the first crossfit competition in the Hero Games. Won other sports victories at similar competitions. And he set sports records on it. And then he returned to the front for half a year after the start of a full-scale invasion. “My records are a desire to show others: amputation is not a sentence. I completed the marathon in 5 hours and 53 minutes. At the 39th kilometer, it was difficult: I ran out of strength, I was overcome by sleepiness. And I walked for almost 2 km. And then I collected I had the last strength, the will, and still finished running. I was supported by my brothers, friends, acquaintances. Everyone sent voice and text messages. I could not let them down. Besides, I had another important mission: I am the ambassador of BF “Citizen”. This the organization collects funds for prosthetics for military personnel. And in London, we held such a fundraiser as well,” the veteran shares. According to him, due to price increases and exchange rate differences, the money allocated by the state is not enough for high-quality prosthetics. That is why the Foundation provides boys and girls with additional funds for the sums that are not enough. Now Roman is preparing for the marathon in Washington, which is held by the American military. Therefore, in a peaceful life, a man found himself in sports. He recommends everyone who returns from the front to find themselves in a peaceful life, to try something new. “At one time, I thought about IT, working with papers… But I realized that it wasn’t for me, so I chose sports. But it is equally important for everyone, regardless of whether they do it professionally or for themselves. When a person is depressed, confused, she sits and psychologically winds herself up: she remembers the horrors she experienced, analyzes … This does not lead to anything good. This negativity accumulates. Then it is “treated” with alcohol, aggression, and sometimes suicide … And when you come after a hard training, everything, on “I have enough energy to spend time with my family and relax. There is no time, energy, or desire for bad thoughts,” says Kashpur.

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