[Choi Min-gyu's Baseball Prism] The Baseball Sanctuary in Ukraine Turned into a Battlefield

Kropiwnicki, Baseball5 Opens Three Days Before Invasion
National Sports Committee's Special Mission to Revitalize Baseball
Russian Artillery Attack... Facing Risk of Becoming Ruins

Photo by Oleksandr Vainokhradov

Kropyvnytskyi is the capital of Kirovohrad Oblast in Ukraine. It is home to about 220,000 residents. In the mid-18th century, it was called Yelysavethrad, named after the empress of the Russian Romanov dynasty. After the Russian Revolution and the establishment of the Soviet Union, in 1924, it was renamed Zinovyevsk, after Bolshevik revolutionary Grigory Zinoviev, who was born in this city. In 1934, it was renamed Kirovo in honor of Sergey Kirov, a close associate of Joseph Stalin. Kirov was assassinated that year, and Zinoviev was arrested and executed as an accomplice. This marked the beginning of the notorious Stalin-era "Great Purge." In 1939, to distinguish it from a place with the same name in central Russia, it was renamed Kirovohrad.

The current name, Kropyvnytskyi, was adopted in 2016. It was named after a playwright from the city. Following the 2013 Euromaidan revolution, the Ukrainian government implemented a decommunization policy that legally banned symbols of the former Soviet Union. As a result, 22 cities and 44 villages received new names. However, the name of Kirovohrad Oblast remained unchanged because it is specified in the constitution.

The history of the region's name changes encapsulates the modern history of Ukraine and Russia. The city has once again been caught in the whirlpool of history. Kropyvnytskyi is located 302 km southeast of the capital Kyiv. The area east of Kyiv is now synonymous with "battlefield" in Ukraine. On February 24, Russian forces invaded Ukraine under the order of Vladimir Putin. On that day, shells fell in the city of Kropyvnytskyi as well.

Photo by Oleksandr Vainokhradov

Kropyvnytskyi is also considered a sacred place for baseball in Ukraine. Three days before the shelling, on February 21, a baseball tournament was held in the city. It was the Baseball5 Championship, a five-player game officially adopted by the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) in 2018. Baseball5 is a game devised by the WBSC to promote baseball, played on a smaller field than a regular baseball stadium, where players hit the ball with their fists instead of bats and run bases.

It is similar to the game "Jjimpbu," which Korean children used to enjoy. Mixed-gender games are also possible. The Baseball5 Championship featured about 100 male and female players from thirteen teams representing six regions of Ukraine. Oleksandr Vainogradov, a Ukrainian baseball journalist who helped run the event, reported via social media that "there are problems with electricity and communications in the city. It is difficult to obtain accurate information about the players."

The most popular sport in Ukraine is soccer. The Ukrainian Premier League, established after independence in 1991, is ranked as the twelfth strongest league by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA). The league schedule has been completely suspended since the outbreak of war. After soccer, basketball, boxing, ice hockey, and rugby are popular in Ukraine. Ukraine is also a sports powerhouse, having won 148 medals, including 38 golds, in past Summer and Winter Olympics. However, baseball remains a minor sport.

Photo by Oleksandr Vainokhradov

There is a story behind why Kropyvnytskyi became the center of baseball, a minor sport in Ukraine. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) decided in the mid-1980s to include baseball as an official sport starting from the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. The State Sports Committee, which oversaw Soviet sports policy, decided to "revive" baseball in line with this decision. Accordingly, in 1987, an association overseeing baseball, softball, and the Russian version of baseball called Lapta was formed, and the first national tournament was held.

Baseball was already a forgotten sport. It was first introduced in the Soviet Union in the 1930s by Americans who had migrated to escape the Great Depression. A league consisting of six teams was formed. However, by the late 1930s, it was suppressed as a sport of an enemy country. The league and teams had long since disappeared. The State Sports Committee offered incentives. The Soviet republics operated regional multi-sport competitions similar to South Korea's National Sports Festival. Points were awarded based on performance in each sport to determine the overall winner. New sports like baseball received double points.

At that time, many Cuban students, from a country where baseball is the national sport, lived in Kropyvnytskyi. The authorities ordered Yuriy Kolakovsky, a former soccer goalkeeper working at the Air Force Academy, to establish a baseball team. With the help of Cuban students, he founded Ukraine's first baseball team. When this team won the Ukrainian Youth Sports Festival, baseball became a key sport promoted by Kirovohrad Oblast. The city's National University of Physical Education and the national training facilities played a pivotal role in baseball training and promotion.

Photo by Oleksandr Vainokhradov

Baseball in Ukraine, which grew centered around Kropyvnytskyi, spread to Kyiv and other mid-sized cities. Currently, fourteen clubs located in ten cities participate in the national league, divided into first and second divisions with promotion and relegation. Ten regional leagues are also operated. After the regular season, cup tournaments are held. It is uncertain whether this year's tournaments will take place. Many baseball players have been drafted or volunteered to serve in the military.

There are Russian baseball enthusiasts who regret Ukraine's separation because Russia and Ukraine were the Soviet republics that stood out most in baseball during the Soviet era. Ukrainian baseball players consider Russia's annexation of Crimea in 2014 a tragedy. The Ponton Club in Simferopol, the capital of Crimea, was a strong team that participated in national tournaments during the Soviet era. This club still competes in the Ukrainian league but has lost its home base. The club affiliated with the self-declared Donetsk People's Republic has also relocated to Kyiv.

On March 22, Kropyvnytskyi faced a crisis. An air raid alarm was triggered by Russian airstrikes. Journalist Vainogradov spoke with difficulty about Ukraine and baseball from a shelter. He said, "In Ukraine, baseball is said to be 'played with the heart.' Ukrainian baseball is not professional. People who are devoted to this game play baseball." He added, "No one knows when the war will end. Even after the war, there will be many areas that need more support than baseball," but expressed hope, saying, "Ukraine will revive, and baseball will come back to life."

Director of the Korea Baseball Society

Cooperation = Seo Youngwon, member of the Korea Baseball Society

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.