An Olympic Misha

This is Misha the Bear, the official mascot of the 1980 Moscow Olympics. So then, why is this seen in Kiev? In 1980, Moscow and Kiev were both part of the same country, the USSR. But again, why Kiev? These weren't the Kiev Olympics.

While during every Olympic Games, there is one official host city, certain events are often held a long distance away. For example, the 1996 Atlanta Games had events in Miami and Washington DC. During the 1980 Games, Kiev was one of the host cities for football (soccer) competitions.

This is one of three Olympic Misha's still found in and around the Kiev area, that I'm aware of, but this is the best maintained of the group.