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🇵🇾 Paraguay /Culture & Society

From the front line to medieval combat, Ukrainian knights compete amid war

From ABC Color · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

In-depth Named sources Context piece
  • About 90 competitors gathered at Lubart Castle in Lutsk for Ukraine’s medieval combat championship and selection of the national team for international tournaments.
  • Many participants are active soldiers or residents of front-line areas, and about half of the community joined Ukraine’s defense against Russia after 2022.
  • Despite limited training, poor sleep and fewer opportunities to travel, Ukrainian fighters have won medals at previous world championships.

Inside the walls of Lutsk’s 14th-century Lubart Castle, Ukrainian fighters traded real blows with blunted weapons as they competed for places on the national medieval combat team.

About 90 participants from across Ukraine attended the championship over the weekend. The event selected competitors for tournaments abroad and included around 15 women. Many club members remain deployed in the east, while some active-duty soldiers found time to take part.

The blows are real, nobody spares anyone. The only difference from the Middle Ages is that the weapons are blunt so nobody gets killed

· Katerina BaranThe competitor explained how the modern medieval combat matches resemble historical fighting.

“The blows are real, nobody spares anyone. The only difference from the Middle Ages is that the weapons are blunt so nobody gets killed,” said Katerina Baran, 26, from the local Ayna Bera medieval combat club. She helped organize the event while other members continued fighting.

Arseni Veguera, a 29-year-old combat medic with more than four and a half years of service, prepared his titanium medieval-style armor for his first duels. “It is a great advantage that nobody here is trying to shoot me,” he said. In individual bouts, competitors seek to land more clean hits. In group fights, they try to knock opponents down as swords strike armor and colorful shields.

It is a great advantage that nobody here is trying to shoot me

· Arseni VegueraThe combat medic contrasted the competition with his military service.

Competition for the national team was especially intense before Russia’s invasion, when Ukraine regularly fielded one of the world’s strongest teams. The war has made international competition harder because of limited training and sleep, but Ukrainian fighters have won medals at previous world cups in Spain, Mexico, the United States and Denmark.

Sergiy Vashchuk, leader of the Lutsk knights and now an officer in the 413th Raid drone regiment, said about half the community joined the defense against Russia after 2022. “They know history well and understand that Russia is Ukraine’s constant enemy. Nothing changes over the years. We fought them in the Middle Ages and we are still fighting them,” he said. The Lutsk championship was the community’s largest to date, drawing beginners and competitors from Sumy, Zaporizhzhia and Dnipro, where they train under the threat of air attacks.

They know history well and understand that Russia is Ukraine’s constant enemy. Nothing changes over the years. We fought them in the Middle Ages and we are still fighting them

· Sergiy VashchukThe Lutsk team leader connected the sport’s historical theme with the current war.
About this summary

Originally published by ABC Color in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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