After the Klitschko brothers, a well-known new face in the sports world has decided to join the ranks of the Ukrainian army. The 1986 Ballon d’Or, Igor Belanov, now 61 years old.
” I can not believe it “
According to the German newspaper The world and Ukrainian media, the former USSR striker has indeed volunteered to join the local defense forces in Odessa, his hometown, in southern Ukraine on the shores of the Black Sea. In a photo posted on social networks, he appears on the left, weapon in hand and khaki jacket, in a trench.
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Do you recognize this man on the left? It’s Ihor Belanov, a football star of Dynamo Kyiv, ballon d’or 1986 (best player in Europe). Now supporting Ukraine’s fight. — 1986 was a beautiful year for Dynamo Kyiv: it won the UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup, and Belanov was one of key stars pic.twitter.com/ZVnAvTM5eT
— UkraineWorld (@ukraine_world) April 6, 2022
“I played for the USSR with pride and now I can’t believe my eyes in this war, Belanov recently said. Years ago I met Shoigu (Russian Defense Minister). If I saw him today, I would ask him if he is crazy, if he has lost his sense of reality”he added after having already, at the beginning of March, begged on his Facebook page for an end to the war.
Winner of the Cup Winners’ Cup in 1986
Igor Belanov was therefore born in Ukraine, in Odessa, before wearing the jersey of the Soviet Union from 1985 to 1990, which was made up of fifteen republics, including Ukraine, now invaded by Russia. In 1985, he joined Dynamo kyiv, with whom he won the Cup Winners’ Cup, the former Champions League, a year later. The same season, he distinguished himself in Mexico during the 1986 World Cup with four goals scored and five assists despite the early elimination of the USSR. Performances that notably allowed him to be elected best European player of the year and to win the Ballon d’Or.
In 1989 after the collapse of the Soviet bloc, Belanov signed in Germany, at Borussia Mönchengladbach. There, his performance had been disappointing. Returning to Ukraine in 1995, he ended his career in 1997. Since then, he has been the owner and president of the Swiss club FC Will (2003-2004), before becoming the president of a football training center in Odessa.
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