Ukrainian veterans took part in a 20-kilometer race in the Belgian city of Brussels. Among the ten athletes who represented our country, there were wounded fighters with prostheses and wheelchairs.
45 thousand people came to the start of the sports event. Our veterans took part in the race and covered such a long distance to draw the attention of Europe to Ukraine. The publication mrpl.city writes about it.
The indomitable Ukrainian fighters aimed to remind the world that brutal and unjustified Russian aggression continues, and that our country still needs support and help. In addition, they tried to draw attention to the problems of rehabilitation, recovery and socialization of defenders after injuries.
Participant of the marathon, veteran Roman Kashpur on the air of FREEDOM stated that he aims to encourage severely wounded soldiers to “get out of bed”, find strength and motivation to do sports. After all, this can not only contribute to rehabilitation, but also gives a chance to go abroad and demonstrate to the whole world one's strength and indomitability.
A crowd of thousands is running, all in the same breath, all in the same rhythm, all of you are on the same emotions. And you simply dissolve in this crowd and already forget that you are a veteran with or without a limb. You combine with a part of society, society combines with you. This is brotherhood, mutual support, he noted.
Veteran Yuriy Kozlovsky told Radio Liberty journalists that for him participation in the race is an opportunity to once again remind the world about Russia's war against Ukraine, in which “people are constantly suffering”:
Ukraine remains indomitable despite all the challenges. And with the help of the whole civilized world, we will definitely win, – a confident defender.
During the race, the Ukrainian military collected funds for aid for the Armed Forces. Veterans Roman Kashpur and Yuriy Kozlovsky are not the first to overcome such a distance in Brussels. The two of them are adaptive athletes with prostheses, they were injured even before the start of a full-scale war.