Oleksiy Revchenko Biography [2/2]

[AW13 196]

 

Player Name: Oleksiy Revchenko

Position: Center

Birthplace: Dnipropetrovsk, Ukraine

Handedness: Left

Height: 6'0

Weight: 204 lbs

Number: 53

 

Personal Life:

 

Oleksiy Revchenko (Oleksandr Petrov Revchenko) was born on August 27th in Dnipro, Ukraine to Boris and Masha Revchenko in a local hospital in Dnipro. His father Boris was a welder for a large company in Ukraine and his mother was a train attendant, working mainly lines going from Ukraine to other local countries such as Belarus. Oleksandr has 2 siblings, both sisters, Wanda and Alexa Revchenko with Alexa being an identical twin to Oleksiy. Both Alexa and Oleksandr were born on the same day, hence their parents' choice of naming them both similarly as some parents would do. Their sister Wanda is 4 years younger than the two twins though all siblings were close growing up. 

Growing up in Dnipro, Ukraine's 4th largest city, Oleksiy had a decent childhood with many things to do and his family staying together and having enough wealth to support their decent sized family of 5. Dnipro is the industrial capital of Ukraine and things are always going on so there were many things to do for both children and adults alike. It is right on the meander of a river so many people go boating on the river and Revchenko loved being on the water as a youth. There is a strong pride about being Ukrainian and Oleksiy shows that every day as he loves his home country and looks to represent it each and every day.

 

Sports

Along with a bustling city life, Dnipro is well known for being a strong sports city in central Ukraine. They are home one of the more successful teams in the region in soccer with FC Dnipro along with a few other local successful soccer teams. Dnipro is also home to the Ukrainian bandy association which represents the sport of bandy in Ukraine. Bandy is very similar to hockey as it is played on the ice while players try and score goals with a stick, though in Bandy, they use a ball instead of a puck. Sports such as soccer, bandy, and hockey are important to the lives of many young Ukrainians, especially in the city of Dnipro. Oleksiy as a young boy loved participating in many team sports, including all three of the sports mentioned previously before ditching soccer and bandy to pursue a career in hockey.

 

Teenage - Adulthood

Revchenko was like any normal Ukrainian teenager, going to secondary school, listening to music, spending time with friends, and playing sports. His father, Boris, was the main hockey coach at a local hockey club and while as a boy Revchenko learned to skate as he watched his father coach the local youth for the club. Boris, along with teaching his club, also taught Revchenko a thing or two about hockey and that continued as Oleksiy advanced and eventually found himself a spot on the local club under his father's direction. He played under his father for the club for 5 seasons before it was time to move on to other things with his hockey life. After joining the club, Revchenko's life was all about hockey, eating and breathing the sport that he excels at today, not usually found around school or home without a hockey stick or some kind of memorabilia on his person at all times. It was a passion of his and he excelled enough to earn a tryout for the Ukrainian National Hockey Team. With that, he passed tryouts and became a member of the Under-16, Under-18 and Under-20 National teams before setting out to play in the VHL. Revchenko was determined to play in one of the premier leagues in the world and all his training, his father's guidance and family's love would get him there. Revchenko was drafted by Quebec City at 12th overall in the S62 VHL draft before eventually finding a home in Calgary with the Wranglers via trade.

 

Journey to America

Oleksiy Revchenko was first selected to play in the VHLM by the Las Vegas Aces. Oleksiy Revchenko had never been out of Europe, and never lived outside of Ukraine, as he only traveled during his National team games to other countries. Las Vegas is very different from Dnipro, Ukraine and the bright lights of the strip and the hot weather was a big change for Oleksiy. Used to playing in harsh winters in an industrial town, the world of Las Vegas was a complete 180 from what he was used to. Usually enjoying smaller things, Revchenko was not super happy playing in a bigger city such as Las Vegas but also did not mind his time there at all.

 

Journey Through Canada

When he learned that he would be moving to Canada, it was a big change for him that he was hopefully ready to make. Revchenko flew out of his local airport in Dnipro, connected a few times through Europe before flying direct from Paris, France to Quebec, Canada. One thing Revchenko did not know was the French language and with Quebec City being one of the more French-speaking countries, it was a little difficult to catch on as his English was not great and his French was non-existent. Quebec, however, was more what he had been used to. A smaller city than Las Vegas and one where it does not usually get above 110 degrees. His time in Quebec City, however, lasted about 40 days and then was shipped to Calgary in a big trade along with Von Moltke and Baxter in exchange for picks. Calgary was similar, though felt much colder than Quebec City. Calgary is one of the bigger Canadian cities and hosts the annual Calgary Stampede, a big fair and rodeo, the largest in Western Canada. So far it has been a good journey in Calgary, Alberta, Canada for Revchenko and he now owns a home there and hopes to play in Calgary for a very long time. Revchenko is very loyal: to his family, to his country, and now to his team and the large Western Canadian city of Calgary. One thing is certain, there was a long journey for Oleksiy Revchenko, from young Ukrainian boy in Dnipro to budding VHL star in Calgary with a little bit of Las Vegas in the middle. As he continues his journey, he hopes to continue his hockey career, he hopes to find love, and he hopes to have a family one day so that he has something great even when his hockey career is over.

[FrostBeard 1,984]

An amazing and breathtaking story of a young lad deep in  Ukraine following his dreams to become one of VHL's greatest! Struggles of finding his place in the world and then moving to something completely different and exciting. Going to VHLM at such a young age and being away from his family for so long surely was tough! Believing in his own abilities and showing skills that elevate Revchenko as a player!

8/10 Great respect to a player who needed to move to the other side of the world to follow his dreams!

[DMaximus 1,045]

Review:

Well written biography. I liked the pictures added. They give a visual aid to the story. I was a little disappointed the pictures stopped and each stage didn't have a picture to accompany it. However it is still a good biography of a hard working individual who comes from a hard working city. Thank you for creating this story.