Rinat Akhmetov met with Yana Stepanenko and her mother
Thursday, October 2, 2025
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The club president spoke with the heroic young woman who has become a symbol of Ukraine’s perseverance
On October 2, at the invitation of FC Shakhtar president Rinat Akhmetov, unbreakable Ukrainian Yana Stepanenko and her mother Nataliia met with him.
During the meeting, Rinat Akhmetov expressed his admiration for Yana, praising her indomitable spirit, strength and self-belief. According to the club president, it is inspiring that the Stepanenko family does not dwell on the past but looks only to the future, and he has no doubt that Yana has a bright future ahead.
Recall that the story of heroic Ukrainian Yana Stepanenko has touched people around the world. The girl lost both legs as a result of a Russian missile attack on the railway station in Kramatorsk in April 2022. However, she did not give up; after treatment and prosthetics, she returned to a full life and began doing sports. In spring 2024, she completed a 5-kilometre race at one of the world’s most prestigious marathons in Boston, and in March 2025, wearing a Shakhtar jersey, she ran a marathon in Tokyo, showing the world the indomitable spirit of Ukraine.
Yana and her family are displaced persons from the war-torn village of Niu-York in Donetsk Oblast. In September 2024, by the decision of club president Rinat Akhmetov, FC Shakhtar purchased a three-room apartment in Lviv for the Stepanenko family.
During the meeting, Rinat Akhmetov expressed his admiration for Yana, praising her indomitable spirit, strength and self-belief. According to the club president, it is inspiring that the Stepanenko family does not dwell on the past but looks only to the future, and he has no doubt that Yana has a bright future ahead.
Recall that the story of heroic Ukrainian Yana Stepanenko has touched people around the world. The girl lost both legs as a result of a Russian missile attack on the railway station in Kramatorsk in April 2022. However, she did not give up; after treatment and prosthetics, she returned to a full life and began doing sports. In spring 2024, she completed a 5-kilometre race at one of the world’s most prestigious marathons in Boston, and in March 2025, wearing a Shakhtar jersey, she ran a marathon in Tokyo, showing the world the indomitable spirit of Ukraine.
Yana and her family are displaced persons from the war-torn village of Niu-York in Donetsk Oblast. In September 2024, by the decision of club president Rinat Akhmetov, FC Shakhtar purchased a three-room apartment in Lviv for the Stepanenko family.