A special Rehabilitation Through Swimming program for children was initiated in Zaporizhzhia by a sportsman and an Olympic silver medal winner Denis Sylantiev.
“This is a pilot project we have in partnership with Metinvest. It is intended for rehabilitation of children who have been evacuated from the temporarily occupied territories or from combat areas. The training will be based on the program I have developed. Water is a wonderful way to relieve stress and get one’s mind off of what has happened. These children have seen the hell of war,” says Denis Sylantiev.
The project became possible due to the support from Metinvest Group. The company has allocated UAH 235,000 for the rehabilitation program so that the children covered by the program could take part in it free of charge.
The program is scheduled till the end of October and includes 16 training sessions. During this time, the children will learn several swimming styles and be able to swim 25 m non-stop. There are about one hundred kids wanting to learn swimming with us.
“Since the start of the war, Zaporizhstal has given shelter to thousands of people.
These are mostly families with children. So, our goal is to make them feel safe and comfortable, and that they have work and receive social services. Adults stay busy with their routine tasks, and this helps them get back to normal life quicker. For children, however, it takes longer to get out of stress. To help them overcome the effects of the psychological trauma, Metinvest Group of Rinat Akhmetov has donated funds to implement Denis Sylantiev’s project. Rehabilitation through swimming is indeed an effective and at the same time pleasant way to improve the psychological and emotional state,” comments the General Director of Metinvest Group Zaporizhstal Oleksandr Myronenko.