Ukraine's Mahuchikh: 'The most difficult year of my life'

Yaroslava Mahuchikh had a simple answer when DW asked about her aspirations for 2023 during a conversation last month.

"My goal for this year is not crying," the Ukrainian high jumper responded with a laugh.

After what she called "the most difficult year of her life" amid Russia's invasion of her country, Mahuchikh, 21, is back to doing what she does best. The Olympic bronze medalist from Tokyo 2021 has yet to lose an indoor high jump competition this year and is the only woman in 2023 to clear 2.0 meters (6 feet, 7 inches) multiple times.

Most importantly of all, she is representing her country when Ukraine needs representation most.

A year of triumph and tragedy

The year 2022 was both the best and the worst year of Mahuchikh's life.

It was a year where she won a gold medal at the World Indoor Championships in Belgrade, Serbia, a silver medal at the World Championships in Eugene, Oregon and another gold at the European Championships in Munich, Germany.

It was a year where she jumped an outdoor personal best of 2.05 meters at a Diamond League meet in Brussels, Belgium, attempted a world record 2.10 meters and earned a nomination for World Athletics Female Athlete of the Year.

But it was also a year that saw her home city of Dnipro bombarded with Russian rockets, a year in which she spent a majority living and training away from home, separated from loved ones.

Mahuchikh was in Dnipro when the war began and, after staying briefly with her coach, Tatyana Stepanova, in the nearby town of Sukhachivka, both traveled three days by car to Belgrade, Serbia, arriving a week before the Indoor Championships.

"All Ukrainian people will remember the day, February 24, when the war started, when Russia came to our territory," Mahuchikh told DW.

"I think about my journey to the World Championship indoor one week before competition. We did this long journey to compete, and we had a great season."

Mahuchikh 'an ambassador for Ukraine'

As an Olympian, Mahuchikh had lots of experience representing her country on an international stage, but when Russia invaded her country, she seized an opportunity to proudly stand for her people.

When she competes, Mahuchikh often sports blue and yellow eyeliner during competitions. She also speaks openly and assertively when asked about the war back home.

"I understand that I am an ambassador for Ukraine," Mahuchikh said. "For me, it's nice that I can do this, that I can speak with journalists and show that Ukrainian people never give up."

The strength she has portrayed has also come with a dose of vulnerability.

Her coach Stepanova, who also trains top high jumper Iryna Gerashchenko, admitted that, though they remain strong, the war has made its impact.

"It is very hard to bear, but we manage," Stepanova told DW. "We are a strong nation. We want to show that we can win — not only in sports but also in the war."

A long-awaited homecoming

When Mahuchikh left Dnipro shortly after the war began, she was unsure when she would be able to return to the city, located in central Ukraine.

She spent most of the year in Erlangen — a town just north of Nuremberg in Germany — in housing set up by her sponsor Puma.

In December, after 10 months abroad, Mahuchikh, Stepanova and others were finally able to return home over the New Year's holiday. Mahuchikh especially remembers how happy she was to see the Dnipro railway station.

"I went to the city smiling because my mind needed it to give me energy," Mahuchikh said. "To be at home, it's the best way to recover."

Her mother, sister and niece had joined her in Germany, but her father and grandmother remained in Ukraine. Even with occasional video calls on her cellphone, being apart took its toll, and she relished finally being able to reunite with them.

"It was really difficult. Sometimes I cried in the room," Mahuchikh admitted. "When I went to Dnipro, I hugged my father, I hugged my grandmother, and ... ," she said, pausing and then touching her chest, " ... in the heart, really."

Mahuchikh was once again able to train at home with Stepanova, and in early January the two traveled to Lviv where Mahuchikh opened her indoor season, jumping a world-leading 2.02 meters.

"It was better to prepare at home," Stepanova said. "Yaroslava trained there with sparks in her eyes. It is very difficult to wander all over the world, living sometimes in one house, sometimes in another."

But despite the warm homecoming, the war was never too far. On the day of the competition in Lviv, a Russian air strike hit a multi-storey building in Dnipro, killing 46 people and injuring 80 more — 11 people are still considered missing.

Mahuchikh: Russian athletes 'don't exist in my life'

Now based in Belgium, Mahuchikh is happy to be competing again and, though the Paris Olympics are still more than a year away, she has a lot to look forward to, most notably the World Championships in Budapest in August.

It remains unclear whether she will compete alongside Russian and Belarusian athletes, with the International Olympic Committee yet to decide their fate after recommending a blanket ban last year. Early in her career, she developed a rivalry with Russia's Mariya Lasitskene, who won gold in high jump in Tokyo.

Mahuchikh told DW that she has no contact with Russian athletes and is firmly against them competing while the war continues.

"They died for me, really. They don't exist in my life like before since February 24," she said. "Ukrainian athletes and Ukrainian sportspeople will do everything possible so that Belarusian and Russian athletes don't compete internationally because Russia is a terrorist state."

Stepanova admitted that she didn't really speak with her Russian and Belarusian counterparts before the war but does not want to speak with them now. "I don't think I'll even look their way after what they've done."

Mahuchikh said another goal she has this year is one she shares with all Ukrainian people: "The end of the war and [our country] winning."

Maksym Drabok contributed to this report.

Correction: A previous version of this story said the World Championships in August were in Belgrade, which has now been corrected to Budapest.

Edited by: James Thorogood