For over two years now, there has been war in Ukraine. What this demands from the people in Ukraine, we can only imagine.
Shortly after the outbreak of war, artistic cyclists from Hungary sent a convoy of aid to the school in Nagybereg. Nagybereg is in western Ukraine, south of Lviv, near the border with Hungary. At that time, the VfH Worms collected donations totaling approximately €8,000 in just a few weeks. With this money, food and other supplies were financed to help Ukrainian internally displaced persons staying in Nagybereg.
Training in artistic cycling was out of the question during this time. In 2023, our artistic cycling friends slowly resumed training. During the farewell to Martin Schön at the Bokoder Cup in the fall of 2023, I had the opportunity to meet the Ukrainian delegation.
They were moving moments full of gratitude mixed with a little hope. After the competition, the Ukrainian team said goodbye during the banquet. Packing their bicycles into backpacks and carrying them on their backs, they set off. When I asked why the tires were wrapped in plastic film, they explained to me that they were going to cross the border on foot. Not for security reasons, but because entry and exit then cost ten times less money.
How great must the love for our sport be to travel like this to a competition? The team of VfH Worms then decided that we wanted to enable our sports friends from Ukraine to participate in the Wormser Kunstradsport Cup and the Youth Tournament 2024. What exactly does that look like? What can visitors to both competitions do to ensure that Ukraine also competes in the Junior European Championships in Amorbach and the World Championships in Bremen?
At the Wormser Cup, we are foregoing souvenirs for all participants and commissioners this year. VfH Worms will hand over €500 in cash to the Ukrainian team, provide free accommodation and meals for the team, and waive entry fees.
Donations collected on April 13 and 14 at the Wormser BIZ for the benefit of Ukrainian artistic cyclists will be handed over to VfH Worms as a designated donation to Indoor Cycling World Wide. ICWW plans to expand this fundraising campaign for Ukrainian artistic cycling accordingly.