Ice hockey player "Lokomotiv" Ivan Leonidovich Tkachenko: biography

Terrible news spread around the world. September 7, 2011 in Yaroslavl on takeoff in a collision with a radio beacon Yak-42 crashed, committed a charter flight to Minsk with the main staff of the hockey team "Locomotive" on board. 26 young men died, the youngest turned 18, and the oldest - 38.

Hurry to do good

And only then everyone learned that Ivan Leonidovich Tkachenko, the captain of the team, in total about 10,000,000 rubles transferred to children in need of expensive treatment, anonymously. And just the day before takeoff, he sent another transfer of 500,000 rubles for Diana Ibragimova, a 16-year-old girl, who needed a bone marrow transplant. His family did not know about this, relatives did not know. Only two were in the know - a friend and employee of the ice arena. And they were both connected by a word, they could not, they did not have the right to tell anyone.

Their eight people - the children helped by Ivan, six owe him his life. Probably, the desire to help those who need it so much was in his blood.

He was not at 31.

Maybe he felt something? According to his father, he had never talked to him for such a long time as he did that last time.

What was he like - Tkachenko Ivan Leonidovich? Biography

He was the second son in a friendly hard-working family. My father dreamed of a daughter. Vanya appeared. November 9, 1979. He loved to listen to fairy tales. Liked Gaidarovsky "The Boy-Kibalchish" and with tears in his eyes and pouting lips reacted to the insults inflicted by the Bad Boy. From the age of four he had already read it himself.

The first steps of the future champion

It was the idea of the father - a three-year-old kid to put on ice on skates-runners, attached to boots. He got up and went lightly. At five he skated on real skates. We can say that it was with them that he began his sports career. And it became clear that he was a hockey player from God.

He was not a fighter, but he did not allow himself to offend or toddlers. If anyone had attacked, the boy fiercely defended himself. And he was patient. However, no one was able to bully him for a long time with impunity. He did not sag and did not concede, he gave change.

He quickly enlisted in the leaders of the yard team, for justice and for goals scored. And he proved that he is the best when in the regional competitions of the "Golden Puck" his team won, scoring 43 goals, of which 37 - the Vanins.

In six years he was accepted into the hockey section "Torpedo". The little boy had to go up every day at five in the morning, wait 20 minutes in the cold and wind for the bus and go to the training camp to the other end of the city, and from there - to the school where he was accepted ahead of schedule, the six-year-old. And he did not complain, never and for nothing.

It was in six years, according to the memories of my mother, that Vanya held a charity event, the first in his life. Careless mother's phrase that the rich they are now because she won a prize, took literally. He took the money from his wallet and gave it to the children in the yard, to the last penny. Mom, of course, wanted to severely punish, but my father forbade it. And now my mother is sure that this is why her son helped sick children so that no one would know.

When there is a goal

Perhaps it was an incredible success for the future athlete, but in Yaroslavl secondary school No. 9 it was decided to collect boys, keen hockey, into one class. So, in 1990, Ivan was enrolled in 5 "C" - a sports class with a special schedule, allowing you to have time with training with A. Podmetalin (first coach) for the second lesson. By the way, today this school bears the name of Ivan Tkachenko.

Then at the young hockey player there were the present skates, the father has got somewhere Canadian. And there was no hindrance that the athlete did not yet grow up to that size and looked in them, as in high-speed boots. When the coach in May 1992, after being forced to return to his native Saratov, called with him Ivan and with him Maxim Bychkov and Renat Yubin, the guy agreed, without hesitation, and defended his decision to his parents. The boys living in the dormitory had to cook and wash and clean themselves. The guys soon returned home. Vanya was left behind. He stubbornly walked to the intended goal.

This difficult path

Like many of his friends, hockey players, this way was not easy. He had to play for the farm clubs "Spartacus" and "Torpedo", try himself in the higher league in the Tver TSC, Zavolzhsky "Motor", advocate for "Neftekhimik."

He was deceived with the first contract. After many years, parents learned what their son had to do when three people in a food team were given out in such small quantities as one serving of the first and two - the second. And they did not learn from his son, from his friends. Many left the sport, could not stand it. He continued to play.

At the age of 16 he plays for Spartak in Canada, for the first time abroad. He played in such a way that it was he who Vladimir Krikunov bestows the main prize - the statuette won there.

It was in his career the silver of the world championship in 2002, when he played for the Russian national team.

His team

It has long been noted that, as soon as Ivan Leonidovich Tkachenko appeared, Lokomotiv went to the champions. And Ivan himself with his native team twice became the champion of Russia - in 2002 and 2003, in 2003 - silver medalist of the Continental Cup, won silver and bronze. The season of 2011/2012 would be the tenth.

Ivan Leonidovich Tkachenko thought about the end of his career. He was making plans. And I was sure that everything should be done well, for which you undertake. He was so worried that he could be untenable outside hockey, which became his life.

So he was a Man!

Everyone speaks of him as a very kind and considerate person. He did not leave any message unanswered, he remembered the birthdays of his loved ones and congratulated everyone on his own. He was able to easily communicate with every person, and it did not matter, it's a high rank or a friend with life's problems.

In the team he enjoyed deserved respect, his fans loved him. On the ice he was a real fighter, laid out to the last. And every hockey player in his team was confident that their captain would do everything possible and impossible for success. And Lokomotiv was really his native team. No other club managed to lure him. His contracts he signed with the Yaroslavl "Locomotive".

Because here everyone in fact knows what team hockey is. Everyone in fact knows that only hard work has made them masters.

Native family

Was Tkachenko Ivan Leonidovich married? His wife is Marina, they were familiar from childhood. Her younger brother was from a young age his friend, with whom they played together in hockey, and did their homework. After graduation, when Ivan began to play professionally, he and Marina began to live together in a rented room. Later the club rented an apartment for him, and already there in 2005 their first daughter Sasha was born, and after three years - Varya. Shortly before the last flight, he learned that they will have a son. He did not have to see him. The boy was born after the disaster, his name is Nikolai, as his father wanted. And Marina remained his only woman.

So he was - Ivan Leonidovich Tkachenko - hockey player, captain of Yaroslavl "Locomotive", Honored Master of Sports of Russia, a wonderful man. Liked to listen to Depeche mode and U2, loved fast driving and traveling. The honorary badge "Order of the hand" and the medal "Hurry to do good" was awarded posthumously.

In memory of his son, parents plan to build a children's ice hockey school, an ice palace for 100 people, where the main task will be training future hockey stars. It was the idea of their son. He wanted, first of all, to distract the boys from the street and, last but not least, to educate future champions.