Ukrainian paddlers want to compete hard in Dartmouth as a reminder that the sport must survive despite the war

Ukrainian paddlers at the World Championships are thankful for the tranquility of Dartmouth’s lakes – after temporarily leaving sirens and rockets flying overhead.

But for Pavlo Altukhov, a 26-year-old canoe racer and Olympian, the contrast between peacefulness in Canada and violence at home motivates him to push for podiums.

“It’s better to be in a safe place, but it’s hard to see that your country is at war,” he said in an interview on Saturday as athletes launched their boats for training sessions on Lake Banook let.

The ICF Canoe Sprint and Paracanoe World Championships get underway in Dartmouth, NS on Wednesday with up to 40,000 spectators expected to watch the five-day kayak and canoe competitions.

“I have to do what I do best, for my country… I have to paddle to raise my country’s flag in other countries around the world,” Altukhov said.

“It’s not a normal war. It’s a war on terrorism. … So I ask all of us around the world to remember Ukraine. There is peace in your country, but there is no peace in my country.”

Surrounded by war

Earlier this year, as Altukhov paddled his paddle into the waters of the Pivdennyi Buh river, which bisects the small town of Khmelnytskyi in western Ukraine, his head snapped up when a massive sound broke through the air.

A Russian missile sped past overhead, toward a target he could only speculate about.

“We kept paddling on the water… It only took seconds and it passed,” he said.

Day after day, the athlete is aware of the dozens of friends who are now on different war fronts and keep in touch with them via Instagram. Even his father, 56, is now enlisted in the military.

Altukhov said sirens wail at night, disrupting the sleep he and other top athletes need to get up early for morning workouts.

“It’s not easy to train when your country is at war,” he said. “There are always sirens, there are bombs that landed near my city.”

“It’s weird. It’s always weird because you don’t know what’s going to happen tomorrow.”

Nearby, his teammate in the 500-meter mixed canoe sprint, 25-year-old Liudmyla Luzan – a silver and bronze medalist at the Tokyo Olympics – had just arrived at the lake and was standing next to a racing canoe that just days after Canada was shipped ahead of their first event.

When asked about the impact of the war on her prospects, she replied in Ukrainian, and Altukhov summarized her comments, saying: “You [Luznan] said we understand we have to be stronger and keep training and win everything we can win.”

Andrii Opikun, the team leader of the Ukrainian Parakanu athletes, often worries about his parents in Dnipro, who were directly attacked during the Russian invasion.

“I call every day. I’m trying to help them, but I have to do my job and travel to Canada,” he said in a phone interview on Saturday, adding that the midday gun that rocks Halifax every day gives him a jolt of fear.

Canoe Kayak Canada, IOC helps organize donations

Canoe Kayak Canada has partnered with the International Olympic Committee and a variety of organizations to arrange approximately $250,000 in donations and support to take the Ukrainian team to the championships and provide them with accommodations, it said Canoe Kayak Canada Chief Executive Officer Casey Wade in an interview on Saturday.

Wade also said federal officials have been working with Immigration Canada to issue visas to Ukrainians, allowing longer stays in the country and — in some cases — allowing them to return here for training over the next two years if necessary.

“It’s about reaching out to athletes in need, and it’s a Canadian effort to support them in tough times,” Wade said during a phone interview, adding that the Ukrainian team is considered extremely competitive in the sport.

Altukhov thanked for the support and said armed conflicts are financially devastating for top athletes.

“The money has to be spent on the war … but our Ministry of Sport always tries to save the team because we have to go to international competitions and we have to show that Ukraine is alive and Ukraine is strong in every situation. Ukrainian sport must live.”

Altukhov said after his three races here he will return to Europe on August 8 as the competition schedule continues with the European Championships and other elite competitions.

He said if he does not compete he will return to Ukraine – regardless of the circumstances – as there is a legal obligation for athletes of military age to remain in the country when not competing.

Take on the Canadian duo

Later this week, Altukhov and Luzan are expected to take on Canadian pairing Katie Vincent, an Olympic medalist, and Connor Fitzpatrick in the 500-meter mixed canoe event – one of the events where Canada is shooting for a podium finish.

The Ukrainian duo said during interviews that they are grateful for the Canadian support, but they will not hold anything back on the water.

“It’s heartwarming to see the flags of Ukraine and feel the warmth…but we’re here to beat everyone,” Altukhov said.