World Athletics extends financial support to athletes from Ukraine

World Athletics, the global governing body of track and field, has renewed its commitment to support Ukrainian athletes affected by the ongoing conflict in their country through the Ukraine Solidarity Fund. The announcement was made on Tuesday as part of the organization’s efforts to promote gender equity in athletics on International Women’s Day. According to World Athletics, the fund was created in response to the destruction of sports facilities and the displacement of athletes due to the conflict in Ukraine, which began with Russia’s invasion of the country in February 2022.

Since then, more than 343 sports facilities have been destroyed, leaving an estimated 140,000 young athletes without proper training facilities. As a result, many athletes have been forced to train abroad, and their careers have been put in jeopardy. To address this situation, World Athletics distributed over $220,000 to more than 100 Ukrainian athletes in 2022, with 70% of the beneficiaries being female athletes. Among them was hurdler Anna Ryzhykova, who won Olympic bronze in the 4×400 relay in 2012 in London and was fifth in the 400 meters hurdles at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

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What Anna Ryzhykova Had to Say regarding the Step

Ryzhykova, who is also a member of the World Athletics athletes’ commission, praised the Solidarity Fund for saving her and her fellow athletes’ careers and allowing them to represent their country on the world stage. In renewing the fund, World Athletics hopes to continue supporting Ukrainian athletes as they prepare for the World Athletics Championships in Budapest in August 2023. The organization also plans to take further steps towards achieving gender equity in athletics as part of its #WeGrowAthletics campaign. One of the key goals of the campaign is to promote gender equity in leadership positions within World Athletics and its member federations. To this end, the organization is targeting 40% female participation in online courses designed to develop future administrators. It also aims to have at least one female vice-president on the World Athletics Council this year and to expand research into the representation of female athletes across media channels.

In addition, World Athletics has set a deadline of the end of 2023 for all 214 global member federations to implement safeguarding policies to protect athletes from abuse and discrimination. This is in line with the organization’s commitment to creating a safe and inclusive environment for all athletes, regardless of their gender, race, or background. Commenting on these initiatives, World Athletics president Sebastian Coe emphasized the importance of promoting gender equity in athletics. He noted that providing equal opportunity is not enough and that it is crucial to provide equity to female athletes, administrators, and officials to empower them to pursue careers at all levels of athletics.

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