Ukrainian brothers team up in tennis

Zvyagelskiy. That's how you spell it. Of course, Vadim and Miroslav have seen their last named spelled many different ways, many different times - almost always wrong.

It was even spelled wrong on the official state Class A championship tennis bracket.

"It was always wrong," Miroslav said in an interview last week. "I got used to it throughout the year."

The Ukrainian brothers took fourth in doubles at the state tournament last month. Not bad, considering they didn't even start playing tennis until Vadim was a freshman at Columbia Falls.

Whose the better tennis player?

"He is," Miroslav said, pointing to his brother.

The two were born in the port city of Illichivsk, on the Black Sea. When Vadim was two and Miroslav was one, they moved to the United States. Their parents, Luda and Peter, are devout Pentecostal Christians and were seeking religious freedom, Miroslav explained. They also have two younger sisters, Victoria and Angela.

While they're Ukrainians, they speak fluent Russian. It's the language of the house, the brothers said. The boys didn't learn to speak English until they entered grade school in Oregon. They later moved to Montana, first Kalispell and then Columbia Falls for junior high.

The elementary years were "tough," Miroslav said, as they tried to learn a new language. Today, they're bilingual, a skill that could prove useful later in life.

The brothers speak in Russian when they play, which helps with strategy, Vadim noted.

"The other players don't understand us," he said.

Vadim graduated with honors from Columbia Falls this year, while Miroslav will be a senior next year. Miroslav also is an accomplished trumpet player with the Columbians jazz band. Vadim plans on pursuing a nursing career, while Miroslav is likely to go into engineering.

Miroslav said he's not sure if he'll play doubles or singles in his senior year. If he plays doubles, it could be with Parker Johnson, the lone singles player from Columbia Falls to qualify for state this season.

"We'll see how the season goes," Miroslav said.