Ivan Gennadievich
Tsevun
1998-2022
Ivan Gennadievich Tsevun served as the senior mechanic-driver of a T-72B1 tank in the 3rd Tank Platoon, 1st Tank Battalion, of the 163rd Guards Tank Regiment, 150th Motor Rifle Division, 8th Guards Combined Arms Army, Southern Military District. He held the rank of Guards Private and was posthumously awarded the title of Hero of the Russian Federation. He was born on December 19, 1998, in the village of Smeloe, the Oktyabrsky District, the Amur Region. Tsevun finished high school in 2016 in the nearby village of Koroli. In the same year, he entered the Arsenyev branch of the Far Eastern Federal University (formerly Primorsky Aviation College) and completed his studies in 2020 with a specialization in aircraft manufacturing. After being conscripted into the tank forces in the Khabarovsk Territory in 2020, Tsevun opted to continue his service on a contract basis with the 163rd Guards Nizhyn Red Banner Tank Regiment, 150th Motor Rifle Division, Southern Military District. On February 24, 2022, he took part in a special military operation as part of a mission to defend the Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics. On March 7, 2022, Tsevun’s crew-commanded by Senior Lieutenant Damir Islamov and including gunner Damir Gilemkhanov- were engaged in an assault on a fortified position near Zolote, the Severodonetsk District, LPR. The tank inflicted significant damage on enemy forces, neutralizing a fortified firing point and eliminating up to ten personnel. During the battle, the tank was ignited by incendiary rounds, but the crew managed to move the vehicle out of range, extinguish the flames, and continue their mission. The crew later faced five enemy tanks, managing to destroy four of them; however, the fifth tank inflicted a critical hit on their T-72B1, resulting in the death of the entire crew. On March 25, 2022, the President of the Russian Federation posthumously awarded Guards Private Ivan Gennadievich Tsevun the title of Hero of the Russian Federation for his courage and heroism in the line of duty. His Golden Star Medal was presented to his family on July 12, 2022, during a memorial ceremony. The high school in Koroli, where Tsevun studied, now bears his name; its Junior Army unit and the local Youth Army chapter in the Oktyabrsky District also carry his name. A commemorative plaque was installed on the school building, and an annual children’s wrestling championship in Blagoveshchensk is dedicated to his memory.
Address: Moscow, Victory Park
