The war in Ukraine continues to claim victims in world sports.
Alina Pergodova, the young weightlifting star who dreamed of representing her nation at the Olympics, was killed in a Russian shelling over the weekend in the city of Mariupol.
Pergodova was considered one of the best young weightlifters in the country, having already won the Ukrainian Under-17 Championship in the women's under 40 kg category even though she was under the maximum age of three years.
In Mariupol, 14-year-old weightlifter Alina Peregudova and her mother were killed by Russian shelling.
pic.twitter.com/Iq5gAn8mgW
- Iuliia Mendel (@IuliiaMendel) April 29, 2022
Julia Mendel, a spokeswoman for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zalansky, posted the sad news on Twitter with a picture of the athlete, accompanied by a soul candle.
"In Mariupol, 14-year-old weightlifter Alina Pergodova and her mother were killed in a Russian shelling," Mendel wrote.
This is the first active athlete killed in the war, when five other athletes were killed including Ukrainian champion Sambo Artem Freemenko, who died in the heavy bombing carried out on Sumy, along with his father, mother, grandmother and two brothers, the world kickboxing champion, Maxim Kegel, killed during the fighting in the city .
In addition, 21-year-old footballers Vitaly Safilo, who played for the youth team of the Karpati-Lvov team, and Dimitro 'Dima' Martinenko, who played for the regional FC Gostomel team, and 19-year-old biathlon athlete Yabhan Malishev were also killed.
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