Ivan “Kotygoroshko” Chekanyuk is a fan of the football club CSKA (Kyiv), representative of the team “Praetorian Guard”.

Ivan Mikhailovich Chekanyuk was born on November 24, 1994 in the village. Gorka Polonka (Volyn region). He studied at the school No. 1 of the city of Lutsk with in-depth study of English. Since childhood, he was engaged in martial arts, in particular jiu-jitsu. After school, he entered the Kiev Municipal Academy of Pop and Circus Arts. Possessing patriotic beliefs from an early age, the young man hardened himself in camps and schools. There he gained the ability to keep calm and quickly make the right decisions in critical situations. As it turned out later, this trait of his character will come in handy during the war. Since 2011, he has been a member of the nationalist youth organization “National Alliance”. He did not drink alcohol and did not smoke, actively promoted a healthy lifestyle among peers and older friends. He was able to listen and hear people.

But not only youth camps played a significant role in the formation of the character of the young man. After moving to Kiev for training, he joined the cohort of fans of the capital CSKA. He took an active part in the life of the movement, supported the mini-football and handball teams in the sector. Talking about Ivan, classmates will certainly recall his always positive attitude, even in the most unfunny situations. They recall how during the trips he showed friends tricks with playing cards, which no one could not but repeat, but even understand their secret. For this, among the fans he was called “Karteozhnik”.

With the onset of the events of the Revolution of Dignity, like many representatives of the capital's fan movements, he participated from the very beginning in the overthrow of criminal power. After the beginning of the Russian aggression in the East, he almost immediately joined the newly created, then still battalion “Azov”, as part of which he liberated Marinka, took part in the battles near Ilovaysk, Pavlopil, Chermalyk, Gnutove. In the army, he received the nickname “Kotygoroshko”, which, according to his comrades, characterized the soldier as best as possible, because he was resourceful and positive in the difficult conditions of front-line life.

Since 2016, he participated in combat operations as part of the 11th battalion “Kiev Rus” (59 brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine), was an intelligence officer and performed battalion reconnaissance tasks. Widely known was the case when near N.P. Popasna “Kotygoroshko” as part of the reconnaissance group, in the middle of the day, competently disguised, penetrated the rear of the enemy and bypassed the WO (Platoon Support Point) attacked it, after which the means of radio communication, equipment, equipment, equipment and other evidence were used Aggression. The enemy concentrated an artillery strike in response. Unfortunately, one of the shells ruptured nearby, and the fragments broke two legs of a fellow with the nickname “Batya”, and Ivan himself was wounded in the knee, but despite this he began to evacuate the wounded. Despite his injury, fatigue, stress, huge distance, mined fields and weight difference, he pulled “Batya” to the evacuation group. For this example of courage and heroism, he was awarded the Order “For Courage” of the 3rd degree.

Constantly striving to improve, he learned to work with new weapons, with the latest military equipment, high-precision shooting, tactics, strategy, camouflage, tactical medicine. Improved English skills in order to communicate with US morphs and other interesting guests of our country. He wasted no time in other areas, as the founder and co-author of the idea of uniting veterans of the BRO (Combat Resistance Movement) to socialize and support veterans, create jobs. He is the founder and co-owner of the commercial project of the veteran business of the BRO pizzeria chain in the city. Kyiv. As part of a social burden, he brought pizza to wounded fighters in hospitals and rehabilitation centers. Already during the invasion of the Russian invaders in the Kiev region, the BRO pizzeria fed free of charge soldiers of the Armed Forces, TRO and volunteers who provided the defense of the city.

With the beginning of the full-scale invasion, “Kotygoroshko” gathered a group of experienced ATO veterans and patrolled the capital. As the commander of the reconnaissance group, he directly took an active part in the special operations of the GUR of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine for the liberation of N.P. Moshchun, Gostomel, Bucha, Irpin, Vorzel, Makariv, Buzova, Kopyliv. Performed special tasks for the destruction of Russian invaders in the area of N.P. Bazaar, Poleske. Repeatedly performed combat missions in Kyiv, Zhytomyr, Chernihiv, Nikolaev, Kherson and Luhansk regions.

During the fierce fighting in the city. Severodonetsk, after the clash of the group with the enemy on June 08, 2022 at the post of the Promzon support point, provided the support of the special purpose group of the GUR of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine. The enemy concentrated artillery shelling of positions with the aim of further assault. Ivan Chekanyuk did not leave the group unattended until the last moment and adjusted their route, taking it out of the shelling, until an enemy shell hit the side and killed the brave Warrior. Awarded the Order “For Courage” II degree (posthumously).