The Hard PartsThe Hard Parts

The United States' most decorated winter Paralympic or Olympic athlete tells how she overcame Chernobyl disaster-caused physical challenges through sheer determination and a drive to succeed to win the world's best in elite rowing, biathlon, cross-countryskiing, and road cycling competitions.
Oksana was born in Ukraine-- in the shadow of Chernobyl. She was born with one kidney, a partial stomach, six toes on each foot, webbed fingers, no right bicep, and no thumbs. Her left leg was six inches shorter than her right, and she was missing both tibias. Relinquished to the orphanage system, Oksana encountered numerous abuses. Then Gay Masters, an unmarried American professor, saw a photo of the little girl; she waged a two-year war to rescue Oksana from her circumstances. In America, Oksana was fueled by a drive to succeed that still smoldered from childhood. She triumphed in not just one sport but four: winning against the world's best in elite rowing, biathlon, cross-country skiing, and road cycling competitions. Now considered one of the world's top athletes, she is the recipient of seventeen Paralympic medals, the most of any US athlete of the Winter Games, Paralympic or Olympic. This is Oksana's journey. Her message to anyone who doesn't fit in: you can find a place where you excel-- where you have worth. -- adapted from jacket