Biathlon: Victoriia Metelia, a tragedy narrowly avoided
Banished from world biathlon two and a half years after the start of their country’s war in Ukraine, Russian athletes train and compete at home or in Belarus, a friendly nation also suspended by the authorities.
That hasn’t stopped the emergence of young talent. Among them is Victoriia Metelia, who turned 21 last spring. Although she didn’t make any international starts before Russia’s suspension, she did win a national summer relay bronze medal a few weeks ago in Krasnoyarsk (Russia).
Also Russia’s top junior last winter, she spoke to the Russian Biathlon Federation (SBR) website. It was an opportunity for Victoriia Metelia to reveal how close she came to having an arm amputated in her youth.
“I broke my arm and my elbow was badly damaged, she says. The doctors had very little hope, telling my parents that amputation was probably the only option.”
Modelling alongside her career as a biathlete
The family of the future biathlete finally found a clinic in Moscow (Russia) that was able to look after Victoriia Metelia, who stayed in hospital for three months. “During all that time, I was in plaster, my arm had already started to wither and turn black in the truest sense of the word. But the doctors operated on me and I was able to save it,” she explains.
After this mishap at the age of 7 or 8, Victoriia Metelia had to undergo rehabilitation for many months. “In the end, my arm doesn’t bother me, it’s as if nothing had happened,” she says with satisfaction.
Alongside her career as a biathlete, the young woman born in Gagarin (Russia), in the Smolensk oblast, is a model.
- Russian biathlon stars out in force at the Ugra Ski Marathon
- How has Russia managed the participation of its athletes in the Paris 2024 Olympic Games?
