guys thank you for joining us ¡uh! it's great you're here at Europe's Strongest Man and just to talk a
little bit briefly about what's happening in your country, obviously you know the whole world is
condemning what's going on Olekssi ¿how are things at the moment? ¿where is it you live? I live in ¡uh!
capital of Ukraine it's ¡uh! Kiev and it's ¡uh! every day they bought civil, civil people and
children, children garden hospital and another civil house understand how it's possible in 21
century and it's not ¡uh! can include in my mind because in, in history we understand it was maybe
80, 80 years ago and we learn this history and understand and hope this never
¡yeah! it happens again, ¡yeah! it's really, it's not bad situation, it's real terrible, terrible,
¡uh! situation and it's ¡uh! the disaster not for just for Ukraine, it's a big disaster for
all world and I think a lot of ¡uh! country understands this like UK, American and
Poland and Baltic countries but not all countries understand this and I and I think all public
people who can talk outside my country and talk about safe sky ¡um!
close skies yeah you're Ukraine's Strongest Man and well Strongest Man winner and you're also a
Ukraine's Strongest Man so we have two pretty tough guys ¡uh! not the Klitschko brothers
but also tough guys ¡yeah! ¡um! ¿where do you live? you're not here if you're a different city right
I'm living a little bit west in Tel aviv it's nearby Poland border, 70 kilometers it's little bit
calm, so also few missiles attacked was in my city the last one was maybe five or six days
ago, seven missiles I met in one military object one civil object so we heard huge pop we heard
air alarm, it's very terrible sound so have you had to go down into the ¡yeah! ¡yeah! you have
you have family right ¡yeah! I have a wife, brother,
brother's wife and my father live in Latvia here if you any of your family had to go, no,
no, my family stay in Ukraine helping and my brother is in middle tree so he's a firefighter
and my another brother is in military his arm his weapon and what, what ¡um! how has life
changed for you personally how what, what is it Oleksii that you are still athletes, now from begin
war in Ukraine, I trained just ¡uh! two times like Strongman ¡uh! usually it's training like soldier
military training and each day I strike different weapons and learn tactic battle filter and
it's that's changed my life and I not like a strong one I, I, I think I have to defend my, my,
my country and my city and I train for this for this moment, so you're training more time military
than any sport you know in general I train like military not like Strong man, no strongman, just
two times I have a training one it's lock lift and one squat ¡yeah! so you're and you're also going
straight back to Ukraine ¡yeah! ¡yeah! ¡yeah! good, good bacon getting back to Ukraine and I'm,
I'm also physical therapist so I'm a little bit working with my critical patient so and first
to weak I can trying, I have broke break a little bit and then trying maybe, maybe two weeks
five or six training session so by volunteering helping our people military and something else
here, I think you can do and you're not here you're not staying in England for a long time no, no
third app will be going to Poland pick up my car and going to leave then Oleksii
pick up their car and going to give straight back, straight back, it was a long trip but
¡yeah! well it's we appreciate you coming I mean I see you checking your phone and you're messaging
your wife I guess ¡yeah! yesterday was air alarm in my city, I'm very worried about this and texted
my wife every five minutes, ¿Are you okay?, ¿Are you okay? and they texted me they're air alarm and, and
I'm going to sleep ¡uh! first time where first part of ¡uh! war when I was in Poland I,
I, I, I was in Poland because I make
visa for USA and I stay in Poland for go to USA for Arnold and when you in other in,
in another country you work more than you in, in, in Ukraine because you understand what situation
and you're not nervous about your family I, I think you, feel guilty, very guilty ¡yeah! for your
mind for, for me I think and for power too harder, harder, be here than in Ukraine and when something
happened in ¡uh! in Kiev or view we are really nervous and worried about our family and
and it's really hard, you know, all people adapted for all situations and know I think in the main
¡uh! people in Kiev maybe in wave 2 and in general in all Ukraine adapted for war and now
if we we asked how are you feeling we can answer okay or normal but in our country you know real
big terrible war but for all people it's okay because each situation we
understand it's war and we adapted for this and must work ¡uh! better for our win I mean
yes, I mean so, I can understand you have the feeling of guilt away from your family
it's ¡uh! survivor syndrome maybe you heard about it you're feeling ¡uh! when you're
in safe place you feel guilty ¡uh! to people who are in danger yeah it's survival syndrome
I can imagine I can imagine that well but even so it's bad here but it's also bad there the stress
is it possible to keep up I mean you're both two of the very best Strong men in
the world can you, can you actually from a sporting standpoint, can you, can maintain your strength and
I guess we find out that's ¡uh! hard to say but people can adapting to opportunities so
we now have any chances to we can't leave country because our family are there and to getting
here, we get contact with our ministry getting permission to leave the country because male
from 18 to 61 can't leave Ukraine it's not a question we're coming back yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah,
yeah what, what's, what's your, ¿what's your message? is there hope, thank you very much for support
Uk of course and america and the whole world thank you very much for
support Ukraine and ¡uh! continue to do this because it's very important for us and ¡uh!
we feel in your support and I think a lot of more people died if your country each country
not support Ukraine thank you very much for this if you can do this more it's I, I will be very
appreciate and I want to say some words in, in latin you know it's weird with unities it mean
in our unit our power so we must be union all world and we will win we will stop Russia and
do you think it will you think it's things will happen ¡yeah! I think it will happen because
I didn't see any way on disease we must, we must, we, we must, we'll be union and
then we'll start we can stop, ¿you have a child?, not yet, no yet, like a wife wife, get in there
and dog ¡yeah! and they're all okay ¡yeah! ¡yeah! good
both families on both sides are all at the moment okay our families in the moment are in safe ¡yeah!
it's a problem not just for Ukraine, it's for all worlds and
many countries understand this but many not understand this
all for sure, all for sure
you undertand, yeah we realize how terrible this is dreadful, awful, it's on the beginning
if Ukraine don't stop Russia is one it was only beginning, well, I mean, your clitch goes
you know, you know, you know kodiak of this at least you have some very tough men, that's for sure and I
and I, I you might be the small guy in the fight but you're fighting very well so ¡uh! and I'm
sure we will all be supporting all the way, we're here we are very brave guys in our armed forces
yes right all of this yeah everybody are you working in police now is that right
yes now in police and special force it's police and special force yeah I'm very proud our
union all people, yes, like one idea and for defend our country, it's like volunteers persons like
government, it's like police, army, enjoy your president, you, you're proud of your president
¡yeah! it's true ¡yeah! it's really and he's jewish right, I'm jewish how can you be a nazi
if you're jewish I don't understand that I don't ¡uh! Russia the people message me
your new president is nazism and ¡what! ¿really? don't get I don't understand
it doesn't make any sense to me maybe this is I,I,I,I give you was always about ¡uh! Zelinski at
my family all i, i know a lot of people who support Zelinski but ¡uh! now some Russian people ¡uh!
talk about ¡uh! it's ¡uh! it's not true and it's this government like ¡uh! nazism ¡what! you
¡um! want to explain me Ukrainian men who live in Kiev, what's happening in my country you really
thank you very much, I think from Russia but ¡uh! understandable situation Ukraine, biggest liar is
easiest to believe, maybe not correct in english that sounds so ¡yeah! you understand me yeah,
yeah, yeah very much biggest, biggest lie easiest to believe ¡yes! it's, it's from Russia
yeah, yeah that is yeah, it can only be it can only be I've been to Ukraine many times in life
I remember I see a photo with you in Ukraine you have different places, it's a great place
no place tonight so I wish you that we had a good competition I wish you the best of luck
maybe we'll have some competitions there again soon hopefully thanks guys, thank you thank you