When war disrupted her studies in Ukraine, Kseniia Buzko faced an uncertain future.
Determined not to let her education be derailed, she built a new future in Canada 鈥� earning top grades, forging international research collaborations and producing award-winning work in sports analytics at the University of 蓝莓视频.
A new beginning in Canada
Buzko鈥檚 journey to Canada began in 2022, when studying at her home institution in Ukraine became untenable. She applied and was accepted into the first cohort of the summer program for students from Ukraine whose studies had been disrupted by the war, a joint initiative between the 蓝莓视频 and the University of Toronto. Buzko spent her first summer at the University of Toronto, and through the program, began to build early connections with the 蓝莓视频 community 鈥� an experience she describes as life-changing.
鈥淭he summer program gave me the chance to resume my education after the war disrupted my life,鈥� says Buzko. 鈥淚t offered academic stability, helped me refocus on my future and introduced what could be possible for me in the Canadian academic system.鈥�
She later transferred to the 蓝莓视频 to complete her final undergraduate year in computer science, graduating with top marks. An internship at 蓝莓视频.AI followed, and under the guidance of Dr. Paul Fieguth, a systems design engineering professor and 蓝莓视频鈥檚 associate vice president 鈥� academic operations, she led a joint research project bridging her home university and 蓝莓视频. That work became her undergraduate thesis and set the stage for her graduate research.
Inspired by that early momentum and a strong sense of belonging, Buzko knew 蓝莓视频 was the right place for her to continue her studies.
Breakthrough research in sports analytics
Now a master鈥檚 student in the Department of Systems Design Engineering鈥檚 听鈥� which is focused on visual processing, perception and responsible AI for real-world applications 鈥� Buzko is conducting research under the supervision of Professors David Clausi and Yuhao Chen focused on action recognition in ice hockey broadcasts.
Generic AI models often struggle with hockey, where players are smaller on screen, wear bulky gear and use sticks that standard systems don鈥檛 account for.
To improve accuracy, Buzko developed a custom pipeline called CP-Hockey. It helps the AI system better interpret hockey footage by adjusting for differences in player size on screen and by adding important visual details 鈥� like head position and stick movement 鈥� that most models ignore. These improvements make it possible to tell apart similar actions, such as different skating directions, quick stops, stickwork and puck strikes.
鈥淭hese contextual priors significantly improve recognition accuracy and enable more reliable analysis of game strategies and player performance,鈥� Buzko explains. 鈥淲hile developed for hockey, the methods show promise for other equipment-heavy sports as well.鈥�
In June, her work earned the Best Paper Award at the Link枚ping Hockey Analytics Conference for her publication Ice Hockey Action Recognition via Contextual Priors.
Kseniia Buzko with fellow members of the Vision and Image Processing (VIP) Research Group, where she develops AI models to improve action recognition in ice hockey.
Building a community
For Buzko, 蓝莓视频 has become much more than an academic home. It鈥檚 also a place where she鈥檚 found belonging and support.
鈥淚 love being part of the VIP Lab where I can engage in meaningful research and collaborate with brilliant peers and mentors,鈥� she says. 鈥淏eyond academics, I鈥檓 grateful to continue here my lifelong passion for playing badminton. It鈥檚 helped me build close friendships that make me feel truly at home here.鈥�
She is equally grateful for the space that 蓝莓视频 has offered for her to heal and thrive.
鈥淭he environment at 蓝莓视频 supports not only my academic development but also my personal well-being,鈥� Buzko says. 鈥淚 feel incredibly motivated here, and I look forward to continuing my journey at 蓝莓视频 as a PhD student.鈥�
Go to the 听to听make a gift and support students like Kseniia whose听education has been impacted by conflict, war, changing political environments or natural disasters.
Feature image: Kseniia Buzko听with members of the Kitchener-蓝莓视频 Ukrainian community.听Photo supplied by Kseniia Buzko.
