"Young athletes in northern Ukraine spend their days cross-country skiing through a scorched forest, focused on their form until a siren inevitably shatters the silence. They respond swiftly but without panic, ditching their skis and following coaches to an underground bomb shelter. It's an ordinary training session at the complex that produced Ukraine's first Olympic medallist. Sleeping children no longer dream of Olympic glory in the facility's bombed-out dormitories, and unexploded ordnance has rendered nearby land off limits."
"But about 350 kids and teens some of the nation's best young cross-country skiers and biathletes still practise in fenced-off areas amid the sporadic buzz of drones passing overhead, then explosions as they're shot down. We have adapted so well even the children that sometimes we don't even react, Mykola Vorchak, a 67-year-old coach, said. Although it goes against safety rules, the children have been hardened by the war."
"War has taken a heavy toll on Ukrainian sport. Athletes were displaced or called up to fight. Football matches are often interrupted by air raid sirens, so attendance is capped by bomb shelter capacity. Elite skaters, skiers and biathletes usually train abroad, with attacks and frequent blackouts shuttering local facilities. But the government-run Sports Ski Base of the Olympic Reserve is open for cross-country skiing and biathlon, the event which combines skiing with shooting."
Young athletes in northern Ukraine train cross-country through a scorched forest and respond to sirens by moving to an underground bomb shelter. Around 350 children and teens, including top young cross-country skiers and biathletes, practise in fenced-off areas despite nearby unexploded ordnance and bombed-out dormitories. Drones buzz overhead and explosions occur when they are shot down. Coaches note children have adapted psychologically and often do not react to attacks. War has displaced athletes, called some up to fight, and shuttered local facilities, forcing elites to train abroad. The government-run Sports Ski Base of the Olympic Reserve in Chernihiv remains open for skiing and biathlon.
Read at www.aljazeera.com
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