On August 20-22, in the village of Janoshi, the football tournament “Berehivshchyna. Friendship Cup»between Hungarian-speaking and Ukrainian-speaking pupils took place. The tournament was part of the project “Ukrainian Hungarians: Integration and Cooperation” with the support of the US Embassy in Ukraine. Kids from four secondary schools from the villages of Janoshi, Kwasowo, Gat and Veluki Berehytook part in the competition. “We didn’t thinkthatfootball could be such an effective unitingactivity, but we decided to take the risk. This was one of the most successful events within our project! […] We thank everyone very much for joining the tournament,”- Svitlana Tkachenko, Social Projects Coordinator of the Ukrainian Crisis Media Center, said.
During the briefing, the coaches announced the results of the tournament. The Gatyan middleschool team took the “gold”, the second place was won by the students from thevillage of Velyki Berehy, the team from the village of Kvasiv took the third place, and the fourth place belongs to the team from the village of Janoshi. In addition, the organizers have prepared special prizes for the players. “It was a real celebration of unity and sports. The kids were extremely motivated to play their best. The results of the competition, even for us – coaches – were unexpected. The intrigue lasted until the last seconds” – Yuri Klymenko, the head coach of the Berehivshchyna tournament, emphasized. Friendship Cup, noticed.
“The more we went into the training process, the closer we got to the kids. Although at first they were cautious about us, later any barriers disappeared”, – Vladimir Ovsiyenko, coach of the Berehivshchyna. Friendship Cup”, added.
“I do not know whether trainers are licensed in Ukraine for psychological stability and the level of human culture. But if they do or are going to do it, I would recommend following the example of our coaches Yuri Klymenko and Volodymyr Ovsiyenko. Because I have not yet met that level of humanity with professionalism in this kind of sport. I saw the eyes of children who looked at the trainers with admiration, I saw the children grow wings just after communicating with them. The key is communication! The Hungarians do not always understand Ukrainian, but the attitude changes everything. There were no communication problems at this event, but there was one common language. A language of humanity, respect and dignity”, – Svitlana Tkachenko summed up.
