Colorado
‘Love will save the world’: Ukrainian ballet group carries on after trailer theft in southern Colorado
PUEBLO, Colo. (KKTV) – Ahead of their show over the weekend, a Ukrainian ballet group had to deal with a major set-back.
The Grand Kyiv Ballet had been passing through Colorado, performing shows and enjoying the mountains.
“Colorado is kind of a new adventure,” said Natan Lubow, a performer from Washington who joined the group. “The mountains are beautiful. The people seem very nice, that we’ve met.”
On Sunday, the group had been preparing to perform in Pueblo at the Memorial Hall after having a day off Saturday. They were set to perform the Nutcracker.
Before the performance, though, the group made a startling discovery.
“We came here for rehearsal,” said Lubow, “and that’s when we were into some of our own issues, with the [trailer] stolen. It was a big surprise for us.”
One of their two trailers was missing. The trailer in question was props and costumes for their production of the Snow Queen, as well as the belongings of many of the performers, including Lubow.
“That’s some serious aggravation, of course, because, you know, we’re constantly moving, and it’s hard to find time to do these things,” said Lubow, referring to the process of finding replacements for what was missing.
11 News reached out to Grand Kyiv Ballet’s founder and artistic director, Oleksandr Stoianov, after getting a tip about the missing trailer. He said that trailer had about $20,000 worth of equipment.
Soon after the phone call, Stoianov shared a Facebook post with 11 News. It was from someone claiming to have found a missing trailer. Just a little later, with help from police, he said they found the missing trailer.
But as they went through it, they found a lot of what was inside had been stolen.
This included clothing for dancers and pointe shoes, something the Grand Kyiv Ballet describes as essential in a ballerina’s performance.
Performer Marta Kalyandruk described this as a major setback.
“How much are pointe shoes?” Lubow asked Kalyandruk while speaking to 11 News.
“Like, $100,” Kalyandruk responded.
“$100 and even more,” Lubow said. He confirmed another performer lost three pairs of these shoes in the theft.
The group is working to move on after this loss, but that comes with tremendous pressure, they said.
“I’m burning that midnight oil, you know,” said Lubow. “That I’m rolling up my sleeves and getting getting some serious jobs done. I mean, we all are. Everyone’s pulling a lot of of weights.”
The group is performing as the war between Russia and Ukraine continues. Kalyandruk said things back in Ukraine are in turmoil, bringing extra pressure for groups like Grand Kyiv Ballet to bring positive representation from their country to the world.
“My friends, especially for working in national group Ukraine, at another theaters of Ukraine, they are really very tired about it every day,” she said.
“There’s a lot on our shoulders, lot of expectations. We want to fill those seats,” Lubow said.
Through ballet, they said, they can bring that positive representation for Ukrainian culture to people around the world.
“Yes, love will save the world, they say. Right?” Lubow said.
“Yes, exactly,” Kalyandruk confirmed.
More so, they both said they want to carve a name for themselves in the world of theater and ballet, saying it can be hard as an international group to become well-known.
They added how crippling it is to lose a trailer full of their things, but said the show will go on, nonetheless.
“It’s not a one man job, you know, it’s like, it takes all hands on deck, you know,” Lubow said. “It takes people talking about it. It takes efforts of of people wanting to convey their own expression of what they experienced in the arts to somebody else, like their neighbor or something like that.”
If you would like to donate to the group, you can do so here.
You can also donate to their cause for restoring the main ballet college of Ukraine, the Kyiv State Choreographic College, here.
You can find more on the group and their performances here.
Copyright 2024 KKTV. All rights reserved.
Colorado
Multi-Time Colorado 3A State Champion Riley Mills Commits to William & Mary
Fitter and Faster Swim Camps is the proud sponsor of SwimSwam’s College Recruiting Channel and all commitment news. For many, swimming in college is a lifelong dream that is pursued with dedication and determination. Fitter and Faster is proud to honor these athletes and those who supported them on their journey.
Sprinter Riley Mills has announced that she will be joining the tribe at William & Mary beginning in the fall of 2025.
“I chose W&M because of their strong family-like dynamic. I knew when I first got to campus that it was home. The team welcomed me with open arms and day one made me feel as though I was a part of the tribe. The coaching staff is a tight-knit and powerful group who make their swimmers better in and out of the water. The swimmers not only strive to be their best in the pool, but shoot for excellence in the classroom. Every single individual brings something valuable to the team and they are recognized. I cannot wait to call W&M my home, team, and family.”
Mills, hailing from Denver, Colorado is currently a senior at St. Mary’s Academy. Earlier this year, she helped St. Mary’s claim the Colorado High School Athletic Association (CHSAA) Girls 3A State Championship title, contributing individual victories in both the 100 butterfly (55.70) and 50 freestyle (23.74) en route to scoring a perfect 48 points. At that competition, she also was a member of St. Mary’s winning 400 freestyle and 200 medley relays, playing a pivotal role in her school’s victory.
At the club level, Mills represents the University of Denver Hilltoppers, where she holds USA Swimming Futures cuts in both the SCY and LCM editions of the 100 butterfly and the 50 freestyle. A proud member of the Cowlitz Indian Tribe, Mills was also selected to participate in USA Swimming’s 2023 National Diversity Select Camp alongside some of the top swimmers in the country.
Best Times (SCY):
- 100 butterfly: 55.70
- 50 freestyle: 23.69
- 100 freestyle: 52.74
- 200 freestyle: 1:54.69
With her times in the 100 butterfly and 50 freestyle, Mills will be right in the mix when she arrives at William & Mary. In the 100 butterfly, her best time of 55.70 would rank her 4th on the roster this season. The Tribe currently have one of the best 100 butterfliers across all of the Division I mid-majors in freshman Lindsay Juhlin, so Mills will have ample opportunity to train with top performers. In addition, Mills’ time in the 50 freestyle would rank her 3rd on the roster at William & Mary this season, making her a valuable addition to the 200 freestyle relay as well. For her third event, Mills could target the 100 freestyle, giving her even more relay potential in the 400 free and 400 medley down the road.
At the 2024 Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) Championships, the Tribe women finished 3rd with a total of 1107 points. Despite loosing many top recruits when the team was cut and then later reinstated back in 2020, the program has bounced-back in recent years. At the 2024 Championships, junior Ellie Scherer won 3 events to lead the Tribe women, with the women’s 400 medley relay also taking home a gold medal.
With her commitment, Mills is set to join Sammy Randell, Abby Emrich, Haley Lehman, Charlie Scogna, and Sara Wells in William & Mary’s class of 2028.
If you have a commitment to report, please send an email with a photo (landscape, or horizontal, looks best) and a quote to [email protected].
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Colorado
Colorado weather: Blowing snow in the mountains Monday, frigid cold in Denver Tuesday
Snow is falling in the mountains Monday morning and more is on the way, according to the National Weather Service.
The light snow falling Monday in Colorado’s mountains won’t lead to much new accumulation, NWS forecasters said. Still, gusty winds expected in higher elevations could cause blowing snow and white-out conditions for drivers on mountain passes.
NWS forecasters expect mountain ranges and passes above 10,000 feet to get between 2 and 6 inches of snow between Monday and Tuesday, according to a Hazardous Weather Outlook.
Light snow is possible in Denver on Tuesday before 11 a.m., but little to none of the flakes will stick in the metro area, forecasters said.
Less than an inch of accumulation is expected for the metro area, if any, according to NWS snow forecasts.
With or without snow, the cold front will bring frigid temperature highs in the mid-30s to the metro on Tuesday, forecasters said.
Denver will see multiple days of warm, sunny weather later this week, but a second snowstorm is expected to move into Colorado late Saturday or Sunday, forecasters said in the Hazardous Weather Outlook.
How much snow will fall ahead of Thanksgiving travel, how long it will last and whether it will stick to the mountains or spread across the Front Range and Eastern Plains remains unknown, forecasters said.
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Colorado
NFL Draft Analyst Questions if Colorado QB Shedeur Sanders Is Elite
Unlike last year when the draft class seemed loaded with first-round talent at the quarterback position, such has not been the case this year, where really only three players–Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders, Alabama’s Jalen Milroe, and Miami’s Cam Ward–are being mentioned as potential first-round draft picks.
That’s not good news for the New York Giants, who, if they have their eye on any of those three, probably need to be high up in the draft in order to have a chance of getting their guy over, say, a competitor also in need of a quarterback.
Of those three quarterbacks, one who has been drawing much criticism has been Sanders, the son of NFL Hall of Famer (and Colorado head coach) Deion Sanders. Dane Brugler of The Athletic is the latest college draft scout analyst to weigh in with the opinion that Sanders is as good as being advertised.
“I don’t have the conviction that this is a guy you can plug in and all of a sudden, he is going to lead my team to wins,” Brugler told Nate Tice of Yahoo! Sports for the Football 301 podcast.
“I am not impressed by the physical traits. He is 6-1, 210 as best. His arm is B-level. I think in terms of quarterback style, he reminds me of Jordan Love without the high-end physical traits–they backpedal and throw off their back foot.”
The comparison to Love isn’t necessarily a bad thing, and Brugler conceded that Sanders isn’t a bad quarterback, adding that the young man is a phenomenal athlete. Brugler’s hesitation comes with the question of whether Sanders is a plug-and-play signal caller who can win immediately.
“There’s a quarterbacking style that he has that Jordan Love can get away with, but I don’t think Shedeur can get away with it at the next level,” Brugler said.
“I want to see him go up against a defense that I respect. The two best defenses that he went up against were Kansas State and Nebraska, both losses, and both games where I thought that Shedeur did not handle himself the best.”
Brugler added that Sanders takes too many sacks, noting that some of the sacks are on the quarterback and not the offensive line and adding that Sanders has to have a better pocket presence and awareness.
To Brugler’s point, Pro Football Focus has Sanders as being responsible for 29.6% of the pressures directly tied into the quarterback as opposed to the offensive line. That is the third most among college quarterbacks who have taken at least 20% of 144 dropbacks and second-most among quarterbacks projected to be in the 2025 draft class, behind Houston’s Donovan Smith (30.0%).
“He’s not a bad athlete; he’s a good athlete. He takes too many sacks, and a lot of these sacks are placed on the quarterback. The offensive line will be brought up a lot during the draft process,” Brugler said.
“It’s only going to get tougher against NFL speed. I think Shedeur is a good quarterback, but I have plenty of concerns about how it’s going to work at the next level.”
One thing Brugler did say which was a positive toward Sanders is he is a tremendous athlete and a good player. Sanders boasts an impressive 72.4% completion rate and has 27 touchdowns, second most among the projected 2025 draft class (behind Miami’s Cam Ward).
“Any conversation about Shedeur is not, ‘Is he good enough?’ He’s clearly a good player,” Brugler said. “His poise, his accuracy, and his toughness. Those are all things you can point to and say, yeah, they will work in the NFL.”
Brugler concluded by saying while Sanders is a great athlete, he is not comparable to his father when it comes to athletic ability.
“Shedeur grew up watching his dad, this elite athlete, do these different things,” Brugler said. “Shedeur thinks he has some of that in him and it’s not even close,” Brugler said, declining to mention that father and son played different positions.
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