Ukrainian veterans use dance as friends: Amputee wounded soldiers raise rehabilitation funds through charity performances

(Central News Agency reporter Chen Yanting, Kyiv, 18th) The spotlight shines on the stage, and pairs of men and women spin and jump to the beat of the music. The male dancer's movements are smooth and neat. If you don’t look closely, it’s hard to imagine that they are all Ukrainian veterans with prosthetic limbs. They use dance to explore the possibilities of the body, and also use charity balls to raise funds for injured amputee soldiers, hoping to let more people see the long road to recovery for injured soldiers.

23-year-old Igor, wearing a crisp suit, danced tango with his dance partner Polina. This is the first time in his life that he dances.

"This is my first time dancing. I have never had a similar experience." Igor said that practicing dance allowed him to re-understand his physical ability. "I didn't try it before because I thought I couldn't do it; but now that I have tried it, I have a clearer picture."

Igor once served in the Azov Corps. He was shot in the thigh by a rifle while on a mission in 2023 and eventually underwent amputation. He admitted that he could not accept himself after losing his limbs. "I don't like that I have become weak. I can no longer do what I could do before."

After experiencing a low point, he gradually filled his life with exercise, and "everything became easier." Now on the stage, he hopes to tell other amputee soldiers that losing a limb does not mean that you have to isolate yourself from the world, but that you can try new things.

In addition to the tango between Igor and Polina, there was also a husband and wife team performing naughty hip-hop dance moves on the stage. There are 10 groups in the party, composed of retired soldiers and professional dancers or partners. After two months of rehearsal, they took the stage to show their own stories with dance styles such as cha cha, tango, and waltz, and compete for the final crown.

The well-known dancer Olena Shoptenko, who is responsible for the choreography, designs movements tailored to each veteran's physical condition. She said that choreographing for amputee soldiers requires adjusting the dance steps, but these wounded soldiers showed great courage and perseverance during the two months of rehearsals.

"The most important thing is the tacit understanding and emotional communication between the two on the stage." Shoptenko said, she is very proud that dance has become a "beautiful tool", not only for entertainment, but also as a way to raise funds, rehabilitation and spiritual rehabilitation.

Rehabilitation organization "U+ System" held its second charity dance party "Brave Hearts". In addition to dance performances, it also held a charity auction, including paintings by retired soldier Vitalii Yevsikov, and a sword signed by Olga Kharlan, a Ukrainian fencer who has won four individual world championships and a bronze medal in the Paris Olympics, etc.

The organizer stated that the first gala last year raised 6 million hryvnia (approximately NT$4.26 million) to help 60 injured amputee soldiers pay for prosthetics, rehabilitation and psychological reconstruction. Some of this year’s contestants were recipients of last year’s aid, and they stepped onto the stage to raise funds for other wounded soldiers, forming a cycle of kindness.

This gala ultimately raised nearly 8.48 million hryvnia (approximately NT$6.03 million), and the funds will continue to be used to assist injured and amputated soldiers.

The Russia-Ukraine war has entered its fifth year, and the number of wounded soldiers continues to increase. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in an interview with Fox News that the war has so far killed about 50,000 combatants and injured 400,000. The U.S. Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) estimated in January this year that the Ukrainian army suffered about 500,000 casualties and the Russian army about 320,000 casualties. The total casualties on both sides were about 1.2 million.