Less than two weeks ago, Dmytro Pidruchnyi was competing at the Winter Olympics in Ukraine’s national colors. Now he’s wearing a military uniform and ballistic…
Less than two weeks ago, Dmytro Pidruchnyi was competing at the Winter Olympics in Ukraine’s national colors. Now he’s wearing a military uniform and ballistic helmet. Pidruchnyi is a world champion in biathlon, which combines skiing and shooting, and a three-time Olympian. He returned home from Beijing last week just before Russia launched its invasion of his country. “I’m currently in my hometown Ternopil serving in the National Guard of Ukraine,” he posted on Instagram on Tuesday under a picture in uniform. “This photo was taken during air alarm.” Pidruychnyi also made a memorial statement for Yevhen Malyshev, a 19-year-old former athlete on Ukraine’s junior biathlon team. The exact circumstances of Malyshev’s death are unclear, but the International Biathlon Union said Wednesday he “died this week serving in the Ukrainian military.
