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A year after the start of the war: Ukrainian sports stars: heroes, ambassadors, fighters

A year after the start of the war: Ukrainian sports stars: heroes, ambassadors, fighters

A year after the beginning of the war, the situation remains difficult for current and former top athletes in Ukraine. Some serve their homeland locally, others as unofficial ambassadors at competitions.

The Russian war of aggression has also radically changed the lives of Ukrainian athletes. A look at the fate of six people:

Yaroslava Mahuchich: At the beginning of the war, the 1.81 tall high jumper was woken up by bombs in her home in eastern Ukraine. She hid in the neighboring village. Training took place in a hall over the following days – repeatedly interrupted by howling sirens. She sought shelter in cellars. At the beginning of March, she and her friend and trainer set off on an arduous car journey to the World Indoor Championships in Belgrade, where she won gold. She showed the world that Ukrainians are strong and would not give up, but she could have screamed at the award ceremony, said the Olympic bronze medalist. She dreams of the end of the war and victory of Ukraine.

Mykhailo Romanchuk and Maryna Bech-Romanchuk: According to a report by “Volksstimme”, the couple have been reunited for a few days. For months, the swimmer and the long jumper and triple jumper were in different places. He trained at SC Magdeburg, she kept fit elsewhere in Europe. Bech-Romantschuk won European gold in the triple jump last summer. First and foremost, she jumps for her country, for her family, her boyfriend and the coach, she said at the time in Munich. Only then does she jump for herself. Now both are in Magdeburg. There Mychajlo Romantschuk is preparing for the coming highlights together with Olympic champion Florian Wellbrock. The 2024 Olympics in Paris is the common goal.

Vladislav Heraskevich: “It’s not Putin’s war, it’s Russia’s war,” Heraskevich told the German Press Agency. The 24-year-old skeleton driver would therefore no longer race against Russian athletes. Heraskevich’s voice carries weight: at the Olympics on February 11, 2022 – shortly before the Russian attack – he held a piece of paper in front of the camera. “NO WAR IN UKRAINE,” it said. No war in Ukraine. Since then, Heraskevich has been considered a political mouthpiece, he collects donations and organizes relief supplies – including with the German luge star Felix Loch. The two have been good friends since the summer, and Heraskevich spent Christmas with Loch and his family. There was raclette and a lot of Bavarian sausage, reported the skeletoni and summed it up: “Very good food, very nice people, that was a pleasure.” But he would rather celebrate next Christmas at home in Kiev – without a war.

Dmytro Pidruchnji: The Ukrainian biathlete can now pursue his sport again. He dedicated his strong individual races at the World Championships in Oberhof to his compatriots. “It’s important for me, for our country, for our people who are at war. Glory to Ukraine, glory to the heroes,” Pidrushnyi said. Almost exactly a year ago, the 31-year-old returned to his homeland immediately after the Russians invaded and served as a soldier for a good three months. Less than 14 days after his last Olympic start in Beijing, the 2019 pursuit world champion sat exhausted in a basement with a steel helmet on his head while his fellow competitors were still fighting for World Cup points. “I think about the war every day, many of my friends were at the front, some have already died,” said Pidruzhnyi in Oberhof and reiterated that he rejects the return of Russian athletes: “The war is not over and I think it is would be a big mistake for the Russians to return to the sport.”

Sergej Stachowski: In January 2022, the 37-year-old was still holding a tennis racket at the Australian Open, two months later a gun at home. The four-time ATP tournament winner joined the territorial defense in the Ukrainian capital of Kiev as a volunteer. He brought his family with his three children to Budapest. “I know I can die and I’m ready to do whatever it takes,” Stachowski told ZDF. The ex-athlete, who caused a huge surprise with his second-round victory in Wimbledon against Roger Federer in 2013, above all wants to raise his voice in the war. He speaks out clearly against the decision of the players’ associations ATP and WTA to let Russian and Belarusian tennis professionals start under a neutral flag. “I wish the tennis and sports community would realize: more needs to happen! Banning Russian athletes is not against the athletes. It’s against the system.”

Source: Stern

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