Ivan “Molotov” Kurilenko is a fan of the football club “Dnipro”, a representative of the team “Darzost i Molodost”.
Ivan Petrovich Kurilenko was born on July 31, 1993 in the city of Dnipro. He studied at school No. 138, after which he became a student of Dnipropetrovsk Industrial College, and after graduating he entered the National Metallurgical Academy of Ukraine. Since childhood, he was fond of cars and moto-culture, in his youth he spent a lot of time in the garage with his friend repairing cars and motorcycles. From the age of 16 he was engaged in boxing. As a child, he was restless, constantly misbehaving and often fighting with his older brother Andrei (who died on April 4, 2022 in Mariupol).
The fan sector “Dnipro” began to visit since 2011. He supported the team not only in the stands, but was always ready to defend his native colors on the street. Subsequently, he joined the team “Darzost i Molodost”, in which at that time the strongest representatives of the younger generation gathered to become a worthy replacement for the older teammates from the legendary “Avant-garde”. Also, Ivan repeatedly stood side by side with friends from the capital “Dynamo”, and even later the Kharkiv “Metalist”.
In the fan team, Ivan was an extremely important person, a participant in all significant events and was part of the first composition of the foundation. He paid a lot of attention to the development of young people. He always fought in the front ranks and had a lot of respect. Friends remember Ivan as a decent and reliable person, ready to fight for the truth in any way and come to the aid of the needy. It was always possible to rely on it, despite the complexity of the situation. In Dnipro, he was known for his nationalist views, and in life he adhered to the principles of “Straight Edge”, which exclude bad habits and in every way encourage a healthy lifestyle. Corresponding to life views was also musical taste. Friends and acquaintances could often meet a hardcore fan at concerts of the local musical group “Three Hills City”.
It was these views that he promoted in the city, being an example to others through his useful deeds. One of the close friends recalls: - “I know many people, because Ivan was an older brother. Having a knack for bringing people together around him, he was an example for many in his circle. Both young guys and adults were equal to him. He brought up a large number of strong ideological people who are now successfully defending our country. At the same time, he always remained positive, smiled and joked a lot.”
With the outbreak of war in the east of Ukraine, like many of his comrades, Molotov came into arms. In 2014-15 he spent as a member of “Azov”. Served in reconnaissance, “flew” on the UAV “Stork”. After returning to civilian life, he worked a lot on the development of the nationalist movement in Dnipro. He headed the local branch of the party “National Corps”. Constantly insisting on the importance of sports for like-minded people and the younger generation, he became a co-founder of the Avant-Garde gym. Since 2018, Ivan has been a regular participant in the “Race of the Nation” competition. In addition, together with friends and sisters, much attention was paid to preparing the population for a great war, the approach of which there was no doubt. He and his beloved Julia were waiting for the appearance of a child.
On the first day of the full-scale invasion, Ivan and Julia were abroad. But as soon as on February 24 everything began - they were looking for a way to return to Ukraine, and in a few days they succeeded. Immediately after returning, he joined the ranks of the 98th battalion of the TRO, created by former Azovans and football fans, taking on a new nickname - “Volter”. Having experience in combat operations, he performed tasks in the south-east of the country. On June 1, 2022, during one of these missions, Ivan Kurylenko died. He was buried in the Jubilee Cemetery of the city of Dnipro.
