Department of Veteran Affairs

Defence

Policy reforms

Security

About the department

The goal of the department is to form and develop an ecosystem of rehabilitation of veterans and servicemen through adaptive sports in Ukraine.
We are strengthening the state's defense capability by improving the morale, physical and psychological health of veterans.
In cooperation with the team of analysts at the CBA Initiatives Center, we study how adaptive sports affect the quality of life. We create programs of rehabilitation through sports and develop venues for it, as well as organize educational programs to train specialists.

Projects

HART — Defence Forces Games: an adaptive sports competition for veterans

Invictus Games 2025

Sports Ambassadors

Invictus Games

Air Force and Marine Corps Trials

Team

Taras Kovalyk

Head of the Department of Veteran Affairs

Olha Husakova

Senior Veteran Affairs Specialist

Olexandra Kocheva

Veteran Affairs Specialist

Anatolii Kostenko

Veteran Affairs Specialist

Olesya Zhuk

Veteran Affairs Specialist

Igor Krytsak

Senior Veteran Affairs Specialist

Research

All Research

Research

"The Joy Of Movement: How Adaptive Sports Help Veterans Recover” — Ukraine’s First Study in the Field

The report demonstrates that adaptive sports contribute not only to veterans’ physical rehabilitation but also to their psychological resilience. The study is the first of its kind in Ukraine, marking an initial effort to collect and analyze data on the development and potential scaling of adaptive sports.

Articles

All Articles

HART: Kyiv to Stage Major Adaptive Sports Games for Veterans from Nov. 30 Till Dec. 7

Only a few days remain until the biggest adaptive sports event of the year. On November 30, Kyiv will host the opening of HART, a national adaptive sports competition for veterans.

7 days of competition and 9 adaptive sports: registration is now open for the multi-sport veterans’ event HART

This winter, Kyiv will host HART — Ukraine’s first national multi-sport competition for veterans who sustained injuries, wounds, or illnesses while defending their country. From November 30 to December 7, participants from across Ukraine will compete in nine adaptive sports. Registration is open until October 20, 2025.

Recommendations for Scaling Adaptive Sports for Veterans in Local Communities

Over nine months, specialists from the Veteran Department of the CBA Initiatives Center, as part of the project “Adaptive Sports for Veterans: A Regional Model,” visited medical institutions, sports halls, and athletic clubs, and met with representatives of government and civil society in the Kyiv, Chernihiv, Zhytomyr, and Ivano-Frankivsk regions.