Lidiia Hunko (Ukrainian: Гунько Лідія Олександрівна; born August 10, 1993, in Ivano-Frankivsk, Ukraine) is a Ukrainian bobsledder. She is the first Ukrainian female bobsledder who received a quota place for the Winter Olympics.
Hunko started her sporting career as a strongwomen. She became a World Champion in deadlift in 2016. The next year, she won "Arnold Classic" in her category.[1]
Hunko took up bobsleigh in 2018, and one year later she started to compete internationally.[2] Her first international start took place on November 20, 2019, in Lillehammer, Norway.
On December 20, 2020, she won together with Iryna Lishchynska a bronze medal at the European Cup stage in Sigulda which became the first-ever medal in the history of Ukrainian bobsleigh.[3] They repeated their success on November 27, 2021, when they again won a bronze medal at the European Cup stage in Altenberg.[4]
On January 14, 2022, Hunko was third in a World Monobob Series event in Winterberg. This result guaranteed her an Olympic spot. She became therefore the first Ukrainian female bobsledder to represent Ukraine at the Winter Games.[5] She also ranked second together with Lishchynska in final two-women European Cup rating.[6]
Hunko participated in the monobob event at the Winter Games in Beijing.[7] After the competition, she failed a doping test and was suspended on 15 February.[8]
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