Oleksandr Pielieshenko, a decorated weightlifter who represented Ukraine at the 2016 Summer Olympics, was killed while defending his country in its war with Russia.
Pielieshenko “died in the war with the enemy,” the National Olympic Committee of Ukraine said in a Facebook post Monday.
“From the first days of the full-scale invasion, Oleksandr joined the ranks of the Armed Forces. Yesterday we received the sad news of his death,” the committee’s Facebook post said.
A two-time European weightlifting champion, Pielieshenko finished fourth in the 85kg light-heavyweight category at the Rio Games in 2016. He had not competed since 2018 when he failed a drug test and received an eight-year suspension.