Passages: Ukrainian Water Polo Player Yevhen Obedinsky Killed in Mariupol
Yevhen Obedinsky, a former captain of the Ukrainian men’s water polo team, was killed on March 17 in the Russian-led siege of Mariupol.
Obedinsky was 39 years old. Per reports in Ukraine, his 12-year-old daughter Kira Obedinsky was taken to Russian occupied Donetsk, where she was treated for minor shrapnel wounds. An international campaign is being carried out to return Kira to the custody of her grandfather.
The family has had contact with the daughter. Yevhen was her only surviving parent after her mother died in childbirth. She is one of Yevhen’s three children.
Yevhen Obedinsky (in Russian, his first name is written as Evgeny) died on March 17 in some of the most intense fighting in Russia’s invasion of the country. He was a former captain of the Ukrainian national team who won multiple national titles with Illichivets Mariupol. He had survived a battle with a brain tumor.
His father, Oleksandr Obedinsky, was a coach for the national team. He was the one to announce the death of his son via social media.
Ukraine is a minor player among the European water polo powers. The nation has played in one Olympic Games (1996) and three European Championships, none since 1997.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has led to widespread condemnation, including the banning of Russian and Belorussian athletes from international competition by bodies including FINA.