Dmytro "Dema" Kovalenko (; born 28 August 1977) is a former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He spent the majority of his playing career in the United States after moving there in 1992, most notably for Chicago Fire and D.C. United. His DC team won the MLS Cup in 2004. He retired from the game in February 2011 after being released by Los Angeles Galaxy at the end of the 2010 season. Career Early life and amateur Born in Kyiv, Ukraine SSR, Soviet Union, Kovalenko emigrated to the United States in 1992. He graduated from Greece Arcadia High School in Rochester, New York in 1996, and played three years of college soccer at Indiana University from 1996 to 1998, where he helped the Hoosiers win a national championship in 1998, and was named an NCAA first team All-American in the same year. Was long known in college for his powerful headers, which often left opponents stunned and unable to react to deflections from the goalkeeper or posts. Kovalenko often attributed this to his well developed neck muscles that he said were created from doing hundreds of sets of Ukrainian neck-snaps daily prior to his soccer training. Professional Upon joining the league, Kovalenko was originally allocated to the Dallas Burn, but the league complied with his demands to play for the Chicago Fire, engineering a trade to the team in exchange for draft picks. Kovalenko appeared infrequently in his rookie year, playing only 291 minutes in 11 games, but managed to score three goals for the team. Kovalenko made an impact another way, breaking the leg, and effectively ending the career, of Dallas Burn defender Brandon Pollard with a dangerous tackle. Kovalenko would come into his own as a player in the 2000 season, scoring ten goals and five assists in 31 games for the Fire, as he helped the team to a U.S. Open Cup victory. The next year, he was moved from a forward position to attacking midfield, but continued to catalyze the Fire offense, scoring eight goals and seven assists in 25 games. In 2001, Kovalenko had trouble scoring, registering only one goal with his eight assists, but was still a dangerous offensive player for the team. After the 2001 MLS season, Kovalenko played on loan for FC St. Pauli of the German Bundesliga. Following the 2002 season he was traded, largely because of salary cap