Ukrainian President Zelensky has won praise after refusing offers from Western governments to spirit him and his family out of the country to safety, despite being named as targets ‘one and two’ on Putin’s kill list.
Standing by his side is his wife, Olena Zelenska, 44, an architecture graduate turned comedy writer who, like her husband, remains steadfast in the face of Russian aggression.
‘I will not have panic and tears,’ the mother-of-two wrote on Instagram in the hours after the first attacks. ‘I will be calm and confident. My children are looking at me. I will be next to them. And next to my husband. And with you.’
It marks yet another remarkable turn in the life of the country’s reluctant First Lady.
While Zelensky, 44, has long courted publicity as an actor and comedian, Olena spent decades out of the spotlight, choosing to support her husband behind-the-scenes. Indeed, when her husband first told her of his plans to leave his career to run for president, she said publicly that she was ‘aggressively opposed’ to the ‘project’.
And yet, when the time came for him to campaign, Olena dutifully appeared by his side for photo ops and campaign speeches. Now, less than three years after Zelensky’s landside victory, the mother-of-two has fully embraced her role as a First Lady on the global stage.
She accompanies her husband on his engagements and is forging her own career as a First Lady of action, using her influence and position to champion causes including childhood nutrition and gender equality.
The Vogue cover star has also won plaudits for her wardrobe and decision to fly the flag for Ukrainian fashion.
Constant support: Olena Zelenska with husband Volodymyr Zelensky and their children, Oleksandra and Kyrylo
Fashionable First Lady: Olena (in 2021; 2019) has been praised for her sleek wardrobe that champions Ukrainian designers
On the world stage: Prince William and Kate welcome Volodymyr Zelensky and Olena to Buckingham Palace in 2020
Cover girl: Olena appeared on the cover of Vogue Ukraine months after her husband became president and used the platform to introduce her plans to campaign for better school meals. Legislation has since been introduced
By his side: Olena was initially reluctant for her husband to enter politics but has risen to the role of Ukraine’s First Lady
Despite her high profile, little is known about Olena’s start in life.
She was born in May 1978 to her mother Olha Kyiashko, in Kryvyi Rih, a Russian-speaking region that was then part of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic.
Volodymyr was born in the same year and the same town but, despite attending the same school and having mutual friends, did not meet his future wife until they were both students at Kryvyi Rih National University.
Academically gifted, Olena had won a place to study architecture at the Faculty of Civil Engineering, while Volodymyr studied law.
Reports suggest Olena, who is attractive with high cheekbones and glamorous blonde locks, was dating another man when she was first introduced to Volodymyr in 1995.
Despite being just 17, Volodymyr already had his sights set on a future career as a comedian.
Comedy careers: After meeting at university, Olena decided to support her husband’s pursuit of a career in comedy and became a writer for his troupe and production company. His most famous role was as a teacher-turned-politician on hit TV series Servant of the People. Pictured, Zelensky (left) with his fellow cast members in the show
On the rise: Olena with her husband at his campaign headquarters during the second round of the election in April 2019
Political underdogs: Olena stepped into the spotlight to appear alongside her husband during his presidential campaign
Voting: Volodymyr Zelensky and his wife Olena Zelenska at the polling station during the parliamentary election
Early engagements: The couple at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo, weeks after the election and with the Pope in February 2020
He was part of a local comedy troupe that took part in national competitions and found early acclaim. By 1997, at the age of 19, Volodymyr and his peers had won a national title.
That same year he established a new team, Kvartal 95, which performed across Ukraine. Olena was brought on as a writer.
At the same time, romance was blossoming between Volodymyr and Olena and in 2003, after eight years of dating, the couple wed.
Volodymyr’s comedy career went from strength to strength but Olena stayed largely out of the spotlight, shying away from the red carpet and media appearances.
She gave birth to their daughter, Oleksandra, in July 2004, and their son, Kyrylo, in January 2013.
Zelensky’s most famous role is hit Ukrainian TV series Servant of the People, a political satire that debuted in 2015 and went on for three seasons.
Perfectly poised: Olena and Zelensky (left) with President Macron of France and his wife Brigitte in April 2021
Style icon: Olena, who is known for her polished separates and sleek dresses, flies the flag for Ukrainian designers
Speaking out: Olena delivers a speech at an environmental conference in Kyiv in February 2020
It tells the tale of a history school teacher’s ‘tirade against government corruption’, which goes viral, with Zelensky’s character Vasyl Petrovych Holoborodko soon finding himself sitting the president’s seat.
In a true case of life imitating art, in 2018, Zelensky announced his candidacy for the president and won overwhelming support for his anti-establishment ticket.
The decision thrust publicity-shy Olena into the public eye.
‘Frankly speaking, I aggressively opposed the start of this project,’ she told a local television station. ‘Because this is a very difficult move; it’s not even a project, it’s another direction in life.’
She explained her husband initially consulted with members of his inner circle to ‘protect’ her from the details of his political life before committing to the decision.
Like his character, Zelensky ran on an anti-corruption campaign and trounced the pro-Russia incumbent by taking 73 percent of votes.
Poroshenko lost to the television star across all regions of the country, including in the west where he traditionally enjoyed strong support.
It was an extraordinary outcome to a campaign that started as a joke but struck a chord with voters frustrated by poverty, corruption and a five-year war.
At his campaign HQ, as the exit polls came out, Zelensky said: ‘I will never let you down. While I am not formally president yet, as a citizen of Ukraine I can tell all post-Soviet countries: ‘Look at us! Everything is possible!’
Olena rose to the challenge and threw herself into her new role as First Lady. She announced her first initiative in a Vogue Ukraine cover shoot just two months after her husband came to power: an overhaul of school meals.
The mother-of-two was successful in introducing legislation to improve the nutritional quality and variety of food, noting proper nutrition was key for a child’s development, health and overall wellbeing.
Other projects have included introducing Ukrainian audio guides in leading museums around the world to improve the profile of the language and campaigning for greater accessibility for disabled citizens.
Another cornerstone of Olena’s work has been women’s rights. She initiated Ukraine’s accession to the G7 international initiative on gender equality, the Biarritz Partnership, and has promoted the Ukrainian Women’s Congress, a platform that works towards equal rights.
Now Olena is once again rising to the challenge and has remained a steadfast support of her husband in the face of Putin’s aggressions. Despite being personally at risk, the couple have chosen to remain in Kyiv.
Sharing a photo of the Ukrainian flag on Instagram on Friday, she wrote: ‘My dear people! Ukrainians! I’m looking at you all today. Everyone I see on TV, on the streets, on the Internet. I see your posts and videos. And you know what? You are incredible!
Meeting world leaders: The Ukrainian President and First Lady with President Erdogan of Turkey in February 2022
Taking a stand: Olena, speaking in December and June 2021, uses her platform to champion causes close to her heart
‘I am proud to live with you in the same country! It is said that many people are a crowd. This is not about us. Because many Ukrainians are not crowds. This is an army!
‘And today I will not have panic and tears. I will be calm and confident. My children are looking at me. I will be next to them. And next to my husband. And with you. Love you! I love Ukraine!’
Yesterday she shared a photo of a baby born in a Kyiv bomb shelter, along with the rousing message: ‘This was to take place in completely different conditions, under peaceful skies. It is what children should see.
‘But the main thing is that despite the war, there were doctors and caring people on our streets next to her. She will be protected and defended.
Family: The President and First Lady with their daughter, 11, and son, eight, in a delightful family photo shared on Instagram
‘Because you are incredible, dear compatriots! In those two days, you all became an army. In the subway, bomb shelters, with children and pets (because you don’t leave younger brothers either) – you do your job, you have time to take care of others, to help each other.
‘Get together on social media to protect homes and help lonely neighbors. Offer your home to those who need shelter. You prepare food for the terrorists and sign up for it yourself. Donate blood for soldiers and victims. Report the movement of enemy vehicles.
‘And, of course, you are helping the Armed Forces, which are fighting on all fronts. For days, you can spend “eSupport” money to help the army (this can be done in the “Action” application). We are the army, the army is us.
‘And children born in bomb shelters will live in a peaceful country that has defended itself.’
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