How Ukrainian Paralympians Pushed Through Fear and Worry

By day, athletes raced and trained. By night, they spent time on their phones, connecting with loved ones under attack in Ukraine. Most of the athletes said they could not sleep from the worry and fear, and when they showed up to race, the mental strain was visible on their faces, and in their subdued demeanor.

Still, on the first day of competition, Ukrainians set the tone by winning three gold medals in biathlon and seven medals in total, including a sweep of the men’s vision-impaired sprint. They barely celebrated.

Medal ceremonies became both somber and uplifting moments, as athletes and observers alike were overcome by emotion and admiration. It was difficult to imagine what the skiers, like the silver-medalist Oksana Shyshkova, were thinking as they received their medals underneath Ukraine’s blue and yellow flag, or how they managed to focus on racing.

“All of us have families back there,” Shyshkova said. “We just don’t know what to do. We’re really scared.”

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/12/sports/olympics/ukraine-paralympics-beijing-russia-war.html