Dr Aleš Musar receives an Honorary Award from a Ukrainian university

On 12 September in Lviv, Dr Aleš Musar, First Gentleman of Slovenia, received the Ivan Bobersky Honorary Distinction — the highest distinction of the Ivan Bobersky State University of Physical Culture and Sport.

The distinction was awarded for his work in preserving and promoting cultural heritage that connects the histories of Slovenia and Ukraine.

Professor Ivan Bobersky was a prominent Ukrainian educator, organiser of physical education and one of the founders of the Ukrainian tradition of physical culture and sport. For his contribution to the development of Ukrainian sport, he became known as the “father of Ukrainian sport”. He was also a leader of the Sokil movement in western Ukraine, a Ukrainian patriot and one of the leaders of the West Ukrainian People’s Republic, which he represented in the United States and Canada.

After the Bolsheviks’ victory, Bobersky could not return to Ukraine. He initially remained in the United States, and in 1932 moved to Tržič, Slovenia, his wife’s hometown. There, he worked as a correspondent for Ukrainian émigré newspapers, including during the 1936 Berlin Olympics. He died in Slovenia in 1947, leaving behind around 40 boxes of manuscripts, newspaper clippings, photographs and other materials. The archive is now held by the National and University Library of Slovenia and, nearly 80 years later, much of it is only now being systematically studied.

The university’s highest distinction, which it ranks above an honorary doctorate and honorary professorship, recognised Dr Musar’s role in bringing attention to the need for systematic research into Bobersky’s archival legacy preserved in Ljubljana.

At Dr Musar’s initiative and with his support, representatives of the Lviv university conducted systematic research into Bobersky’s archival heritage at the National and University Library of Slovenia in August and September 2026, as part of the project “Historical Residencies 2.0: The Ukrainian Factor in the History of Famous Victories”.

The research and classification of Bobersky’s archive will provide scholars in Lviv with new insights into his life and work in exile. It will also enable the National and University Library of Slovenia to process the materials and incorporate them into its public and digital collections.

Through this work, Bobersky’s legacy is becoming not only an important subject for further academic research, but also a living historical bridge connecting Ukraine and Slovenia.