The Paralympic Games are aimed to show that even facing difficulties one should not give up. If you try to cope with them, everything can turn for the better. Those who work hard and lucky enough can see a little of the world and even get to the top of the Olympus.
       We have already got used to the victories of the Bashkir Paralympic sportsmen. In Vancouver, the process medal-winning did not stop as well. Irek Zaripov from Bashkortostan was the first to win the gold medal. He won the pursuit among the sportsmen with musculoskeletal diseases. The Ukranian Yuri Kostyuk took the second place and the American Andy Sule was the third.
       Zaripov shared his emotions with "All Sport" sports information agency:
       "I was all geared up for the victory before the start. For biathlon and for pursuit in particular. So, it was very successful. Why did I miss my aim at the second shooting? I was too agitated. You won't believe but I don't even remember now which mark I missed. Will you tell me? (laughing)
       My head is in such a muddle now! Only emotions and nothing else. I missed the mark, but I knew that I had a certain advantage. I don't want to boast, but my skiing is very fast. And, of course, I could afford one miss. Do you know why I am so confident? The point is that in previous starts I always compensated my misses with skiing. This time leaving the second shooting, I saw my immediate persecutor Seryozha Shilov going to serve his penalty lap. At that moment, I understood that I won. I just flew the last 800 meters!"
       On the next day after this success, Zaripov distinguished himself in 15 km ski-race and took another gold medal. The silver medallist of the 15 km race was Roman Petushkov from Russia. The Italian Enzo Maciells took the bronze.
       Here is what Zaripov told about himself:
       "Like all boys I used to play basketball and football in school. In 2000, when I was 17 I drove a motorcycle and got run over by a lorry. After the accident, I kept at home and did nothing for two years. Then my mother and father told me 'Stop it! Look at yourself'. I had 93 kilograms in weight. Now my weight is 65 kilograms. I am from Sterlitamak (Bashkortostan). There is a strong society of the disabled in our republic headed by Rustam Batyrov. So, in 2003 I joined this society and started to go in for different sports - track and field athletics, weight lifting, swimming, table tennis... I started to take part in the regional competitions. In 2004, I became the member of the republic's track and field athletics team. On the Russian championship, I got acquainted with Irina Gromova, our head coach on ski-race and biathlon. She advised me to address Amir Gumerov in Bashkortostan. That's how I started to work with both of them. In 2005, I got to the Russian team and went to the laps of the world cup. On the Paralympic Games in Turin I was the fourth..."
       Another Bashkir Paralympic sportsman Kyrill Mikhailov did not fail to keep up with Zaripov. He devoted his gold medal in 3 km biathlon pursuit to his elder five-year-old son. His second gold medal in 20 km ski-race was devoted to his younger son.
       We managed to talk to Andrey Strokin, the five-time Paralympic champion, head of the department of Paralympic and Non-Olympic Sports of the RB Highest Sportsmanship School. He told BASHvest that these four medals would probably not be the last ones.
       "Our republic sent three sportsmen to the Games. There will be more starts ahead. Both Zaripov and Mikhailov will have three starts at the very least. They will be most probably taken to the relay race. Our experienced sportsmen Irek Mannanov from Belebei will soon join the competition."
       "So, you think there will be still more gold medals, don't you?"
       "One can hardly predict anything in the Olympic and Paralympic Games."
       "Are you impressed with the current result?"
       "Two our sportsmen won two out of six gold medals for Russia. This result speaks for itself."
       "Where do Bashkir Paralympic sportsmen train themselves?"
       "In Belebei. Their coach is the Honoured Coach of Russia Amir Gumerov."
       Photo is taken from the website www. rezeptsport. ru.