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Legendary Ukrainian gymnast Liliya Podkopayeva received the Order of Princess Olga, 2nd class. The state award was presented to the Olympic champion by the president of the NOC of Ukraine, Vadym Huttsait.
The athlete was awarded for her significant contribution to the development of the Olympic movement in Ukraine and her many years of professional activity. The ceremonial meeting took place at the Olympic House, the NOC of Ukraine reported on Instagram.
Podkopayeva received the state award
One of the most famous representatives of Ukrainian artistic gymnastics visited the Olympic House. Vadym Huttsait personally presented Liliya Podkopayeva with the Order of Princess Olga, 2nd class.
The athlete was honored by the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The decision was made on the occasion of the 35-anniversary of the founding of the National Olympic Committee of Ukraine.
Podkopayeva thanked them for the award and emphasized that it is important for her to remain part of the Ukrainian Olympic movement going forward.
I am sincerely grateful for this award. It is very important for me to continue to be part of the Ukrainian Olympic movement,
the gymnast said.
Triumph in Atlanta and retirement
The brightest chapter of Podkopayeva’s career was the Olympic Games in Atlanta in 1996. There the Ukrainian won three medals at once – gold in the all-around and in the floor exercise, and a silver on the balance beam.
Her all-around performance was especially significant. Podkopayeva delivered an exceptionally difficult program and became the absolute Olympic champion at 18 years old.
The Ukrainian gymnast also has numerous medals from World and European Championships. At the same time, her competitive career proved short-lived – already in 1997 she stopped competing due to an injury.
After retiring, Podkopayeva did not step away from sport and continued working to promote the Olympic movement. After the start of Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine, she publicly condemned the aggression and joined charitable initiatives.
It was previously reported that Liliya Podkopayeva moved with her family to Florida.
Document: PDF proof of the original version of the news item "Олімпійська чемпіонка Лілія Подкопаєва отримала орден княгині Ольги". It records the publication content at the moment of the first scan, the preservation date and the source: Channel 24.
