From Olympic hero to victim of war in 16 days

KYIV • Sixteen days earlier, Oleksandr Abramenko was in China, celebrating his silver medal – the only medal of any kind won by Ukraine at the Beijing Winter Games.

A top aerialist in freestyle skiing, a five-time Olympian and the country’s flag-bearer for the opening ceremony, he garnered even more attention after the event, when a photograph of him hugging a Russian rival was widely circulated.

The picture with Ilia Burov went viral, with the bronze medallist then saying “the Olympics are not about politics and are, first and foremost, about sports”.

The hashtag titled: “The hug between Russian and Ukraine athletes” also earned over 150 million views, with many then hoping it was a signal of peace.

On Friday night in Kyiv, Abramenko, 33, was hiding in the parking garage of his apartment building with his wife, Alexandra, and their two-year-old son Dmitry.

Thousands of people have been attempting to flee the city, leading to large crowds and chaos at Kyiv’s main train station as Ukraine’s military said Russia’s primary objective was to encircle the capital, over a week into the invasion.