Why Ukrainian war veteran amputees are coming to an Oregon ski resort

https://www.oregonlive.com/pacific-northwest-news/2025/03/why-ukrainian-war-veteran-amputees-are-coming-to-an-oregon-ski-resort.html

Why Ukrainian war veteran amputees are coming to an Oregon ski resort

Published: Mar. 10, 2025, 2:28 p.m.
By The Associated PressHaley Nelson | For The Oregonian/OregonLive

HOODOO SKI AREA — Ukrainian war veteran Oleksandr Shvachka lost his left leg to Russian tank fire outside Kyiv. Three years on, the latest step in his physical and mental rehabilitation recently unfolded under a brilliant blue sky on a snow-covered mountain more than 5,000 miles (8,047 kilometers) away.

Shvachka, 38, was one of five Ukrainian veterans who came to Oregon for ski lessons this month with Oregon Adaptive Sports, an organization working to make sports more accessible to people with disabilities.

On a recent day, he listened attentively to an instructor before launching himself down a slope at Hoodoo Ski Area in central Oregon, leaning on two hand-held “outriggers,” which resemble forearm crutches with short skis at the ends, for turns and balance as he picked up speed.

Shvachka was wounded in the village of Makariv outside the capital of Kyiv in March 2022, shortly after Russia invaded Ukraine the previous month. He said skiing on the mountain was an “amazing emotion.”

“It’s a new experience, and I’m so happy,” he said.

The Oregon city of Corvallis has been sister cities with Uzhhorod in western Ukraine for over 30 years. Its sister city association is hosting the veterans, some of whom have been recovering in Uzhhorod’s rehabilitation hospital, as well as two Ukrainian ski coaches, association co-founder Carol Paulson said.

… more …

Video at link