We recall the most high-profile achievements of Ukrainian athletes based on the results of 2024.
The year 2024 is coming to an end. It was very difficult for the Ukrainian people, who continue to defend their homeland from the Russian occupiers. Despite the circumstances, Ukrainian athletes have again won many high-profile victories in the international arena this year. The national anthem was played in their honor and the blue and yellow flag was raised.
Representatives of Ukrainian sports did not forget to thank and support the Armed Forces of Ukraine in every possible way, and some even took up arms and went to defend their native land from the enemy. Many of them gave their own lives in the fight against the invaders.
TSN Prosport invites readers to recall the most high-profile victories of Ukrainian athletes in 2024.
Usyk defeated Fury twice, winning the title of “absolute”
In 2024, Oleksandr Usykcontinued to dominate world boxing. His long-awaited fight with Tyson Fury finally took place. And not just one, but two. The Ukrainian boxer won each of them. Moreover, the first fight became historic, because the title of absolute world heavyweight champion was at stake.
On the night of May 19, 2024, Usyk won by split decision over Fury in a unification fight that took place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. At the end of the ninth round, Alexander knocked his opponent down.
Thus, Oleksandr defended the WBO, WBA, IBO and IBF belts, and also took the WBC title from the “Gypsy King”. Usyk became the first absolute world champion in the heavyweight division in the 21st century.
Before that, the last “absolute” heavyweight champion was Lennox Lewis, who won this status in 1999 when he defeated Evander Holyfield. At that time, the WBA, WBC and IBF titles were at stake. The WBO belt was recognized as equal in 2007, so Usyk became the first “absolute” heavyweight champion in history with four main titles.
After the first fight, Fury activated the rematch option and the boxers met again in the ring on the night of December 22 in Riyadh. This time, the Ukrainian won by unanimous decision of the judges and defended his WBA, WBO, WBC and IBO world heavyweight titles.
Unlike the first fight, the Usyk-Fury rematch did not involve the title of absolute world champion, since Alexander had previously refusedfrom the IBF title. Now it is owned by the Briton Daniel Dubois, who has already managed to defend it by knocking out his compatriot Anthony Joshua.
After Usyk's victory over Fury in the rematch, Dubois got into the ring and challenged the Ukrainian to a fight. Alexander agreed and asked to organize a fight with Daniel, whom he had previously knocked out in August 2023.
So, probably in 2025, Usyk will have a second fight with Dubois and try to regain the title of “absolute” in the heavyweight. For Alexander, this is an opportunity to become a three-time absolute world champion, because he previously also owned all the belts in the cruiserweight.
It should be noted that after the second victory over Fury, the Ukrainian champion raised the original sabre of Hetman Ivan Mazepa in the ring, reminding the world of the centuries-old struggle of the Ukrainian people for their freedom.
Maguchikh breaks world record
Ukrainian high jumper Yaroslava Mahuchikh had a fantastic 2024. She won“gold” at the 2024 Olympics in Paris, won “gold” at the European Championships and “silver” at the World Indoor Championships, and also became the champion of the Diamond League, winning all the stages in which she took part.
In early July, Maguchikh broke the world record in the women's high jump. At the Diamond League stage in Paris, the Ukrainian was the first in history to clear a height of 2.10 meters. Yaroslava surpassed the achievement of Bulgarian Stefka Kostadinova, who jumped 2.09 meters at the 1987 World Championships in Rome.
Successes of Ukrainian Olympians: Harlan, Mahuchikh, Khizhnyak and others
In the summer, the main multi-sport competitions of the planet – the Olympic Games – took place in Paris. Ukrainians at the Games in the capital of France also pleased fans with victories and medals. In total, they won 12 medals: three gold, five silver and four bronze awards.
Following the results of the 2024 Games, Ukraine took 22nd place in the overall medal standings and became 17th in the number of awards won among all participating countries.
The first medal of the 2024 Olympics for our country was brought by Olha Kharlan – “bronze” in the individual sabre competition. This award was not the only one for her in Paris. Later, together with Elena Kravatskaya, Alina Komashchuk and Yulia Bakastova won the team tournament, winning the first gold for our country at the 2024 Olympics.
Thus, Harlan became a two-time Olympic champion. Olga also won her first “gold” in the team at her debut Olympics in Beijing in 2008. Then she triumphed together with Olga Zhovnir, Galina Pundik and Elena Khomrova.
The “gold” of the team competition in Paris-2024 became the sixth Olympic award in the career of Kharlan, who became the absolute record holder of Ukraine in medals won at the Olympics. The sabre fencer beat the achievement of swimmer Yana Klochkova, who won five medals at the Olympic Games.
Maguchikh and boxer Alexander Khizhnyak won two more gold medals for Ukraine at the 2024 Olympics.
For Yaroslava, this is the first Olympic gold in her career and the second medal; she won bronze in Tokyo 2020.
Khizhnyak also climbed to the Olympic podium for the second time, but for the first time to its highest step. At the Tokyo Games, he dramatically lost in the final – he was knocked out in the last round and was left with the silver.
It should also be noted that the 2024 Olympics were the last for Greco-Roman wrestler Zhan Beleniuk, who came to Paris as the current Olympic champion. He was the only Ukrainian athlete who managed to win gold at the Tokyo Games.
The current member of the Ukrainian parliament managed to say goodbye to sports in style. At the 2024 Olympics, he won“bronze”, after which he danced the victory hopak. Just like he did at the Tokyo Games, when he celebrated the Olympic “gold”.
Zhan ended his career as a three-time Olympic medalist. In addition to the bronze from Paris 2024 and the gold from Tokyo 2020, his track record includes the silver from Rio 2016.
All of Ukraine's medals at the 2024 Olympics
“Gold”:
- Olga Kharlan, Olena Kravatska, Alina Komashchuk and Yulia Bakastova (sabre fencing, team championship)
- Yaroslava Mahuchikh (athletics, high jump)
- Oleksandr Khizhnyak(boxing, weight category up to 80 kg)
“Silver”:
- Sergey Kulish (bullet shooting, rifle shooting from three positions at a distance of 50 meters)
- Ilya Kovtun (artistic gymnastics. parallel bars)
- Parviz Nasibov (Greco-Roman wrestling, weight category up to 67 kg)
- Lyudmila Luzan and Anastasia Rybachok (rowing, canoe double 500 meters)
- Irina Kolyadenko (freestyle wrestling, weight category up to 62 kg)
“Bronze”:
- Olga Kharlan (sabre fencing, individual championship)
- Irina Gerashchenko (athletics, high jump)
- Mikhail Kokhan (athletics, hammer throw)
- Zhan Beleniuk (Greco-Roman wrestling, weight category up to 87 kg)
A Spectacular Performance by Ukrainian Paralympians
Our Paralympians took on the task of supporting the achievements of the Olympic team. Ukraine was represented at the 2024 Paralympics by 140 athletes who competed in 17 sports. This is a record number of sports in the Paralympic history of Ukraine.
At the Games in the French capital, Ukrainian Paralympians won 82 medals: 22 gold, 28 silver and 32 bronze.
Our team took seventh place in the medal count and became fifth in the number of awards.
All medals of Ukraine at the 2024 Paralympics
“Gold”:
- Alexander Komarov(swimming, 100m, freestyle, class S5)
- Oksana Zubkovskaya (athletics, long jump, class T12)
- Mikhail Serbin (swimming, 100m, backstroke, class S11)
- Denis Ostapchenko (swimming, 50m, backstroke, class S3)
- Igor Tsvetov (athletics, 100m, class T35)
- Yuri Shengur (swimming, 100m, backstroke, class S7)
- Yulia Shulyar (athletics, 400m run, class T20)
- Aleksandr Yarovoy (athletics, shot put, class F20)
- Natalia Kobzar (athletics, 400m run, class T37)
- Yaroslav Denisenko (swimming, 100m, freestyle, class S12)
- Andrey Trusov (swimming, 50m, freestyle, class S7)
- Marina Poddubnaya, Alexey Virchenko, Anna Stetsenko, Yaroslav Denisenko(swimming, mixed, 4x100m relay, freestyle, 49 points)
- Anastasia Moskalenko (athletics, shot put, class F32)
- Maria Pomazan (athletics, shot put, class F35)
- Natalia Nikolaychik (judo, up to 48 kg, class J1)
- Egor Dementyev (cycling, road group race, class C4-5)
- Viktor Didukh (table tennis, singles tournament, class MS8)
- Anastasia Garnik(judo, over 70 kg, class J1)
- Igor Tsvetov (athletics, 200 m run, class T35)
- Alexander Nazarenko (judo, up to 90 kg, class J2)
- Andrey Trusov (swimming, 50 m, butterfly, class S7)
- Vladislav Epifanov (canoeing, single 200 m, class VL3)
“Silver”:
- Anton Kol (swimming, 100 m, backstroke, class S1)
- Irina Poyda (swimming, 200m, freestyle, class S5)
- Vladislav Bely (athletics, javelin throw, class F38)
- Irina Poyda (swimming, 100m, freestyle, class S5)
- Natalia Kobzar (athletics, 200m run, class T37)
- Vladimir Ponomarenko (athletics, shot put, class F12)
- Egor Dementyev (track cycling, individual pursuit, 4000m, class C5)
- Anna Stetsenko (swimming, 100m, backstroke, class S12)
- Andrey Trusov (swimming, 200m, individual medley, class SM7)
- Roman Polyanskiy (rowing, single sculls, class PR1)
- Andrey Trusov (swimming, 400m, freestyle, class S7)
- Ilya Yaremenko (swimming, 50m, freestyle, class S13)
- Andrey Trusov (swimming, 100m, backstroke, class S7)
- Daniil Chufarov (swimming, 200m, medley, class S11)
- Igor Nimchenko (swimming, 100m butterfly, class S10)
- Maria Shpatkovskaya (athletics, shot put, class F46)
- Maksim Veraksa (swimming, 100m, freestyle, class S12)
- Anna Stetsenko (swimming, 100m, freestyle, class S12)
- Oksana Boturchuk(athletics, 100m dash, class T12)
- Rodion Zhigalin, Vasily Oleinik, Fedor Sidorenko, Anton Strelchik, Alexander Toporkov and Evgeny Tsyganenko (goalball)
- Lyudmila Danilina (athletics, 1500m dash, class T20)
- Denis Ostapchenko (swimming, 50m, freestyle, class S3)
- Daniil Chufarov (swimming, 100m, butterfly, class S11)
- Marina Litovchenko (table tennis, singles, class WS6)
- Evgeniya Breus, Nadezhda Dyolog, Natalia Morkvich, Elena Fedota-Isaeva (fencing, team tournament, epee)
- Denis Ostapchenko (swimming, 200 m, freestyle, class S3)
- Marina Mazula (kayaking and canoeing, kayak single, 200 m, class KL1)
- Anton Kryukov(powerlifting, over 107 kg)
Bronze:
- Anna Gontar (swimming , 50 meters, freestyle, class S6)
- Alexander Komarov (swimming, 200 m, freestyle, class S5)
- Victor Didukh, Irina Shinkareva (table tennis, mixed doubles, doubles tournament, class XD17)
- Roman Danilyuk (athletics, shot put, class F12)
- Yaroslav Denisenko(swimming, 100m, backstroke, class S12)
- Anna Stetsenko (swimming, 400m, freestyle, class S12)
- Anton Kol (swimming, 50m, backstroke, class S1)
- Evgeny Bogodayko (swimming, 200m, medley, class SM7)
- Marina Poddubnaya (swimming, 50m, freestyle, class S11)
- Evgeny Bogodayko (swimming, 100m, breaststroke, class SB6)
- Artem Kolinko (boccia, class BC4)
- Daniil Chufarov (swimming, 100 m, backstroke, class S11)
- Daniil Semenikhin (swimming, 100 m, breaststroke, class SB5)
- Anna Gontar (swimming, 100 m, breaststroke, class SB5)
- Sergey Palamarchuk (swimming, 50 m, backstroke, class S3)
- Alexey Virchenko (swimming, 50 m, freestyle, class S13)
- Alexander Litvinenko (athletics, long jump, class T36)
- Zoya Ovsiy (athletics, discus throw, class F51)
- Oksana Boturchuk (athletics, 400m run, class T12)
- Maksim Koval (athletics, shot put, class F20)
- Elena Fedota-Isaeva (wheelchair fencing, sabre, singles, category B)
- Pavel Bal (cycling, group race, class H5)
- Angela Gavrysiuk (judo, up to 57 kg, class J1)
- Daniil Chufarov (swimming, 100 m, breaststroke, class SB11)
- David Khorava (judo, up to 60 kg, class J2)
- Yaroslav Semenenko, Anna Gontar, Alexander Komarov, Irina Poyda, Denis Ostapchenko, Veronika Korzhova (swimming, relay 4×50 m, medley, 20 points)
- Maksim Nikolenko (table tennis, singles tournament, class MS8)
- Elena Fedota-Isaeva (fencing, singles, epee, category B)
- Sergey Palamarchuk (swimming, 200 m, freestyle, class S3)
- Nikolay Sinyuk (kayaking and canoeing, single kayak, 200 m, class KL2)
- Yuri Babinets (powerlifting, up to 88 kg)
- Igor Nimchenko (swimming, 200 m, medley, class SM10)
The Ukrainian national futsal team won a historic “bronze” at the World Championship
Our futsal players made the fans very happy. The Ukrainian men's futsal team won the “bronze” at the 2024 World Championship.
At the group stage, Oleksandr Kosenko's team suffered a crushing defeat to Argentina (1:7), but then destroyed Angola (7:2) and beat Afghanistan (4:1).
In the 1/8 finals, the “blue-yellows” defeatedThe Netherlands (3:1) destroyed Venezuela (9:4) in the quarterfinals, lost to Brazil (2:3) in the semifinals, and defeated France (7:1) in the bronze medal match.
The Ukrainian national team won the bronze medal for the first time in history became a prize winner of the Futsal World Championship. Before that, the best result of the “blue-yellows” was fourth place in the debut tournament for our team in 1996.
So, 2024 turned out to be rich for Ukrainian sports in triumphs, medals and records. We hope that 2025 will be even more successful. We continue to help our military as much as possible in order to achieve the most important victory together – to put an end to the war, liberating all territories of our homeland from the occupiers.