Using artificial intelligence, IT experts have brought to life six deceased Ukrainian athletes.
The central figure of the campaign is boxer Maksym Halinichev, who died on the front lines of Russia's war against Ukraine last year at the age of 22.
Other young athletes featured include cyclist Anastasiia Honcharova, fencer Fedir Iepifanov, weightlifter Oleksandr Peleshenko, swimmer Nikita Zasiadko, and soccer player Mykola Zhydkov.
All of them lost their lives in the war, their dreams of Olympic glory crushed by Russia's brutal invasion.
With the consent of their families, they now tell their stories as AI athletes at the Olympic Games.
Emotional moments in Paris
The Revived was presented for the first time by the Ukrainian Ministry of Youth and Sports and the Brand Ukraine organisation at an event in the Olympic Village in Paris last week.
The AI avatars of the fallen athletes were created based on photos and video footage provided by their families, with AI tools generating lifelike characters.
The initiative is designed to commemorate the dreams and hopes of the fallen athletes and draw attention to the impact that ongoing wars have on sports.
'They might have become Olympic champions'
"We honor our fallen athletes in a respectful and innovative way," said Tim Makarov, Head of Content & Digital at Brand Ukraine.
"Ukraine loses young and talented men and women every day due to the war," he added. "They might have become Olympic champions or Nobel Prize winners. That is why we created The Revived: We want to draw attention to the ongoing suffering."
Serhil Bykov, spokesman for the Ukrainian Ministry of Youth and Sports, highlighted the significant social and political roles played by athletes, including both Olympic champions and those whose sports dreams were abruptly ended by war.
'Ukrainian victims are not just numbers'
Frank Hahn, Chief Creative Officer at TeamBBDO, which developed the campaign, said: "It is important to us that the Olympic Games also send a powerful message of peace. To this end, we used a unique AI technology that makes it possible to bring dead athletes back to life and tell their story in an extremely moving, credible and emotional way."
Inna Tabachenko, a copywriter at the BBDO Germany agency, said: "People hear a lot about the horrors of war, and sometimes the many reports can be numbing. We want to remind people that the Ukrainian victims are not just numbers—they are faces, voices, hearts and dreams."
For more information, visit ukraine.ua.
(gs)
Source: ukraine.ua, tvn24.pl
