Come On, Let’s Play! in Kyiv: ground for kids with disabilities
Shakhtar Social has opened a training ground for children with disabilities in Kyiv
The ground in Kyiv is the first one on which children with mental disorders, locomotion system issues, impaired eyesight and developmental delays can enjoy playing football. In the Ukrainian capital, the project’s partner is the Academy of Modern Education A+, which will be used for training sessions with the support of Ukraine’s National Assembly of People with Disabilities. The A+ Academy CEO Tatyana Kurmaz explained: “We’ve been in partnership with FC Shakhtar for several years now, so we were delighted to join the Come On, Let’s Play! social project in order to support the children willing to do sports. I really hope that this initiative will develop further and that Shakhtar’s expertise will serve as a great example for other football clubs and philanthropists. After all, there are so many children in need of special attention.”
“We are glad that our friends, the Shakhtar Social foundation, has offered children the opportunity to play football” pointed out Olena Hryb, a representative of the National Assembly of People with Disabilities of Ukraine. “For these guys, this is a huge plus, because apart from getting physical development, they also learn to work in a team, improving discipline and integrating into the real game. Children and their parents are just happy that such training sessions have become available.”
“It’s great that the club is engaged in such projects.”
The first training was attended by 25 children. Shakhtar coaches Nuno Campos and Antonio Ferreira, along with the team players Andrii Totovytskyi and Olarenwaju Kayode, came to practice with them. The guest stars performed exercises together with the kids while encouraging and motivating them. In the end, the children received gifts, autographs, and could also take photos with their idols.
“This project is very important. It’s a great honour for us to bring such joy and pleasure to the guys. They love football and deserve to experience some wonderful emotions that the game gives us” said Nuno Campos, the assistant coach at Shakhtar. “This day, of course, will be long remembered by the kids. Today, they are just happy!
The Shakhtar striker Larry Kayode added: “I’m pleased that we met with the children and managed to pass to them some warmth and love not only from ourselves but also from the whole team. It was nice to see them smile. We came to make the guys a little bit happier, and it looks like we managed to do so. It’s great that the club is engaged in such projects.”
Training sessions for 30 children will be held on Saturdays and Sundays. Besides Kyiv, other grounds for children with disabilities have been opened in Mariupol and Ivano-Frankivsk.
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