The Euro 2012 Cup Arrives in Ukraine

Kyiv, May 15, 2012.With just a few weeks and a handful of days left until the highly anticipated EURO 2012 tournament, scheduled to be hosted in neighboring countries Ukraine and Poland, EURO 2012 affiliates presented the glorious silver Henri Delaunay Cup in Kyiv. After such a long and tiring journey through Poland's four hosting cities, and the nearly 80,000 eyes that set gaze on it, and the 40,000 photos that were snapped of it, the 2012 Cup had finally made its way to the capital of Ukraine where the festivities were priceless.

A lot was said at the press conference, featuring Ukrainian football star Andriy Shevchenko, head of Ukrainian Football Federation Hryhoriy Surkis, head of EURO 2012 for Ukraine Markian Lubkivskyi, and UEFA ambassador Davor Šhuker. Information booklets were a discussion topic of extreme priority, approximately 50,000 were made, translated into six different languages, and distributed among the hosting cities of Ukraine.

Transportation to and from Boryspil International Airport was of major interest as well due to the expectation of a large number of passengers. Thus 50 buses will be available for every passing minute in hopes of smoothing any extra unnecessary congestion. Lastly, appearance bore the heaviest weight of topics discussed, thereupon the construction of the historically symbolic Kyivan Rus golden gate will be placed near the Boryspil International Airport, as well as the installation of five huge footballs at every entrance to Kyiv. And expectantly, “Fun Zone will be one of the most beautiful in Europe,” according to Anatoliy Golupchenko, deputy head of Kyiv City Council.

Ensuing was the grand parade marching the few blocks from the Kyiv City Council building to Independence Square (Maydan Nezalezhnosti) where a larger crowd awaited. Under the hot and heavy blanket of the sun, the belch of the marching band trombone echoed, the unison stomp of the glittery cheerleaders shook the ground, and the cheer of the proud diehard football fans was heard from nearly every stretch of the city.

Excitement bellowed near and far as everyone gathered outside of Independence Square to set eyes on the magnificent EURO 2012 Cup. Standing at a daunting height of 60 centimeters, weighing approximately eight kilograms, formed from nothing but the purest of silver, and fashioned with the engraved names of past champions, stood the star of the show, the EURO Cup. Dedicated to this masterpiece was a succeeding concert and on May 12, 2012, the release of a blimp resembling the EURO Cup itself, manned by one captain and his two flight crewmembers.

Yet, the celebrations won’t end there, as the cup is scheduled to make way for the Ukrainian cities of Ivano-Frankivsk, Kharkiv, Donetsk, Dnipropetrovsk, Lviv, and Odesa. With the realization that just five years ago it was nothing but a far fetched dream for Ukraine to host EURO 2012 championships, Hrygoriy Surkis, head of the Ukrainian Football Federation felt obliged to share his gratefulness. "Just five years ago in 2007 noone would have imagined that Poland and Ukraine would host such a great event as EURO 2012. But fate was in our favor and today this dream, that had been nurtured for so many years, finally has become a reality," he said.

And so the festivities will continue as the big day inches near. With much to be exultant for, this proud country of Ukraine can only continue to wait with excitement until her national team carries the pride of her people onto the football field. "Throughout a five year period of time we have overcome a lot of challenges. So now I would like to invite everyone to Ukraine to enjoy this great tournament," exclaimed Markiyan Lubkivskyi.