August 23, Zagreb, 24-year-old Nazar Chepurny stands on the top step of the podium at the European Artistic Gymnastics Championships. He has just won gold in the vault, a discipline in which he took bronze two years in a row.
For Chepurny, who has been doing gymnastics since he was three, this is his first victory at the European Championships. The Ukrainian is congratulated, he receives a medal, the Ukrainian anthem sounds. This is his sporting triumph.
But just four days later, Chepurny makes an unexpected statement. The athlete says that a month and a half before the competition, he went to train in Germany because there were “no proper conditions” for training in Ukraine. Chepurny says that he repeatedly asked the Ministry of Youth and Sports and the Ukrainian Gymnastics Federation to help pay for the trip.
But in the end, he paid for housing, food, travel, fuel, and the training itself. Later, Chepurny allegedly asked the Ministry and the Federation to pay for the last training fee before the competition. He says that they promised to help him, but in the end, the German Gymnastics Federation gave the money.
On the same day, the Ministry of Youth and Sports responded to Chepurny. They stated that the athlete’s words that there are no conditions for training in Ukraine are false. The Ministry explained that the artistic gymnastics team trains at a special Olympic base in Koncha-Zaspa, where there is everything necessary.
The state can pay for training abroad only in certain cases stipulated by law. At the same time, the men’s team, which trained in Ukraine, failed to reach the team final at the European Championship.
Babel tried to understand the point of the story.
Nazar Chepurny is preparing for the competition.
@chepur_gym / Instagram
Nazar Chepurny says he left because he couldnʼt train in the winter without heating, and in the summer he was demotivated by the atmosphere in the national team
In his statement, Nazar Chepurny wrote that the reason for his departure to Germany was “inappropriate conditions” for training in Ukraine. In a conversation with Babel, he clarified that he had expressed himself “incorrectly”.
“There are no questions about the equipment, the hall of the Olympic base. The hall is good, all my results came from it,” says Nazar.
Speaking of “inappropriate conditions”, Chepurny meant two things: the consequences of Russian shelling and the atmosphere in the team, which, in his opinion, worsened after the change of the head coach of the national team.
In 2025, the Ukrainian menʼs national gymnastics team was embroiled in a conflict over head coach Hennady Sartynsky (pictured left with Nazar). The federation removed him from the team, and athletes, including Nazar Chepurny, came out in his support. At the end of the year, the Federation appointed Yevhen Kozin (center right in the photo) as head coach. Sartynsky then continued to coach individual gymnasts, including Chepurny.
@chepur_gym / Instagram; @kozinievgenii / Instagram
Chepurny explains that, in his opinion, the athletes in the current national team are unmotivated.
“The guys come to training without a good mood, and none of them had any motivation. After Hennady Sartynskyi was replaced as head coach, there is no longer that atmosphere, system, and work in the gym. Previously, there was a plan for which starts we were preparing, everyone in the team worked, sorted out mistakes. Now there is none of that,” says the athlete.
Is this true or not?
We asked Stella Zakharova, vice-president of the Gymnastics Federation of Ukraine. She disagrees. She clarifies that since May, Chepurny has been training separately, and this year he decided not to compete with other gymnasts of the national team in team competitions. This decision was supported by the coaching council and the technical committee of the Federation.
At the same time, Chepurny remains a full-time athlete of the national team of Ukraine. However, according to Zakharova, he cannot know what the atmosphere is like inside the team now and how other athletes are working.
Vice President of the Gymnastics Federation of Ukraine Stella Zakharova, fall 2025.
Facebook / Stella Zakharova
Nazar Chepurny says that the problems with training in Ukraine for him were not limited to the atmosphere in the team. In early 2026, he went to Germany for independent training. At that time, at the Olympic base in Koncha-Zaspa, as he claims, it was difficult to train due to the lack of light and heating: it was very cold in the living rooms, and even colder in the hall.
“You freeze to the bone overnight in a tracksuit. And in the cold, there is a much greater risk of pulling something,” the athlete said.
Gymnast Oleh Vernyaev posted a video from the gym in Koncha Zaspa in the winter, showing athletes training without electricity.
@verniaiev13 / Instagram
Then, in the winter, Chepurny, together with coach Hennady Sartynsky, decided — if there is an opportunity to go and train in European halls, it is worth taking advantage of it. So he went to Germany for the first time.
As Stella Zakharova specifies, then Nazar also trained at his own expense. It was after this trip that Chepurny, according to him, was able to compare training in Germany and Ukraine.
After returning, it was difficult for him to train in Ukraine again, so before this yearʼs European Championship, he decided to go to Germany again. Chepurny went without coach Hennady Sartynsky, because he stayed in Ukraine to train other athletes. Chepurny sent Sartynsky training videos, and he gave tasks remotely and corrected the training.
During an informal conversation with a representative of the Ministry of Youth and Sports, Chepurny asked for help financing the trip. Nazar does not specify who exactly he spoke to at the Ministry.
According to him, they discussed this issue for about a month, but he never heard a clear answer — neither consent nor refusal. So he paid for the trip himself: travel, accommodation, food, fuel and other expenses in Germany (Nazar does not want to name the exact amount of expenses).
Separately, according to Chepurny, there was another informal conversation with the Ministry — about paying for the last training camp before the competition in Kienbaum, Germany. Nazar does not specify more details about this conversation.
The camp worth €900 was eventually paid for by the German Gymnastics Federation. According to Chepurny, this was a one-time assistance from German colleagues.
The Kienbaum Olympic and Paralympic Athlete Training Center is located in the municipality of Grünheide, approximately 35 km east of Berlin.
Kienbaum
In some cases, the state may finance the training of athletes abroad. For this, the relevant federation must submit an official request to the Ministry of Youth and Sports. The Gymnastics Federation did not request money for Chepurny
The Ministry of Youth and Sports does not finance all the activities of the Gymnastics Federation of Ukraine. According to representatives of the Federation, it receives money from the National Olympic Committee, and from time to time from sponsors.
At the same time, the ministry finances official competitions and training camps of national teams — the amounts for this are determined by the legislation. It is state funds that the Federation cannot spend independently.
If it needs to finance unplanned training of an athlete abroad from the state budget, the Federation must request official permission from the Ministry of Youth and Sports.
The state may pay for the training of athletes abroad only in certain cases:
if Ukraine does not have the necessary sports facilities for training the national team;
if Ukraine does not have the necessary weather conditions for training;
if before the World or European Championship or Cup, athletes need to undergo the final stage of training on international-level equipment or in climatic conditions similar to those where the competitions will take place;
if the individual training plan includes training with leading foreign athletes.
As the Ministry of Youth and Sports told Babel, the Federation did not ask them for money to train Chepurny, but warned them in advance in an official letter that Chepurny would be training abroad. The reason (in the same letter) was called regular air raids at the sports base in Kyiv and added that the costs of this training should be covered by the German organizations that hosted the athlete.
The Ministry says, Chepurny himself said back in May during an informal conversation that he was going to go train abroad. Chepurny confirmed to Babel that such a conversation really took place, but did not want to specify who exactly he spoke to at the time.
According to the Ministry, during this conversation the athlete was told that they would not be able to finance his training abroad. Chepurny says that he was not directly told about this. At the same time, he adds that even if he had heard such an answer, he would still have gone to train in Germany.
Photo of the training hall in Koncha-Zaspa on the official website. In April of this year, the Vice President of the Gymnastics Federation of Ukraine Stella Zakharova published these photos and wrote that the training hall in Koncha-Zaspa lacks basic conditions for a full-fledged training process.
Олімпійський центр Конча-Заспа; Facebook / Stella Zakharova
Separately, the Ministry explained to Babel why it was unable to pay for Chepurnyʼs last pre-competition training camp in Kinbaum, Germany. Chepurny asked to pay for the training, which, according to him, cost €900. The state can finance the final stage of preparation before major competitions if the athlete trains in climatic conditions close to the venue of the upcoming competitions.
The European Championship was held in Croatia, and Kinbaum is located in Germany. According to the logic of this rule, training in Germany in itself does not provide grounds for state funding. The climatic conditions there should have been closer to the conditions of the competitions than those in Kyiv.
Babel checked the weather in three cities during the preparation period for Chepurny
In Kienbaum, Germany, where he trained, the temperature fluctuated: on cool days it was around +20 °C, on hot days it was over +30 °C.
In Kyiv, July was also changeable: the average temperature was +20.8 °C, but on some days the air warmed up to +31 °C. In early August, the heat intensified — the temperature reached almost +38 °C.
In Zagreb, where the European Championship was held, it was generally warmer: in July the average temperature was +24.1 °C, and the max was +34.6 °C. There was rain in all three cities.
In addition, the Ministry says, neither the Gymnastics Federation of Ukraine nor Chepurny himself submitted an official request for funding for this training camp. Babel tried to clarify with Chepurny whether he submitted such a request.
The athlete refused to specify the details, having previously said that he did not want to "spread dirt".
At the same time, the Ministry emphasizes that most national teams continue to train in Ukraine. Sports bases are working and have the necessary equipment. In addition to the facilities in Kyiv, the “Zaroslyak” base in the Carpathians is operating, where the security situation allows training to be conducted almost without interruption due to air raids.
The Ministry of Youth and Sports also adds that they are ready to consider financing Chepurnyʼs training abroad if the Gymnastics Federation of Ukraine submits a relevant substantiated application.
Sports and tourist base "Zaroslyak" in the Carpathians.
Facebook / Спортивно-туристична база «Заросляк»
Yevhen Chepurny remained in Germany. He is training for the next competition
After the European Championships, Chepurny remained in Germany and continues to train there. His next start is the FIG Artistic Gymnastics Challenge Cup in Paris on September 26–27. And on October 17–25, Chepurny plans to compete at the 54th Artistic Gymnastics World Championships in Rotterdam, Netherlands.
According to him, he also plans to train in Germany in the future, even if he has to pay for it at his own expense.
“I calculate all the risks and I will take these risks because I see how it affects my training. I see how it affects my morale, my desire [to train],” says Chepurny.
Currently, the athlete continues to work remotely with his coach Hennady Sartinsky. He receives tasks from him, sends videos of his training, and the coach adjusts his training.
At the same time, Chepurny remains a full-time athlete of the Ukrainian national team. He receives a salary stipulated in the contract, as well as a state scholarship for the bronze medal at the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships.
Athletes of the Ukrainian menʼs national gymnastics team in 2025 (from left to right): Nazar Chepurny, Illya Kovtun (who changed his sports citizenship to Croatian that same year), Yehor Perepilkin, Ihor Dyshuk, and Bohdan Suprun.
Facebook / Stella Zakharova