Ukrainian basketball player Volodymyr Ermakov died at the age of 17 in Dusseldorf (Germany) after being stabbed on Saturday evening, the Kyiv Basketball Federation reports.

Basketball Photo: Michael Sullivan/CSM/Shutterstock Editorial/Profimedia

17-year-old Volodymyr Ermakov was fatally stabbed in Dusseldorf

Artem Kozachenko, Yermakov’s ART Giants U19 teammate, is being treated in hospital in Essen after he was also attacked. His condition is stable, nothing threatens his life.

“Before the match, young basketball players were attacked with knives on the street because they are Ukrainians,” the Basketball Federation of Ukraine quotes European Truth.

Teammates of the two Ukrainians spent the night in the hospital, but doctors were unable to save Yermakov.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine reported that the German police detained the murderer. According to reports on social networks, two athletes were attacked by a group of Arab migrants.

“According to available information, the police have already detained the perpetrator. Investigations are ongoing. The Consulate General in Dusseldorf has already held talks with the Chief of Police in Essen.

The consuls emphasized the need for a quick investigation and bringing the perpetrator to justice,” Ukrainian MFA spokesman Oleg Nikolenko wrote on Facebook.

Ermakov, born in 2006, played for the Ukrainian national team at the U16 European Championship in Bulgaria (2022).