Paralympics 2026: Ukrainian athlete claims full medal set with historic hat-trick
Taras Rad (Photo: NPC Ukraine)
Ukrainian athlete Taras Rad continues to collect medals on the biathlon tracks of the 2026 Winter Paralympics. On March 13, he won a silver medal in the unique sprint pursuit (sitting class) event, according to the official competition results.
Making history
This medal was significant not only for Rad but also for the Paralympics as a whole, as the sprint pursuit event was held for the first time this year. With this result, Rad became the first-ever silver medalist in this program at the Games.
Rad confidently advanced through the qualifiers, securing third place and minimizing the gap with the leaders. In the final, he demonstrated excellent speed and accuracy, finishing just behind Kazakhstan’s Yerbol Khamitov, with a 21.5-second deficit from the gold medal.
In addition to Rad, two other Ukrainians finished in the top ten of this discipline. Vasyl Kravchuk and Hryhoriy Shymko put in strong performances, finishing eighth and ninth, respectively.
Complete medal collection
This silver is Rad’s third individual medal at the current Games, giving him a full set of medals:
-
Gold – classic sprint
-
Silver – sprint pursuit
-
Bronze – individual race
About Taras Rad
The 26-year-old para-biathlete and skier was born in the Ternopil region. He has been active in sports since childhood. At age 14, following an injury and infection, he had his lower leg amputated. Despite this, he returned to sports and became one of the leaders of Ukraine’s Paralympic team.
Rad was a champion at the 2018 Winter Paralympics in PyeongChang (biathlon, 12.5 km sitting). At 18, he was the youngest member of Ukraine’s team at the Games.
At the 2022 Beijing Paralympics, he won three medals – two silvers and a bronze – and he is also a multiple medalist at world and national championships.
Previously, it was reported that a Ukrainian Paralympic medalist won a medal with the help of artificial intelligence.
