Olympic figure skater Dmytro Sharper, who represented Ukraine at the Youth Olympic Winter Games in 2016, was killed in the fighting in Bakhmut, a city in the Donbass region in the east of the country, by a Russian shell, all this when he was only 25 years old.
"Skate Ukraine" confirmed that Sharper died in combat, but so far, no further details have been provided about the circumstances of his death.
This is the first Olympic athlete to be directly injured by combat.
Anton Gershchenko, an adviser to the Ukrainian Ministry of the Interior, paid tribute to the skater when he shared the news of his loss: "Ukrainian figure skater Dmytro Shapar died in a battle near Bakhmut," he wrote on Twitter.
"He was a talented skater and competed in the Youth Olympics. He will forever remain 25 years old."
Sharper, a resident of Kharkiv in the northeast of the country, qualified for the 2016 Winter Youth Olympic Games in Lillehammer after finishing second in the 2015 Ukraine Championship. He was partnered with Anastasia Povizhenko, also a resident of the city, and the pair finished in tenth place in the competition.
After his competitive career, the skater began to participate in the big ice show.
In another post on social networks, "Skate Ukraine" published photos from the skater's career and appealed for assistance to his family.
"Eternal memory to the hero, our condolences to the family and friends," the Facebook post said.
Other users shared photos of candles with flowers in the Ukrainian colors of blue and yellow.
Sharper's death comes after Ukraine's Sports Minister and National Olympic Committee President, Vadim Gutsait, warned International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach and claimed that Russian Olympic athletes were serving in the country's military.
In a video call, Gottseit asked Bach to continue to ban the participation of Russian athletes in all disciplines, including the Olympic Games in Paris 2024.
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