Paralympic notebook: Ukraine's medal haul, hockey rivalry renewed, skier's pressure

It was the athletes who stepped up to make a difference at the beginning of the Beijing Paralympics.

In the shadow of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) chose to sanction Russian and Belarusian athletes by removing them from the medal table and referring to them strictly as neutral athletes. Any reference on their uniforms to their country would be removed.

Less than 24 hours after that decision, the IPC reversed course and banned the Russian and Belarusian teams altogether. 

The difference? Athletes from across the world threatening withdrawals that would severely hamper competition, in addition to animosity in the Athletes' Village.

Ukraine has both reached more podiums and won more gold medals than any country except the hosts.

It hasn't been easy for the athletes, either.

"Every morning, they call their mother, father, grandmother, daughter and wait for an answer. And they are so afraid that they may not get a response," said Ukraine's Paralympic chief.

A biathlete was recently forced to withdraw from the Games when her father was captured by Russian forces.

Perhaps the biggest American Paralympic star also has Ukrainian ties. Oksana Masters owns gold medals in four different sports across both the Summer and Winter Games.

In Beijing, Masters has two golds and one silver in three biathlon events.

The 32-year-old was born in Ukraine before being adopted by American parents and moving to the U.S.

Masters recently said on Instagram that she'd be donating her Paralympic prize money to support children living with physical impairments in Ukraine.

"I not only finally got to hold my dream, but I also am sharing parts of it with my home country of Ukraine especially for the young kids