Baku 2015 European Games

Ukraine coach Yuvhen Naumchyk: 'We want sport with Russia, not war'

By Chris O'Keefe, Reporter | 13 June 2015

Yuvhen Naumchyk says that his Ukraine water polo team do not have a problem with Russia, despite a political stand-off between the two nations.

Ukraine water polo coach Yuvhen Naumchyk has revealed that his team were up for the fight with Russia, but did not want their match to be a war.

Ukraine were beaten 20-7 in the Group A encounter on day one of competition in Baku, but Naumchyk believes that much of the hype around the game came from the media, using the ongoing crisis in the East of the country as a subplot.

He told reporters: "I'm from Georgia. I'm happy to fight against Russia but I don't want war. There was news on the internet saying that we had a fight with the Russian team in the village. It's not true. It's a provocation. Not from Russia, not from Ukraine, from the media.

"Every time we meet Russia, at the restaurant or elsewhere, we don't talk to each other but we have no problem with them. Water polo is a sport, it's not war.

"We are brothers. We have the same mentality. We are both Orthodox. We don't want war with them. We want to learn from their water polo schools."

Ukraine face France in their next group game on Sunday.