Ukrainian midfielder of “Eüpspor” Taras Stepanenko, who previously played for “Shakhtar”, spoke about the personal impact of the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the occupation of part of the country on him and his family.
Taras Stepanenko“My father died when I was 13 years old, so I visited his grave whenever I came home to the village. I took care of the grave and talked to my father. It was important for him to know that I am a good person who deserves something in this life.
My village, with a population of 1100, is located 70 kilometers from Donetsk. I have not been to Donetsk since 2015, when my grandfather died. Right now I am nervous and angry because my native village has been occupied by Russian troops for the last month. This concerns not only my father. My grandfather and all my relatives who died are buried in this village. And now I cannot go there.
My family stayed in Zaporizhzhia, but when it became unsafe, when Russian troops were only 40 kilometers away from the city, we moved to Kyiv in the summer of 2022. There are many industrial enterprises in Zaporizhzhia, and they were bombed every day, so we relocated.
Now all my friends have left the village to move to the western part of Ukraine or to Kyiv. My mother lives in Kyiv,” said Stepanenko.
