Valeriy Chybineyev

Valeriy Viktorovych Chybineyev (; 3 March 1988 – 3 March 2022) was a Ukrainian sniper who served as commander of the sniper company of the 79th Air Assault Brigade and a member of the Main Directorate of Intelligence.

He took part in the War in Donbas from its very beginning in 2014, and fought to defend Donestk Airport. The following year he was awarded the Order of the Gold Star (Hero of Ukraine) for his actions during a combat mission in Avdiivka.

On his 34th birthday, Chybineyev was killed in the Battle of Hostomel during the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Early life and education Chybineyev was born on 3 March 1988 in Berdiansk, Zaporizhzhia Oblast. His parents died while he was young and he was subsequently raised in an orphanage. and at as a child reamed of becoming a reconnaissance paratrooper.

After 9th grade Chybineyev attended the Zaporizhzhia Regional Military Sports Lyceum Zakhisnik and became cadet of the Intelligence Faculty of the Military Academy Since his cadet years he developed a love of sports and reading, especially historical literature. In this battle, he was armed with a .50-caliber Barrett rifle. He positioned himself right on the roof of a bus stop and took up a firing position. During the engagement, he managed to fire about 100 armor-piercing rounds. All the Russian BMDs stopped at the Hostomel checkpoint bore holes caused specifically by Valeriy’s sniper rifle..His death was reported on the afternoon of 3 March 2022,

Personal life and legacy In December 2016, Chybineyev was named by the Kyiv Post as one of the "Top 30 Under 30" young leaders in Ukraine. In a subsequent interview, he stated that he wanted to establish a sniper school.

His brother Roman, commander of an airborne assault platoon of the 79th Brigade, had died in the war in eastern Ukraine in 2019, and Chybineyev was buried at Berkovets cemetery next to his grave.

In the cities of Chernivisti and Kyiv, streets were renamed in his honor. In 2024, a 30-minute documentary film about his life was premiered on Ukrainian Independence Day.