Valentin Belkevich. Legends never go away

Valentin Belkevich, whose causes of death were kept secret for more than a day, is enshrined in the Belarusian Football Hall of Fame for life. The former Dynamo Kyiv midfielder is originally from Minsk, but spent most of his career in Ukraine. For a long time he was married to the famous singer Anna Sedokova.

Footballer's career

Valentin Belkevich began playing professional sports in 1991. The first team was Dynamo Minsk, for which he played for 5 seasons. Over 202 games played, the midfielder managed to score 43 times, thanks to which he was repeatedly recognized as the best football player in the championship.

At first, Valentin’s career in Kyiv was not very successful. Over the first two seasons, he still could not gain a foothold in the starting lineup. The situation changed for the better with the arrival of someone who replaced him in the coaching field.

In the late 1990s, Dynamo played out the attacking triangle “Rebrov-Shevchenko-Belkevich”. In this trio, Valentin played the role of a connecting playmaker between the two forwards. It was thanks to his ability to make accurate passes from anywhere on the field that the Kyivians scored more than half of all goals in the season. This iconic trio personified all the power and corporate style of the then Dynamo.

For the Kyiv team, the Belarusian midfielder played 317 official matches, in which he scored 70 goals. Belkevich is still one of the Dynamo record holders for the number of meetings held. This is a real legend of the club, along with Shevchenko and Lobanovsky.

In 2008, unexpectedly for his fans, Valentin signed a contract with the Baku team Inter, for which he spent one full season. After the end of the Azerbaijani championship, the playmaker hung up his boots, preferring coaching.

Belkevich played 56 matches for the Belarusian national team, scoring 10 times.

Coaching career

After finishing playing for Inter, Valentin planned to get a job in the structure of Dynamo Kyiv. Nevertheless, the club's management was in no hurry to make proposals. Despite this, fans continued to associate the future of their favorite team only with the name Belkevich. Valentin also repeatedly stated this in various interviews.

Agreeing with the majority opinion, Dynamo managers invited their former player to become an assistant coach of the youth team. The footballer did not refuse such an experience and began his duties in the summer of 2010.

For two years, Valentin diligently helped his colleagues take prizes in the youth championship. And in 2012 he was appointed head coach of the youth team. By the next season, Belkevich began work as the first coach of the Dynamo reserve team.

Honored Champion

During his career as a football player, Valentin became the champion of Belarus four times and twice won the national cup.

As part of Dynamo Kyiv, the midfielder won 13 gold medals in various tournaments and championships. Also, since 2000, he has been recognized several times as the best football player in the Ukrainian league.

In December 2006, Valentin Belkevich received the highest award from the executive committee of the Belarusian Sports Federation - “Badge of Honor”.

Currently he is one of the most goal-scoring midfielders in Belarus.

Unexpected death

Every sports fan knew Valentin Belkevich in his homeland. That is why his death became a tragedy for the entire country.

On August 1, 2014, the great football player of Dynamo Minsk and Kyiv Valentin Belkevich died. The causes of death were established within 24 hours. The midfielder died from thromboembolism. On the night of August 1, his heart suddenly stopped.

Three days later, at the Dynamo stadium in Kyiv, a farewell to the legend of Belarusian football took place, which was attended by several hundred people. Among them were relatives and friends of the deceased, and representatives of sports federations of Belarus and Ukraine, and veterans, colleagues, students and simply fans who were not indifferent to Valentin.

Everyone who came to the funeral laid flowers and said a warm farewell to the legend of Russian football. Belkevich’s ex-wife Anna Sedokova and their common daughter Alina were no exception.

Valentin Belkevich is a multiple champion of national championships, a cup winner, a successful football player who has the maximum number of titles in Belarus. But the young man gained popularity in show business due to his personal relationship with the singer.

Childhood and youth

Valentin Nikolaevich Belkevich was born in Minsk on January 27, 1973. Almost nothing is known about Valentin’s childhood and family, since he often repeated that his personal life was private so as not to tell others about it. Valentin grew up in a simple Belarusian family. His mother Valentina Kapustina taught Russian at one of the Minsk universities, and his father worked as a historian.

Even as a child, Valentin was taken to a children's and youth sports school for the football section. The boy's coach was Mikhail Stepanovich Bratchenya. After the death of his ward, the coach recalls that Nikolai Belkevich objected to his son playing football.

Valentin was not doing well with his studies, and his father wanted to see his son as the heir to a dynasty of scientists. But on the football field the young man seemed to be among the best. Nevertheless, the father never appreciated the child’s efforts; often even the sports uniform and shoes were selected for Belkevich by the coach, since the father did not consider it necessary to purchase sports accessories.

Considering that the young athlete’s parents were divorced and each of them was building a new family, his grandmothers were involved in raising the boy. For a long time, it was Valentin’s grandmother who took him to training until he became more independent.

Alexander Khatskevich also worked in the same sports section with Valentin, whom Belkevich met much later as part of the Dynamo football club. The guys became friends as children and often kicked the ball around outside of training. Unlike the impulsive and temperamental Khatskevich, Valentin always behaved intelligently, listened to the coach, observed discipline, and did not misbehave.

Football

Valentin played his first professional match as part of the Minsk Dynamo football club. The debut of the young football player took place in the 1991-1992 season. Then Valentin played with a Ukrainian club from Zhitomir. With Dynamo, Belkevich twice received the title of champion of Belarus. Improving his professional skills, Valentin more than once received the title of the best player in Belarus.

A Kiev millionaire came to one of the training sessions of Belarusian youths. He immediately noted Belkevich’s play and said: “I’m buying!” The Belarusian club was paid a symbolic 400 rubles, and the athlete left for Kyiv. There, the head coach of the Ukrainian team, Valery Vasilyevich Lobanovsky, instantly appreciated the young man’s talent.

Nevertheless, Valentin almost did not appear in the main team - this was the decision of the club's head coach Jozsef Szabo. But Lobanovsky, who returned to Dynamo, noted Valentin’s play and created a striking tandem of Rebrov and Belkevich. Soon the players became friends and off the field they visited each other and communicated with their families.

According to official statistics, Valentin Belkevich’s sports biography includes 250 matches (including 38 cup matches) and 58 goals. At the end of 2006, Valentin received the “Badge of Honor” for his services to Belarusian football.

In 2008, Valentin signed a contract with the Azerbaijani club Keshly (Inter). But a year later the player received the right to coach, on the basis of this he prematurely terminated the contract with the Azerbaijanis and became a coach. At the same time, Belkevich applied for Ukrainian citizenship, and soon received a positive response.

The footballer faced great disappointment during a match in the Union of European Football Associations in 1994. Then Valentin was disqualified for doping. Belkevich himself did not admit his guilt. The athlete said that in 1993 he suffered a knee joint injury, and injections containing steroids were used to treat the injury.

According to the athlete, the steroids were used exclusively for the treatment of the knee joint. However, he was unable to prove his case to the international community, so Valentin was disqualified.

As part of Dynamo Kyiv, Valentin was often chosen as team captain. On the field, he was distinguished by his intelligent behavior, never played “dirty,” but, nevertheless, he often acted as an organizer and the center of his club’s game. Belkevich did not break the rules and did not try to earn a penalty kick using “dirty methods.” Journalists called Belkevich’s period of work at Dynamo Kiev the silver age of Ukrainian football.

Personal life

Even in his youth, a colleague introduced Valentin to a charming blonde of Belarusian origin, Olesya, in 1996. The young people began an affair. Olesya lived on that coin with her husband and son from her first marriage. The girl left her husband for a famous football player. Then Olesya heard a lot of criticism addressed to her: the girl was accused of being only interested in the football player’s money and at his expense she was trying to find a home for her own son.

In the summer of 2004, the press reported the marriage of Belkevich and singer Anna Sedokova. The ex-participant turned out to be an enviable match for the football player, on the one hand, and on the other, information appeared in the media that the marriage turned out to be a necessary measure, since Anna had already been carrying the football player’s child for 4 months.

In the couple's wedding photos, Valentin really doesn't look like a very happy groom. 6 months after marriage, the couple had a daughter. The girl was named Alina. But soon after the birth of the child, the singer and the football player broke up. Valentin returned to Olesya, with whom he lived before his marriage to Anna.

Death

Shortly before his death, Valentin and Khatskevich met with the first coach and at a banquet they offered to thank him by purchasing a car, but Mikhail Stepanovich refused - he wanted the young people to achieve success themselves first.

Olesya, who was then living with a former football player, says that on the fateful evening she went out to talk on the phone with a friend, when suddenly Valentin began to feel ill. By the time the ambulance arrived, the athlete was already dead. The cause of death was thromboembolism.

Shortly before his death, Valentin’s coaching contract expired. The former football player was very worried about this. Olesya tried to cheer up her common-law husband: she entertained him either with fishing or traveling together.

Valentin Belkevich's mother insisted that her son be buried in Kyiv. The funeral was attended by both common-law wife Olesya, who accepted condolences, and ex-member of VIA Gra Anna Sedokova, who laid a wreath and quickly disappeared.

After the funeral, a financially motivated conflict arose between the women. Anna, who had been living in the United States with her daughter in recent years, flew to Kyiv and claimed Valentin Belkevich’s apartment. Sedokova’s claims were also supported by the footballer’s mother, who accuses her son’s common-law wife of the disappearance of a large sum of money. Olesya denies all claims from third parties.

Awards and achievements

• 1992 – gold medal at the Belarusian Championship
• 1992 – gold medal at the Belarus Cup
• 1994 – gold medal at the Belarusian Super Cup
• 1996 – silver medal at the Belarusian Championship
• 1997 – gold medal at the Ukrainian Championship
• 2002 – gold medal at the Commonwealth Cup
• 2004 – gold medal at the Ukrainian Super Cup
• 2007 – gold medal at the Ukrainian Championship

2014-08-01 15:13:59

On August 1, Valentin Belkevich, a symbol of Belarusian football at the turn of the century, passed away. One of the best Belarusian football players in the history of the country died due to a ruptured blood clot. Pressbal.by recalls the most striking episodes from the life of the great player.

Valentin Belkevich began his brilliant career in his homeland, in Dynamo Minsk. The video footage did not preserve any memories of those years. The young footballer went through the youth team and the reserve team of the Minsk club, becoming one of its leaders. Then there was an unpleasant doping scandal that disrupted Belkevich’s transfer to Maccabi, disqualification and, finally, a move to Dynamo Kiev. Things didn't work out at first, but with Valery Lobanovsky's return to the club, Valentin became part of something great.

Yes, Belkevich, one might say, came at the right time and to the right club. Lobanovsky created a team that will be called the “golden” squad of Dynamo Kyiv. The pinnacle of these guys was the 1998/99 Champions League semi-final. In that draw, a fight took place that Belkevich will call the most memorable in his career. At the Kiev Olympic Stadium, the Ukrainian club won against the legendary Real Madrid.

"Dynamo" Kyiv - "Real" - 2:0

"Dynamo" Kyiv - Bayern - 3:3

Champions League 1999/00. Group stage. “Anderlecht” - “Dynamo” Kyiv – 4:2. Belkevich goal (86)

Champions League 2002/03. "Dynamo" Kyiv - "Feyenoord" – 2:0. Belkevich goal (47)

Qualifying match for the 2002 World Cup. Norway - Belarus - 1:1. Belkevich's goal

Euro 2000 qualifying match. Italy - Belarus - 1:1. Belkevich's goal

A beautiful romance and a luxurious wedding are not always followed by long and happy family relationships. One of the brightest famous couples of the last decade had a chance to see this from their own experience. Anna Sedokova and Valentin Belkevich, their marriage lasted less than two years, however, the history of this relationship is of keen interest to the public even after many years. One of the most successful football players in the country, and the star of the most popular girl’s musical group, they were not embarrassed by the ten-year age difference or other circumstances, but who would have thought that such a beautifully twisted relationship would come to naught so quickly and scandalously? .

Anna Sedokova and Valentin Belkevich: a love story

Their relationship began quite by accident; Anna Sedokova’s first husband, Valentin Belkevich, ironically visited the same hairdresser as the performer. They often met in a salon located in Kyiv, but their communication was limited to greetings. After several months of such chance meetings, the football player got the phone number of the young lady who charmed him, and one day he simply called and invited Anya to go bowling. From this very moment, their stormy romance began, the 21-year-old girl truly fell in love for the first time, and Valentin also showed quite tender feelings for her. The young man was not stopped even by the fact that he himself was not free at that time; the football player had a common-law wife named Lesya, with whom he lived for more than 10 years. Their relationship with Anna seemed exclusively rosy to the young people at that time, and just five months after the start of the whirlwind romance, the performer discovered that she was pregnant. Naturally, the first person she told about this was Valentin, the football player was incredibly happy about this news, and immediately invited his beloved to formalize their relationship.

The young artist was in love and happy, and she had no thoughts that the fairy tale might one day end. However, a few days before the happy wedding, the future husband presented his beloved with a marriage contract for signature. As Anna later said, she was very hurt and even offended by this, but she didn’t want to quarrel on the eve of the wedding, so she didn’t even show it, and simply signed the papers, considering them a simple formality. Their wedding was one of the brightest and most publicized events of that time, and just three days later the first huge scandal took place. The newlyweds quarreled right at the airport, in front of the entire Dynamo team, which was flying to training camp in Yalta. This trip was supposed to be a “honeymoon” for the couple, but as a result, Valentin got angry and refused to help his pregnant wife with luggage, and the singer had to carry all the suitcases and bags herself.

Everyone who knew this famous couple personally was surprised how people so different in all respects could come together. Anya loved to attract attention and always be at the center of the main events, while Valentin always preferred to remain on the sidelines, hated journalists, and did not want to discuss his personal life. However, for the sake of her beloved, the performer even decided to leave her successful career in the mega-popular VIA Gre and turned into a housewife. She really tried to be an exemplary wife: she cooked, kept the house cozy and abandoned all social events. But this did not help strengthen the family, and some chill ran between the spouses. Even when the couple had a baby daughter, Alina Belkevich, this did not help improve the relationship. The husband began to return home later and later, and after that, at times he even spent the night outside the house. Anya cried, tried to talk, but this did not give any result, and later she found out that her husband was dating his former common-law wife Lesya. As it turned out, it was this woman that he truly loved all his life, and the young performer was for him, although very strong, but still a fleeting hobby. When everything was revealed, Sedokova realized that their marriage had long been a complete deception, and therefore, she decided to simply leave. According to the terms of the marriage contract, she was left with nothing, so she had to start all over again. Belkevich's daughter remained to live with her mother, and after the divorce, her father, although he did not spoil the heiress with attention, helped financially. There was, however, another attempt to reunite the couple, but it failed miserably, and Valentin finally chose Lesya.

Death of Valentin Belkevich

After the divorce, Anya claimed in an interview for a long time that the main reason for this was her husband’s ban on her returning to the big stage. But years later, the performer still admitted that she lost in such a protracted fight with her rival. The celebrity also noted that she maintains normal relations with her ex-husband for the benefit of their common daughter, and never allowed herself to speak badly or disrespectfully about her father in her presence. The only noteworthy thing is that the ex-husband never introduced Anya to her parents, and at the time of the football player’s tragic death, they had never even seen their only granddaughter.

His life in its prime was cut short by a fatal blood clot. The football player, and later a successful coach, was only 41 years old at that time. Valentin passed away on August 1, 2014, the young man’s heart suddenly stopped. As relatives say, everything happened just like lightning, in the evening in his own house the football player suddenly complained of a sharp deterioration in his health, he sat down on the sofa and... that’s it, the ambulance that arrived only recorded the fact of the celebrity’s death. He was buried in Kyiv, at the Baikovo cemetery; they say that his parents wanted Valentin to rest in his native Minsk, but his widow Lesya insisted on the Ukrainian capital. Hundreds of people came to the farewell ceremony for the legend; these were friends, relatives, colleagues of the deceased, and ordinary Dynamo fans who were shocked by what happened. The only one missing from those seeing off the football player on his last journey was his ex-wife Anna. The performer later explained her absence this way: she believes that he had his own story and his own family, which she did not want to meet face to face. And Sedokova was never able to tell her daughter about what happened, who, although she rarely saw her father, loved him very much. Later, the girl learned about the tragedy by accident, from complete strangers, which was a real shock for her; the singer still cannot forgive herself for this.

Litigation over the inheritance of Valentin Belkevich

After the death of the famous football player, a lawsuit was launched for the inheritance he left in the form of an expensive apartment in Kyiv, numerous sports awards, as well as a large sum of money. Since the athlete died suddenly and at a fairly young age, he did not leave any will, so the heirs decided to clarify their dispute and claims in court. It should be noted that in addition to legal litigation, an information war also began between Valentin’s ex-wife Anna Sedokova and his widow Lesya Belkevich. The singer in an interview calls her rival nothing more than her husband’s mistress and a homewrecker, and also claims that Lesya does not get in touch and does not appear at the hearing in the courtroom.

In turn, the athlete’s widow is outraged by this treatment; she lived with Valentin for more than 20 years, and even during his marriage to the performer, he maintained contact with her. It turns out that Lesya was there before, after and even during their relationship with Anya, the constant woman in his life. She bears his last name, and Valentin raised her son from his first marriage as his own; by the way, many throughout this time thought that the boy was his son. The woman also calls it a lie that Sedokova claims that she does not get in touch. Lesya notes that no one even tried to contact her or her lawyer, and she found out about the meeting after the fact, and there was no point in delaying the process.

Be that as it may, the case has not yet moved forward, and to date not a single court decision has been made.

(36 years)
Minsk

* The number of games and goals for a professional club is calculated only for the various national championship leagues, corrected as of June 24.
** Number of games and goals for the national team in official matches, adjusted according to status
on November 20th.

Valentin Nikolaevich Belkevich(belor. Valantsin Byalkevich, genus. January 27, Minsk) - Belarusian football player.

Played for the teams:

• 1991-1996 “Dynamo Minsk”
• 1996-2008 Dynamo Kyiv
• 2008-2009 Inter Baku

Kyiv made his debut in the Ukrainian top league as part of Dynamo on July 20, 1996 in a match with the Arsenal team.

Achievements

• 7-time champion of Ukraine (1997-2001, 2003, 2004)
• 6-time winner of the Ukrainian Cup (1998-2000, 2003, 2005, 2006)
• In the major league for Dynamo he played 212 matches and scored 50 goals.
• In the Ukrainian Cups he played 38 matches for Dynamo and scored 8 goals.
• Winner of the Belarus Cup 1992, 1993/94
• Second prize-winner of the Ukrainian Championship 2002, 2005
• Finalist of the Ukrainian Cup 2002
• Participant in the 1999 Champions League semi-final
• Best football player of Belarus 1995
• The best football player of the decade in Belarus
• Best football player of the Ukrainian league 2001
• Best assistant of the Ukrainian Championship 2000, 2001
• The best football player of the Ukrainian championship 2000/2001 (according to the newspaper “Team”)
• In European competitions, he played 67 matches for Dynamo and scored 12 goals.

More detailed statistics of Belkevich’s performances by season can be found here.

Remembering all the years of your stay at Dynamo, which team of the year do you consider the strongest?
- With great respect to all the players and coaches, I consider the 1999 team to be the strongest. In terms of the game, the results, the team spirit. Having gathered individually strong performers, Valery Lobanovsky united us with a high goal and taught us to play with the strongest clubs in Europe. The guys went out to the matches with Barcelona and Juventus with excitement, but without jitters. We learned to understand that we were no worse than the vaunted giants, and at the same time we forced them to reckon with us.

Belkevich's career in Dynamo Kiev started hard - for two years after moving to the capital of Ukraine, he rarely appeared in the main team (at that time the coach of the Kiev team was Jozsef Szabo), the situation changed with the return of Valery Lobanovsky to the club. He interacted superbly with the pair of forwards Shevchenko-Rebrov, forming a “shock” triangle for “Dynamo”. For the game model that Valery Lobanovsky brought to life, Belkevich became a necessary element of the system called “Dynamo” - it was he who was the link between the reliable and rich defense of the Kyivans and the mobile attack represented by Shevchenko and Rebrov. It was he who organized the lion's share of the swift and devastating counterattacks that became Dynamo's signature style in the late 90s.

“In the fall of ’93, my knee hurt. His treatment was carried out by our club doctor, Vasily Maksimovich Dmitrakov. At that time, there were no doping controls in European Cup matches. Therefore, no one kept strict records of the use of medications and medical procedures. Today in Kyiv, every pill and even the weight and pressure of the player for every day are entered into the computer memory. So you can restore your state of health several years later. And then in Minsk the club doctor simply gave me Retabolil injections. After all, it is used not only to build muscle mass, but also to strengthen bones, which is what I needed. No one imagined that doping tests would begin next summer and, most importantly, that traces of the nandrolone contained in the medicine would remain in the body months later. In the spring, Maksimych died, after which there were no medical records left. And when all this happened in August, after the match with the Maltese, no one could give a clear explanation. Who should I ask? I have. But how was I supposed to know what they injected me with six months ago? I don't understand medicine. I think I was just a victim of a coincidence.”

“I can only agree on Belkevich. He is 33 years old, he has played at a high level for many years, his contract expires at the end of the year, we will sit down with him and decide how he sees his destiny. If he decides to finish playing football, then please, we’ll find him a place in a sports school or a coach in the second team, especially since I know that Valik would really like to be a coach.”

In a television interview dated December 15, 2006, Igor Surkis said that Valentin Belkevich signed a contract with Dynamo for another year as a player. On January 9, 2007, the UEFA website reported that Valentin Belkevich extended his contract with Dynamo Kyiv until the end of 2007. In December 2007, by mutual agreement of the club and the player, the contract between Dynamo and Valentin Belkevich was not renewed. In June 2008, Belkevich signed a one-year contract with the Azerbaijani club Inter. However, having received a coaching license “A” in January 2009, by mutual agreement, he terminated the contract with Inter and ended his playing career.