Staff Sergeant Boris Korolyov, codenamed Boris, was killed on 8 May 2022 on the grounds of the Azovstal steelworks in Mariupol. A Russian aerial bomb struck the bunker where hundreds of soldiers were sheltering. He was 53 years old.
Boris was born in the village of Pavlopil in the Mariupol district. He attended the local school and went on to study at a vocational college in the village of Sartana. From 1984 to 1987, he served in the Soviet Army in Ukraine. He was then stationed in the Khabarovsk Krai until May 1989, and spent the following seven months serving in the Vietnamese city of Cam Ranh.
In civilian life, Boris worked as a machine operator in the mechanisation workshop at the Ilyich Mariupol Metallurgical Plant, and later as an excavator operator at the ‘Azovintex’ design and construction company.
‘My brother took part in the defensive fortification of Mariupol. From 2014 onwards – that is, from the start of the Russian invasion – he helped marines from the 36th Brigade, who were based in the villages of Hnutove, Talakivka and Zoria, to dig shelters using an excavator. In February 2015, in the village of Lebedynske, he dug dugouts for the ‘Azov’ fighters. In the summer of that same year, he volunteered with ‘Azov’. Subsequently, the director of ‘Azovintex’ provided machinery to help fortify Mariupol’s defences. “From that time onwards, Boris officially began serving in the regiment based in Urzuf,” said his brother Pavlo.
On 30 January 2022, Boris Korolyov left the army, but rejoined the forces five days before the full-scale invasion. According to Pavlo, his brother received a phone call telling him there was a high probability that the Russians might attack soon.
The brothers last saw each other on 25 February near the main entrance to the Azovstal plant.
“Boris was a very good man. He was honest and couldn’t stand lies. He has a daughter whom he loved dearly. On 17 April 2018, he became a grandfather when his daughter gave birth to a baby girl. My brother had only seen the little one on his phone screen, so he dreamed of meeting his granddaughter and daughter. But, sadly, that never happened,” said Pavlo.
During his lifetime, Boris Korolyov was awarded the President of Ukraine’s medal ‘For Participation in the ATO’ and the ‘ATO Veteran’ medal. Posthumously, he was awarded the Order ‘For Courage’, 3rd class.
As of now, he has not been buried – his family are still awaiting confirmation of a DNA match.
Boris is survived by his daughter Daria, his granddaughter Lisa, his brothers Serhiy and Pavlo, his sister Svitlana, and other relatives.
At 9.00 am — a nationwide minute’s silence. The Donetsk Regional State Administration and the ‘Memorial to the Heroes’ platform are commemorating the fallen defenders from the Donetsk region.