From Master of Sport to Senior Reconnaissance Soldier: Irpin Bids Farewell to Oleksiy Demidov
Oleksii Demidov lived in a city that endured occupation and was rebuilt — and he was killed on one of the hottest sectors of the front. On April 1, the community will lay him to rest.
By Tetiana Suchkova-Ladik
March 31, 2026 · 2 min read
On Wednesday, April 1, Irpin bids farewell to the senior scout of the 65th Separate Mechanized Brigade Oleksii Demidov — a man whose life path fits into the broader trajectory of a city that rebuilt itself twice: after the 2022 occupation and after the start of the full-scale war.
An athlete who went to war at 45
Oleksii Demidov was born on July 20, 1978, in Bila Tserkva, but Irpin became his city — he settled there in 2001 and lived there for more than two decades. He held the title of Master of Sport in swimming and boxing: disciplines that train not only the body but also the ability to withstand pressure alone.
Demidov joined the Armed Forces in 2024 — at 45, when most of his peers chose to "wait it out." He became a senior scout in the 65th Separate Mechanized Brigade "Velykyi Luh" — a brigade formed in April 2022 and since then present on the Zaporizhzhia direction almost continuously.
Where and how it happened
On February 28, 2026, Oleksii Demidov was killed while carrying out a combat mission near the village of Novoandriivka on the Zaporizhzhia axis. This is part of the Huliaipole sector, which, according to analysts, as of March 2026 ranks second in the number of assaults only to the Pokrovsk direction. It is here, in the "gray zone" between positions, that scouts operate first.
"Out of a company of 80 people, roughly 6 remained combat-capable"
— a fighter of the 65th brigade, from a Ukrainska Pravda piece about the assault on Robotyne
This testimony is not about Demidov's specific fight, but about the price the 65th has paid and continues to pay on this front for years.
A city that knows the cost of loss
Irpin is one of the few Ukrainian cities where the loss of a defender acquires a particular resonance: the city remembers its own occupation, has been rebuilding homes and burying the dead since 2022. That Demidov lived here for more than 20 years and left behind a son turns the official farewell into something more than a protocol.
- 11:30 — a living corridor near the turn to the cemetery (Universitetska St.)
- Then — burial at the Irpin city cemetery
The farewell was announced by acting mayor and council secretary Angela Makeieva.
Oleksii Demidov left behind a son.
The Huliaipole direction remains active. If Ukrainian positions in the "gray zone" near Novoandriivka can be held until the next rotation cycle — the price paid by scouts like Demidov will have tactical justification. If not — the question of the advisability of specific tasks in this sector will remain unanswered.
