Akhmetov supported Vadym Svyrydenko’s project: 8,6 million UAH will be allocated to a veterans’ pétanque arena and a special vehicle

At the VDNH a public inclusive IRON WARRIORS PETANQUE ARENA will be created for veterans, and the team of Vadym Svyrydenko has already received a special vehicle for joint trips to training and competitions.

.23 September Vadym Sviridenko - a veteran of the Russia-Ukraine war, the Ukrainian President's Commissioner for the Rehabilitation of Participants in Hostilities and the initiator of the project - together with his team gathered at the site of the future IRON WARRIORS PETANQUE ARENA at VDNH. Read also: Ahmetov invested over 170 billion into Ukraine's recovery: where exactly the money went Veterans played petanque during the event, and a project for the future space was presented and a vehicle from the Rinat Akhmetov Foundation was handed to the team. The story of veteran Vadym Sviridenko Vadym Sviridenko came to defend Ukraine in 2014 year. After a severe injury, he lost four limbs and underwent a long rehabilitation. An important part of returning to an active life for him became sport. Later Vadym began to develop veteran petanque and gathered a team around it. According to his plan, the IRON WARRIORS PETANQUE ARENA is to become a large, inclusive and accessible space for veterans, where they can regularly train, gather, and participate in competitions. The arena project provides for compliance with international standards, which in the future will allow international-level competitions to be held here. "Our idea is to create, on the basis of this arena, a center for the development of veteran petanque. It is an accessible sport that veterans with different injuries and physical abilities can join. We want the venue to become an example of an inclusive sports space where veterans can train regularly, participate in competitions, and develop this direction in Ukraine," said Nataliya Yemchenko, head of the Supervisory Board of the Rinat Akhmetov Foundation. As noted by Sviridenko, for veterans this arena will be a place where they can gather, communicate, train, and compete. Petanque helps relieve psychological stress, distract from injuries, and feel the support of comrades. "Thank you to Rinat Leonidovich Akhmetov and the Rinat Akhmetov Foundation for supporting our initiative, for not forgetting about veterans, and for creating opportunities for our recovery and active life," said Vadym Sviridenko. The project coordination The Rinat Akhmetov Foundation coordinates the project implementation and work with partners. Its task is to provide the necessary resources so that Vadym Sviridenko's idea becomes a real opportunity for other veterans to engage in sports, recover after injuries, and return to active life. In designing the arena, the experience of veterans who will train there is also taken into account. "When Vadym Sviridenko reached out to us, Rinat Akhmetov personally decided to support his initiative. After all, this is about opportunities for veterans to recover through sport, to meet, to unite, and to create communities. The car will help the team travel to trainings and competitions together, and the inclusive arena will become a permanent space for veterans from various cities of Ukraine to train," said Ksenia Sukhova, CEO of the Rinat Akhmetov Foundation. Rinat Akhmetov supported the project of veteran Vadym Sviridenko (photo: press service) Petanque is a sport that combines tactics, precision, and teamwork. It is accessible to people of different ages and physical fitness levels, which allows engaging veterans after injuries in the game, among others. The project partner is VDNH, which provided the territory for the future IRON WARRIORS PETANQUE ARENA. The arena will be a continuation of the Urban Park sports infrastructure and is scheduled to open this year.

Remember that in 2025-year the Rinat Akhmetov Foundation marked 20 years of work. We told how many charitable projects have been implemented during this time. It was also previously revealed that SCM Akhmetov directed to Ukraine 13,5 billion hryvnias over four years of large-scale war.