Support to Ukrainian rowers by Croatian Olympic Committee and National Federation
The Croatian Olympic Committee and the Croatian Rowing Federation organised a gathering with Ukrainian female and male rowers who are in month-long preparation at Lake Jarun in Zagreb.
In Croatia’s action to accept and take care of Ukrainian athletes, initiated by the NOC, on the recommendation of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the European Olympic Committees (EOC), rowing is one of the most numerously represented sports – 28 athletes and 11 accompanying persons.
In addition to the NOC President Zlatko Mateša, Secretary General Siniša Krajač and the member of the Executive Board of the Croatian Rowing Federation Zoran Emeršić, the race in front of the rowing hangars at Jarun was supplemented by the Cultural Attaché of the Ukrainian Embassy in the Republic of Croatia Ruslan Yegorov, replacing at the last minute the indisposed Ambassador His Excellency Vasyl Kyrylych.
“Considering our membership in the Olympic Family and in accordance with the Olympic Charter it is our duty to help all the athletes in such a hardship. Croatia has a sensibility for the tragedy of the Ukrainians because we also experienced it in the past, and our athletes also trained in other countries” said the President of the Croatian Olympic Committee Mateša.
The coach of the Ukrainian rowing team Oleksandar Fedotov said “We are grateful to Croatia for its hospitality, everything is at the top level, we have quality conditions for training, we also got boats on loan for performance at the world cup. The only problem is the situation in the minds of our representatives, most of them come from the southern regions of Ukraine, where wartime aggression is most severe. And they’ve all left some family members whose fate they’re very concerned about”
The Jarun race was also enhanced by Olympic champion Martin Sinković, who, with messages to Ukrainian colleagues to “ask for everything they need”, further demonstrated how sympathetic Croats really are to the Ukrainians in the situation they themselves have survived.
Source: NOC Croatia
