The Ukrainian Olympic Committee announced today, Monday, that two-time European weightlifting champion, Oleksandr Pylyshenko, died on the front lines of the war in Ukraine.

The committee published on Telegram that Pylyshenko "died in the war with the enemy" on Sunday, at the age of 30.

The committee added that he joined the Ukrainian armed forces in the early days of the Russian invasion.

Pylyshenko returned from a doping suspension in the 2013-2015 season to win the European Championship under 85 kg in 2016 by a single kilogram, and successfully defended his title in 2017 in Split.

Pylyshenko missed an Olympic medal by five kilograms at the Rio de Janeiro 2016 Olympics, finishing in fourth place, and committed a second doping violation in 2018.

The Ukrainian Weightlifting Federation said on Facebook: "With deep sadness we announce that the heart of the honored Ukrainian sportsmaster, two-time European weightlifting champion Oleksandr Pylyshenko, has stopped beating."

National coach Viktor Slobodianiuk added on Facebook: "War takes the best from us... this is an extremely heavy loss for the entire weightlifting community in Ukraine. Heroes do not die."

More than 400 Ukrainian athletes and officials have been killed in the war.