The loneliness of an Olympic athlete training in wartime Ukraine through an AP photographer’s lens

Francisco Seco, based in Istanbul, enjoys making photos of daily life in cities around the world

Olympics Paris 2024 Hurdles for Ukraine (Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

Francisco Seco, based in Istanbul, enjoys making photos of daily life in cities around the world. This assignment, though, took The Associated Press photographer to Ukraine to document the toll Russia’s invasion of the country has had on the lives of athletes trying to train for the Paris Olympics, which starts next week. Here is what Seco had to say about making this extraordinary photo.

Why this photo

This photograph is part of a story about Ukrainian athletes who are going to participate in the Olympic Games this summer in Paris. Because of Russia's full-scale invasion, many athletes are training outside Ukraine, but high jumper Oleh Doroshchuk is doing his training in the city of Kropyvnytskyi in central Ukraine. The city has been bombed a few times since the beginning of the war.

Our AP team joined Oleh for two days during his training sessions. On the second day, he trained in an open-air stadium, surrounded by other young athletes. A couple of times he had to stop his training because of the sound of anti-aircraft alarms.

How I made this photo

When we arrived at the stadium, the light was still not the best. It was a sunny, blue-sky day and the light was still very strong for photos. I shot photos at ground level when Oleh was getting ready — stretching, warming up his muscles with small races, etc. As the training continued, the light began to improve, and I saw his long shadow casting on the ground. I knew it was the right time. There was an old metal tower in the training area. I climbed up it, so I could take photos from an elevated position and thus get a better angle to capture Oleh’s long shadow projected on the ground. I used my Sony A1 body camera and a Sony 24-70mm lens.

Why it works

I knew it was going to work, so I didn’t have to take many photos from the elevated position. I think it works for a combination of factors. I like this photograph because Oleh looks like he is suspended in the air. The shadow lengthens Oleh’s stride. The sunlight gives a warm scenario. At that moment, the stadium was almost empty, and I think you can “feel” the athlete’s moment of “loneliness” during a training session. He is an athlete who is training to try to win glory and to represent his country, which is being invaded.

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For more extraordinary AP photography, click here.