Ukraine TV host who survived assassination attempt on Playboy cover
Author of the article:Brad Hunter
Published Aug 04, 2023 • Last updated 1 day ago • 1 minute read
Iryna Bilotserkovets, who survived an assassination attempt, is now on the cover of Ukraine Playboy. PLAYBOY
Iryna Bilotserkovets, who survived an assassination attempt, is now on the cover of Ukraine Playboy. PLAYBOY
A gutsy Ukrainian TV host who survived a Russian assassination attempt is now posing for the cover of Playboy.
Iryna Bilotserkovets is shown on the cover — the first Ukrainian issue of the magazine since January — wearing a metal bikini and eye patch after reconstructive surgery rebuilt her face.
She was hit by bullets while driving through Kyiv with her three children last year. Her husband is an aide to the city’s mayor, Vitali Klitschko.
The attack occurred on Feb. 26, 2022 — just three days after Russian troops flooded into Ukraine.
PLAYBOY
PLAYBOY
But while she survived the attack, Bilotserkovets went through months of harrowing medical treatment and reconstructive surgery in Germany. Doctors in Ukraine believed she was “probably going to die.”
Now, she is giving Russian strongman Vladimir Putin the middle finger.
“An eye missing, tubes sticking out everywhere, hair shaved off from surgery,” she told Playboy. “Stitches, scars, wounds everywhere; I was just Frankenstein’s monster. My jaw had shattered, like a twig.
“I no longer have a pretty face, but the rest of my body is beautiful.”
BOLSTERING THE TROOPS: Iryna Bilotserkovets, who survived an assassination attempt, is now on the cover of Ukraine Playboy. @bukanero101/TWITTER
BOLSTERING THE TROOPS: Iryna Bilotserkovets, who survived an assassination attempt, is now on the cover of Ukraine Playboy. @bukanero101/TWITTER
Not only did she lose an eye but her jaw was shattered and she was left with scars all over her body. Four operations later, it’s tough to complain. But in her most dire moments, she said she wasn’t worried about her looks: She wanted to survive.
“It was not a question of preserving my beauty; it was a question of whether I would live or not,” she said.
The Ukraine edition of Playboy said the brave mom now works for the country’s cultuual forces and puts on events for the troops. The skin mag entitled the edition: “Women Stay Strong.”
The mag said: “[We are looking at the] resilience of Ukrainian women who have been injured during the war but who have not lost their thirst for life.”
Proceeds from the sales will go towards buying medical supplies for the army.
bhunter@postmedia.com
@HunterTOSun
A gutsy Ukrainian TV host who survived a Russian assassination attempt is now posing for the cover of Playboy.
torontosun.com