Ukrainian high jumper Yuliya Levchenko, in an exclusive interview with Sport RBC.UA, spoke about how her off-season is going, how she is recovering from an injury sustained in the heat of the competition period, and how she is preparing for the new season. The conversation also touched upon the psychological side of sports—from her attitude toward the two-meter mark to a story that went viral on social media and, according to the athlete herself, became one of the turning points shaping her further path.
Returning to the rhythm: training camp in Mukachevo
According to Levchenko, she recently returned from a training camp in Mukachevo, where the team began working in a general group. In particular, she trained alongside Anastasiia Kovalchuk, and the athlete noted a "friendly, cool atmosphere." Levchenko decided to build a smooth entry into the work for herself: since some of her national team teammates were already at a different stage of preparation, she consciously chose not to force the load, instead "building up an appetite" for training. Such an approach, she said, helped avoid a sudden spike in workload after the break.
Two meters is not a barrier, but readiness
Answering a question about whether the two-meter mark exerts psychological pressure, Levchenko stated that she wants to jump higher, but according to competition regulations, the height is not always exactly 2.00—it can be 1.99 or 2.01. She emphasized that this is "not a psychological barrier, but rather your readiness": if an athlete is physically capable of overcoming the height and is ready to show results, there should be no obstacles. At the same time, she explained that athletes do not jump at maximum marks during training—all preparation is structured so that the best results are demonstrated specifically at competitions, while reaching peak level during the training process under full load is not only impractical but pointless.
Injury in the middle of the season: the path to acceptance
A key topic of the interview was a "household injury" sustained at an inopportune time—in the middle of the season. Levchenko admitted that this was her first experience of missing competitions right in the middle of the season. Initially, she thought the pain would go away in three days, but a doctor reported a ligament tear and a six-week healing period. The athlete described the stages of denial and anger, followed by acceptance, noting that this experience made her "more psychologically resilient." She emphasized that the recovery time "cannot be moved anywhere" and expressed joy at being able to return to competitions after the injury, having overcome the fear of jumping.
The viral two-hryvnia story
A separate block of the conversation was devoted to a story from Threads about a woman who gave Levchenko two hryvnias for the metro back in 2014. This post went viral and received a wide response. The athlete herself said that the woman has still not found her, and she hopes this will still happen so she can personally thank her and meet, although, according to her, she no longer remembers what that person looked like. Levchenko linked the surge of interest in this story to the approaching Youth Olympic Games: she recalled her journey, being late, and how "small stories strongly influence later life."/>
Plans for the new season
Speaking about plans for the next year, Levchenko expressed hope for a calm preparation regime and, above all, the absence of injuries—"every athlete's dream." She intends to enter the winter season and then transition to the summer season, relying on the good readiness she demonstrated at the beginning of the current season. According to her, the team "already knows how to do everything," and honing mastery is a continuous process with no final ceiling.
