Ukrainian sprinter forced to flee home 'so grateful' for help in Ireland

17-year-old Mark Inuwa was forced to flee his home city of Zaporizhzhia in southeast Ukraine and he travelled first to Moldova and then Romania before arriving in Dublin last month

5 April 2022; Mark Inuwa stands for a portrait before a training session as Athletics Ireland and Crusaders AC welcome Mark Inuwa from Ukraine at Crusaders AC in Dublin. Photo by Sam Barnes/Sportsfile

Ukrainian sprinter Mark Inuwa has said he is “so grateful to everyone” who helped him since arriving in Ireland last month. The 17-year-old was forced to flee his home city of Zaporizhzhia in southeast Ukraine and he travelled first to Moldova and then Romania before arriving in Dublin last month.

“Zaporizhzhia was quite calm before I left,” he said. “But I could still hear explosions and shots as the line of fire got closer.”