Every day in my country people are dying, animals are dying, buildings are being destroyed, sports buildings, civilian buildings," explains the 30-year-old athlete, recalling in particular a children's hospital he visited himself.

After his first training session at the Bercy Arena in France - interrupted in Ukraine by shelling and daily reports of civilian casualties - and ahead of the first qualifying event on Saturday, Vernaiev made it clear that his "first commitment" was to sport, but warned that "we are not here just for sport" and how difficult it is to train and compete knowing what is happening back home.

Verniaiev, who won gold on the bars and silver in the all-around at the Rio Games eight years ago, knows that the better the team's results, the bigger the platform to get his message across.

There is more member of Ukraine team thinking about war: heptathlon Olympic champion, Nataliia Dobrynska left Ukraine after the invasion to care for her three young children.

Ukraine

The situation in the country is far from ideal when it comes to preparing for such an important event. Training sessions are often interrupted. All this has contributed to the fact that the delegation is much smaller than in other editions. 

The 140 athletes representing the country at Paris 2024 will be the smallest and least numerous delegation in history. All of them are finalising their training for the Paris Olympic Games, but always under special security conditions, given the extreme demands of the war.

According to the Ukrainian Olympic Committee, more than 400 professional athletes have died in combat since February 2022, while many others have suspended their careers to join the Army.

The composition of the Ukrainian delegation in Paris is as follows:

Athletics: 25
Football: 8
Diving: 9
Rowing (kayaking and canoeing, slalom rowing): 9
Wrestling (freestyle and Greco-Roman): 9
Rhythmic gymnastics: 6
Academic rowing: 6
Sports gymnastics: 6
Tennis: 6
Shooting (ball and bench): 6
Fencing: 6
Swimming: 5
Judo: 5
Cycling (highway + mountain bike): 4
Boxing: 3
Breaking: 3
Modern pentathlon: 3
Table tennis: 3
Rock climbing: 2
Artistic swimming: 2
Archery: 2
Badminton: 1
Weightlifting: 1

Russian

Russian athletes, as well as athletes from Belarus, will be at the Paris Olympic Games only as neutral individual participants and with numerous restrictions: no flags and the medals won't be for their country.