Welsh Open: Ukrainian teenager Iulian Boiko into second round

A teenager from embattled Ukraine capital Kyiv has reached the Welsh Open second round in Newport.

Iulian Boiko, 16, beat 15-year-old Welsh amateur Liam Davies 4-3.

"It has been very difficult with such terrible things going on in your home country," said Boiko.

"It's really difficult to focus on your game, because the game is not bothering you, I just don't care because you realise there are things so much more important than that."

Sheffield-based Boiko trains at the Victoria Snooker Academy where the recent European Masters champion Fan Zhengyi and the UK Championship champion Zhao Xintong also practise.

While making his mark at Celtic Manor Resort, his thoughts are on Russia's military invasion of neighbouring Ukraine that began last Thursday.

"I can't do anything about it, but just keep fighting and playing and hopefully that my game will cheer people up back at home and make them a little bit more happier," he said.

Boiko says his family and friends are currently safe, but there is worry about their future.

He said: "They are safe for now but the city and the whole country is under attack and nobody knows what is going to happen next.

"It's a full scale war, it's terrifying."

His two brothers were on holiday and out of the country when the war started but Boiko remains in constant touch with his family and friends still in Ukraine.

"I'm phone all of my friends and family regularly especially friends in the heat zones of the war as I am really worried about them," he said.

"All Ukrainians people can see the support and they really appreciate it.

"I really appreciate it as I have got a lot of messages from people offering help or just supporting us and it means a lot during such tough times.

"It means everything."

Davies, 15 made a break of 127 in the second frame and led 3-0, but Boiko came back into the match winning the next four legs on the spin to make the second round.

Boiko said: "It took a switch at 3-0 to feel a little bit of pressure going over the line and I just relaxed and starting to play my game.

"But still until the very end I thought I was going to lose this match."

Boiko faces Mark Allen, who beat Ken Doherty 4-1 in the first round.

Boiko is not the only Ukrainian player in the UK, with World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) chair Jason Ferguson highlighting they are being looked after.

He says recent WPBSA world junior champion Anton Kazakov "is currently stuck here in the UK".

Ferguson added: "We have a number of Ukrainian players in the UK and we made it our job to locate every single player, player's representative or coach here and we have located everyone and know everybody is well.

"We are left we three other Ukrainian players in the UK and we now are housing them Sheffield which includes that they are being cared for at one of the academies, where they can train and carry on playing snooker.

"Snooker is a very close, tight family wherever we are in the world and we want to look after our own."

Sign up to My Sport to follow snooker news on the BBC app.