Colby Konig

Olena Vasylenko was born and grew up in Berdyansk, Ukraine. The 24-year-old basketball player has now made her way to Canada and, through trial and tribulation, has made a career out of her beloved sport. Vasylenko started playing basketball when she was eight years old at her school in Berdyansk. On April 6, 2022, she had to flee Ukraine because Russia was invading, but she never wavered on her love for basketball and her passion to make a career out of the sport.

Vasylenko’s Start Up

Vasylenko played on the U16, U18 and U20 Ukrainian national teams, as well as professionally in Germany and Ukraine, before making her way to Canada and debuting for the WolfPack in Kamloops, B.C. As she recalled her first basketball practices at age eight, she expressed feeling a sense of safety playing the sport, where her freedom could be found and she could have self-expression. When she left Ukraine and went to Germany, she started playing at Eigner Angels Nördlingen. By her second year there, she was an assistant coach as well as a head coach on a Regio team, at the same time as playing on the Eigner Angels team. After leaving Nördlingen, she went to Rostock, Germany, to play for the Rostock SeaWolves, as well as coaching the U12 and U16 programs. After spending time in Germany, she wanted to fulfill her dream of playing in Canada, and after some calls with the head coach of TRU women’s basketball, Scott Clark, she was on her way to Kamloops, B.C.

New Opportunities Arise

She landed in Kamloops in August 2025 and played her first season of U Sports basketball for the WolfPack while completing her master’s in education. She plans to reside in Kamloops for three years while completing her master’s degree. Olena has shown what it takes to make a career out of your sport and how your life can revolve around basketball. Every sacrifice she has made has paid off to make her dream come true.

Valuable Advice

When asked what advice she would give to younger athletes wanting to make a career out of their sport, she had plenty of advice. “It’s most important to work as hard as possible, be tough and follow instructions from your coach,” Vasylenko said. She also discussed the importance of being a good teammate, pushing everyone to get better every day and being a supporter of your teammates on and off the court. She explained the importance of confidence in sports and how, if you are not the most skilled on the team, listening to your coaches and being confident in what you do will get you the farthest.

Vasylenko Values Hard Work

Vasylenko has portrayed resilience in its utmost form. Through all the troubles that life has thrown her way, she has kept a sense of hard work and joy in everything she does. With her never-quit and team-first mindset, she has been able to make a career out of the sport that she loves the most, and it has given her the opportunities to see the world.