Four hundred Ukrainian children played sports in the Philips Stadium in Eindhoven on Tuesday afternoon. Don’t think about the war in their homeland, but relax with sports and games. One of them is 15-year-old Zhenya. Her father fights against the Russians, but she herself fled to the Netherlands. She is happy that she can forget the war for a while. “It does me good to exercise with new friends here.”
The children were challenged with various sports and games, such as basketball, football and an assault course. They could also take a picture with Phoxy, the PSV mascot. For example, Zhenya is suddenly on the center spot of the Philips Stadium. “I can’t believe I’m standing here now. I think it’s very big and beautiful.”
“I’m glad I’m safe here.”
She often thinks about the situation in Ukraine. “Almost non-stop. But I want to stay positive: life goes on. I’m glad I’m safe here. I’ve made new friends, so it’s better this way.”
But she is concerned about her family who has been left behind. “The mood there is depressed, but when I call them, they are happy. My father fights against the Russians. We keep in touch with each other through messages.”
The sports afternoon is an initiative of the Partner Fund Brainport Eindhoven, a group of major PSV sponsors. According to chairman Staf Depla of the foundation, companies in the region are more than happy to help to give the children some distraction. “Children have had to leave home and hearth without a father. Their lives also go on, so you give them an afternoon just like any other child that they can play nicely.”
“It’s quite difficult, because how do you approach these children?”
Volunteers from large companies in the region were more than happy to help. One of them is Guus Pennings: “I am very happy to contribute to this.”
Gus works at Philips. His boss gives him the opportunity to do voluntary work during working hours. When he heard about the Ukrainian Sports Day, he was eager to lend a hand. “It’s quite difficult, because how do you approach these children? Do you do that very festively or not, because they are here for a reason. But in general you see that they are very relaxed.”
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