Ternopil (AP) – Dmytro Pidrutschnji looks tired in his military uniform. Less than two weeks after taking part in the Winter Olympics in Beijing, the former biathlon world champion from Ukraine is suddenly defending his country at the front.
“I’m currently in my hometown of Ternopil, serving in the National Guard of Ukraine. This photo was taken during the air raid,” the 30-year-old wrote on Instagram.
If Russia hadn’t attacked Ukraine last week and wasn’t waging war, Pidruchnyy would be in Finland right now. The third to last World Cup of the season begins in Kontiolahti on Thursday with the women’s relay. But in the first races after the Olympics, nothing will be the same as before. The skiers of Ukraine have declared their season over. In addition to Pidrutschnji, other compatriots are defending their homeland, including a relay Olympic champion from 2014 in Julia Dschima.
“I am grateful to everyone who writes to me and worries about my family and to those who support and help Ukraine,” Pidruchyi wrote on a portrait photo showing him with a helmet and military clothing. It is not the first time that the 2019 pursuit world champion has reported from the combat zone in the west of the country.
“I beg you to help us!”
“Don’t tell me that sport and politics have nothing to do with each other. They have to do with each other when soldiers and civilians are dying in my home country while you’re reading this,” Pidruchnyi wrote on Instagram on Saturday and asked for financial help the Ukrainian army: “I beg you to help us! I beg you, don’t stay away!”
Pidrutschni has received a lot of encouragement for his efforts. “Stay strong,” said former German world champion Benedikt Doll on Pidrutschnji’s post. “We are all with you,” added Italy’s Thomas Bormolini. Norwegian Olympic champion Tiril Eckhoff wrote: “Take care and stay strong.” In addition, many rivals left behind hearts in the national colors of Ukraine, yellow and blue.
The death of a young biathlete, who, according to the world association, fell in a fight, caused great dismay. The 19-year-old was considered a great talent and had to pay for his efforts with his life. “That’s one too many. Stop the war,” demanded Johannes Thingnes Bö, the four-time Olympic champion in Beijing. The Ukrainian association wrote martially about the terrible news: “Heroes don’t die.”
Russians and Belarusians are also missing
If World Cup points are at stake again in Finland by Sunday, the Russians and Belarusians will also be absent. The biathlon world association IBU announced on Wednesday that all athletes from both nations would not be allowed to compete until further notice. In addition, at the latest at the regular board meeting on March 17, a possible suspension of the IBU membership of the two national federations should be discussed.
The IBU thus tightened its measures after it had been decided the previous week that biathletes from Russia and Belarus would at least have been allowed to compete under a neutral flag at the remaining three World Cups. In response to this, the Russian and Belarusian teams had already declared that under these circumstances they no longer wanted to start at the remaining stations in Finland, Estonia and Norway this winter. They should not have been allowed to enter Estonia after the start of the war anyway. Norway had also announced that they did not want to have them in Oslo.
The situation surrounding the Ukrainians is also a big issue in the German team. “I’m employed by the Bundeswehr myself. I can only begin to imagine how they must be doing. We couldn’t have imagined in our worst dreams that something like this would happen,” said individual Olympic champion Denise Herrmann in ” Focus on Sport” of the Bavarian Broadcasting Corporation. Together they consider how to set an example: “We definitely want to help.”