Ukrainian rescuers break four world records and claim 12 awards at Firefighter Challenge World Championship

The Ukrainian Emergency Services team caused quite a stir at the Firefighter Challenge World Championship in the United States. Ukrainian firefighters dominated the competition, taking home 10 "gold" and 2 "silver" medals and even breaking four world records.

The department's press service reported this.

"The final day of the competition took place in Nashville, USA. Our firefighters took ten first and 2-second places in different categories; some of their results even entered the Book of World Records.

We are proud of the results of the rescuers of the capital garrison and tell how many awards they will bring home," the State Emergency Service said.

After five days of fierce competition, the Ukrainian women's national team emerged victorious, placing first in individual races. The men's team settled for second place.

^{Photo: Facebook / State Emergency Service}The true standout of the championship was Oleksandr Baran, a seasoned fighter from the Kyiv State Emergency Service, who claimed the world champion title in the men's 40-44 age category.

On the final day of the competition, Ukrainians won seven awards at once: the team showed brilliant results in tandem and relay races.

Achievements of Ukrainians

In tandem races:

• First place — Oleksandr Baran (Ukraine) and McKenzie Briggs (USA) in the 40-44 age category, setting a world record;
• Second place — Illia Holubev and Maksym Berezniuk (both from Ukraine) in the under-40 category.

In relay races:

• First place — the national men's relay team of Ukraine (Oleksandr Baran, Roman Silchuk, Ihor Polishchuk, Illia Holubev, Maksym Berezniuk) in the category of fire departments under 40, setting a world record;
• First place — Oleksandr Baran as part of the international relay team The Wolf Pack in the mixed category, setting a world record;
• First place — the national mixed relay team of Ukraine (Oleksandr Baran, Roman Silchuk, Ihor Polishchuk, Mariia Lebedynska, Oksana Chekhmestrenko) in the category of fire departments under 40;
• First place — Mariia Lebedynska, Oksana Chekhmestrenko, and Svitlana Marusenko as part of the Power and Hot international relay team in the under-40 category;

The first place went to the national women's relay team of Ukraine (Mariia Lebedynska, Oksana Chekhmestrenko, Svitlana Marusenko) in the category of fire departments under 40 years of age, also setting a world record.

These achievements once again confirm the extraordinary skill and endurance of Ukrainian rescuers, who fight every day for the safety and protection of the lives of Ukrainians.

"It was a week of intense competition with various events and triumphs. We wholeheartedly congratulate our winners and runners-up and wish them the determination to achieve even greater success in the future," the department emphasized.

For reference:

The Firefighter Challenge is the largest sporting event for professional firefighters.

The championship includes competitions in 5 tests, which are attempted to be completed in the fastest time.

It should be noted that a rescuer from Odesa set three records at the 2024 Odessos Cup in Bulgaria, an international competition for firefighting and applied sports.