Ukrainian Paralympians defiant despite war's impact

PARIS: Two years of war in Ukraine has taken its toll on its people, including those preparing for the Paris Paralympics, such as triple world champion swimmer Danylo Chufarov, who told AFP it has had a "massive impact" on his health.

Ordinarily Chufarov, fellow swimmer Mykhailo Serbin - only 20 but already a Paralympics gold medallist - and 2016 Paralympic fencing champion Andrii Demchuk would be spearheading Ukraine's bid to emulate their third place in the medals' table eight years ago.

However, these are extraordinary times when even training normally is a challenge.

Chufarov, 34, eventually escaped with his wife Yaryna from the city of Mariupol before it was taken by the Russians, but it came at a high personal cost: "Our house was destroyed in fire, as well as the house where I grew up," he said.

Chufarov and Serbin have remained in Ukraine while Demchuk says he has "less time to train" but has accepted an invitation from a club in Warsaw and the Polish national team too.

Chufarov rediscovered his old form - he won a silver and bronze medal at the 2008 Beijing Paralympics - to dominate in the worlds at Manchester last year.

However, he says the memories of what he experienced in Mariupol remain with him.

He and his wife "repeatedly came under artillery shelling, and also found ourselves in buildings hit by various types of weaponry".

"The main goal of each new day was to stay alive," he told AFP.

"That period had a massive impact on our health.

"It was associated not only with stress and constant psychological overload but also with insufficient sleep, little food, and a lack of drinking water.

"During that time, all thoughts were focused solely on survival.

"Those who managed to survive became different people, and this