Soccer is the favourite national sport, and the Ukrainian team, the Kyiv Dynamos, has ranked as one of Europe's top teams for decades. Ukrainians also enjoy volleyball, basketball, horse-racing and ping pong. Hiking and mountaineering are popular activities for all ages. Many Ukrainians also excel at winter sports. Some of Canada's best hockey players have been Ukrainian-Canadians.
People take camping vacations in the Carpathian Mountains or travel to the Black Sea coast for the warm weather, swimming and mineral springs. Music is enjoyed in Ukraine and many people are members of a singing group or a folk dance group. Ukrainian folk dancing is colourful and energetic. In Canada, it is sometimes possible to see folk dancing performed in Ukrainian national costume. Some of the dances, such as the hopak or the arkan, require great strength and agility from the male dancers. Women perform many dances that celebrate the traditions of Ukrainian life. Chess is also a popular game with Ukrainians.	Did you know? There are many circus troupes in the Ukraine. Kyiv Circus School trains circus performers in acrobatics.
Did you know? Ukrainian athletes won more than 190 individual or team gold medals during the period of Soviet rule. At the 1994 Winter Olympic Games in Lillehammer and the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Ukrainians represented their own country. Ukrainians have won medals in gymnastics, track and field and figure skating. The well-known skaters Viktor Petrenko and Oksana Baiul are Ukrainian.