This isn’t Ukrainian athlete Tetyana Melnyk’s first time participating in the Olympic Games. The track and field sprinter and hurdler has previously represented her country at the games in Japan in 2020 and Brazil in 2016, even winning fifth spot for the 400m relay that year.
However, this year’s games, scheduled to begin in Paris on 26 July, are unlike any other she has had to prepare for. For one, much of her training over the last two years took place against a backdrop of explosions and air alarms. “In 2016 and 2020, when I participated in the Olympic Games, the situation was completely different,” Melnyk says. “Back then, we could focus solely on preparation and performances. We had the support of our coaches and the safety of home. Unfortunately, this year everything has changed drastically due to the war in Ukraine.”
Since the start of a full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, sports have taken a backseat for many athletes. Melnyk, who hails from the central Ukrainian province of Kirovohrad Oblast, explains: “Many of our sports facilities have been destroyed or damaged, and we don’t have access to full training infrastructure. Our coaches and support teams are scattered around the world, as some have left the country for the safety of their families.”
Shockingly, 479 Ukrainian athletes have been killed in combat and several thousand more are listed in the army or on the frontlines. As a result, Ukraine is only sending 140 participants to this year’s Games – the smallest team in the country’s history.
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