Kyiv Strong: Alexander Donskoy
History in Color:
Alexander Donskoy (1913-1956) was one of the best Soviet bantam and flyweights in the 1930s and 1940s. He competed for the Temp and Spartak clubs of Kiev. During his career as a competitive weightlifter (1933-1950), Donskoy was an 8x medalist of the USSR Championships. He was a European vice champion (1947), won 2 USSR titles (1947, 1948) and 7 Ukrainian titles (1936, 1938, 1941, 1946-1949). Donskoy authored 1 world record, 6 USSR records and 17 Ukrainian records. Alexander Donskoy was a decorated veteran of the World War II.
“Kyiv Strong” features historical portraits of legendary weightlifting champions from Kyiv, Ukraine.
Kyiv Strong is a mini-series within my History in Color series about old-time Olympic weightlifting in color. Of course, strength is not always about muscles and kilos being lifted in the trainings halls and competitions. Today, we are all watching TV reports about people of Kyiv fighting for their city in the war. Most of them are not athletes at all but they are strong with their spirit and determination to defend their land and the place they live in. It’s not about sets and reps. It’s dedicated people of Kiev, to their courage and unbreakable strength of character.