Olha Saladukha, President of the Ukrainian Athletics Federation, wrote an op-ed for Sport RBC.UA reviewing the 2026 European Championships held in Birmingham. In her words, what matters is not what "could have been" but what actually happened, and thinking together about how to improve the system, since "there is never a limit to perfection." The column combines an assessment of the national team's performances, impressions of the event's organization in the United Kingdom, and a stance on a key political issue — the exclusion of Russian and Belarusian athletes from international competition.
Results of the Ukrainian team
The Ukrainian team won four medals at the European Championships — a full set — and also set national records and posted strong personal bests. Saladukha noted that the event's debutants, though not all of them, managed to get through the first round, and that in disciplines where Ukrainians had not competed at such a level for a long time, there were finals again — in particular, in the men's pole vault. The federation's president emphasized that she does not want to single anyone out but values "the team as such": the athletes stepped up and gave it their all, despite injuries, personal dramas, and other circumstances. She separately commented on Artur's season, which, in her words, has been a tough year due to back problems: in Birmingham he "choked" in the qualifying round, where he was required to throw as if in the final, and this left him disappointed, a feeling compounded by his subsequent performance at the Diamond League in Lausanne. Nevertheless, Saladukha expressed confidence that the athlete knows how to analyze and will realize his potential at the World and European Championships.
Organization of the event in Birmingham
According to Saladukha, competitions in the United Kingdom are always held to the highest standard and thought through to the finest detail. In Birmingham, in particular, the arena is conveniently laid out: the main and warm-up stadiums are well combined, and the building on the warm-up site houses many rooms needed by organizers and athletes. A rare feature was the placement of the long-throw sector on the main warm-up arena — usually throwers warm up at a different venue and then travel to the main stadium. The European Championships, in the federation president's words, are also about communication with colleagues from other federations, exchanging experience, building contacts, workshops, and ideas for improving both the competitive and the educational components.
The fight to keep Russians and Belarusians out
In Saladukha's words, World Athletics' position is unshakable: there are no preconditions for the return of Russians and Belarusians to competition, and a similar stance is held by several other major sports — football and biathlon, for example. At the same time, she acknowledges that this year there were votes in favor of their return in the World Athletics Council, but the position of President Sebastian Coe and the majority of Council members, in her words, remains unchanged. Saladukha pointed out that the world is gradually getting used to the war, which makes the fight to maintain the exclusion more difficult, and listed the arguments: the destruction of infrastructure, the occupation of territories, "sports annexations" involving the creation of federations on occupied territories, the forced participation of athletes in war instead of training, and state-level doping programs. In her belief, all of this demonstrates the inadmissibility of this state's symbols, athletes, and officials being present on the international arena, and the Ukrainian side must defend its position not only with words but also with facts.
Conclusions and outlook
In conclusion, Saladukha noted that not everything worked out for everyone, but there was plenty to be proud of regarding the athletes. She emphasized the team nature of the performance and the need for systematic work: maintaining a high level of organization, developing the educational direction, and consistently arguing the position on excluding the opponents from international competition. As for the prospects of individual athletes, including Artur, she tied them to their ability to analyze and realize their potential at the season's biggest events.
