Name: Pavlo Budayevsky
Age: 28
Education: Lviv Polytechnic National University
Profession: Armed Forces of Ukraine soldier
Did you know? Budayevsky became an expert swimmer while still at school. He then gave up the sport to become a soldier. He is now successfully combining his army profession and his hobby of swimming. He is a winner of Ukraine’s Order of Merit.
Pavlo Budayevsky, 28, is an athlete and a soldier. And as both, he has been fighting for victory for Ukraine.
Budayevsky’s parents believe swimming helped give their son the strength and stamina to survive the Battle of Ilovaisk, in which hundreds died.
Meanwhile, his army service has given him the discipline and persistence to train hard in the pool, which helped him win four gold medals for Ukraine at the Invictus Games — the international Paralympic-style competition for wounded soldiers.
Budayevsky started swimming while still in kindergarten. Despite reaching a high level by the end of high school, he and his family decided that he wasn’t good enough to make a career out of it.
Instead, Budayevsky went to the military department of Lviv Polytechnic National University to become a soldier. So when in 2014 Russia started the war in Ukraine, Pavlo was sent to the front.
Fighting for the city of Ilovaisk, Budayevsky and his fellow soldiers were encircled by Russian-backed forces and besieged for many days.
The Ukrainian government made an agreement with the Russian-led forces to allow Ukrainian forces to retreat. But they were betrayed by the Russians, and Ukrainian soldiers were ambushed while trying to escape.
The official death toll was 366 soldiers, but an investigation by a parliament committee estimates the casualties were three times higher. Meanwhile, 429 soldiers were wounded, and Budayevsky was one of them — a bullet hit his shoulder.
Budayevsky had to undergo a difficult recuperation. This is where his passion for swimming helped, keeping him in a pool even after his recovery and return to army duties.
Meanwhile, in 2017, a Ukrainian team took part for the first time in the Invictus Games, a sports event that hosted more than 550 wounded soldiers from up to two dozen countries.
Budayevsky was part of Ukraine’s main team of 15 veterans and 13 reserves, who traveled to Toronto, Canada. He did far better than anyone had expected. The Ukrainian team won 14 medals, including eight golds. Budayevsky won half of the country’s gold medals, competing in four swimming events.
“I showed very good results during the training session before the competition, but I wasn’t sure I would win until the very last minute, and I still can’t believe it’s all real,” he told the Kyiv Post
He got an award for improving Ukraine’s international image. But while Budayevsky has now won fame as a sportsman, his army duties call him back to war, to again risk his life defending Ukraine.
