Ihor HAIDAMAKA: "Once Volodymyr Klychko also made his debut with a junior championship"

"Mr. Haidamaka, after complete oblivion following the collapse of the USSR, Ukraine seems to be recapturing its lost positions in the ring not only in our continent but worldwide. Volodymyr Klychko's success at the Atlanta Olympics, his brother Vitaly's conquest of the championship belt in European professional boxing, success of the adult team at this year's continental championship and, finally, the resounding victory in Argentina speak volumes. Are you frightened at this speed?"

"No, we are gradually getting used to winning. All this is the result of local coaches' efforts and the expanded geography of Ukrainian boxing. Specialists are little by little returning to their jobs and forging contacts with boys. I will first of all note Ivano-Frankivsk oblast and, as a result, the gold and bronze medals in Argentina. These sport achievements should be equally shared by the regional administration, the federation, and captains of industry. Over there, boys are well-settled: they go to colleges, rent apartments, or live in dormitories. I can say the same about the Crimea, the southern bulwark of Ukraine's amateur boxing.

For instance, the Tavriya Sports Club looks up to our sport along with soccer. This was demonstrated by the excellently-organized national championship. Now I would like to thank Chairman of the Crimean State Sports Committee Mykola Hostev as well as the city and district federations of Kerch, Sevastopol, Yevpatoriya, Alushta, and Yalta."

"We are feeling kind of a shame for Kyiv and Lviv, once well-known centers of national boxing."

"You are right, but there have been marked changes in these cities in the past few years. The capital hosts a Veterans' Council which helps conduct quite a few tournaments. We are already having positive results in the trade union sport association and the martial-arts school at the Hart (tempering) Central Sport Club headed by Oleksandr Prosovsky. One of his alumni, Serhiy Kostenko, won the gold in Argentina. As to Lviv, there is no unity, unfortunately, among its coaches, but I think Lviv will still be able to train candidates for the national team for the 2000 Olympics."

"Do you mean you are optimistic about our boys' performance at the Sydney games?"

"I am convinced history will repeat itself. Take 1994, for example, when at the world championship in Germany the silver went to Volodymyr Klychko and the bronze to Oleh Kiriukhin. Two years later, however, the former beat everybody else, and the latter ranked third at the Atlanta Olympics. So let's hope our winners at the Argentine world championship, the pupils of Leonid Loyivsky, trainer of the Ukrainian under-18 national team, - gold-winners Ivano-Frankivsk natives Servin Suleimanov and Yuri Tomashov, Kyiv native Serhiy Kostenko, bronze winners Dmytro Svietlichny from Donetsk, and Andriy Fedchuk from Ivano-Frankivsk - will be quite capable of showing their mettle in the 2000 Olympic Games. And this is what feel also our rivals from Germany, Sweden, Norway, Turkey, and other countries, which invite our boys to come around for sparring-bouts, also feel the same."

"Did the success in Argentina affect in any way the participation of our delegation in the World Congress of the Amateur Boxing Federation held in Turkey?"

"Surely, we have strengthened our positions in that organization's executive committee."

"In what way, to be more exact?"

"Our representative was admitted to it and thus obtained one vote."

"Well, a good beginning makes for a good end."