Marta Zaynullina (born 30 July 1990) is a Russian Paralympic cross-country skier and

biathlete The biathlon is a winter sport that combines cross-country skiing and rifle shooting. It is treated as a race, with contestants skiing through a cross-country trail whose distance is divided into shooting rounds. The shooting rounds are not ti ...

. She represented

Russia at the 2014 Winter Paralympics Russia competed as the host nation at the 2014 Winter Paralympics in Sochi, held between 7–16 March 2014. Russia's tally of 80 medals is the highest total ever recorded. The previous record was held by Austria with 70 medals in 1984. In Decemb ...

which was held in her home nation and competed in the

cross-country skiing Cross-country skiing is a form of skiing whereby skiers traverse snow-covered terrain without use of ski lifts or other assistance. Cross-country skiing is widely practiced as a sport and recreational activity; however, some still use it as a m ...

and

biathlon The biathlon is a winter sport that combines cross-country skiing and rifle shooting. It is treated as a race, with contestants skiing through a cross-country trail whose distance is divided into shooting rounds. The shooting rounds are not ti ...

events. She claimed a bronze medal in the women's 1km sprint sitting classic event during the

2014 Winter Paralympics The 2014 Winter Paralympics (), the 11th Paralympic Winter Games, and also more generally known as the Sochi 2014 Paralympic Winter Games, were an international multi-sport event for athletes with disabilities governed by the International Par ...

. She also competed as a neutral athlete in the

2018 Winter Paralympics The 2018 Winter Paralympics (), the 12th Paralympic Winter Games, and also more generally known as the PyeongChang 2018 Paralympic Winter Games, were an international multi-sport event for athletes with disabilities governed by the Internation ...

Biography

Marta Zaynullina was born on the 30th of July, 1990 in

Nizhnekamsk Nizhnekamsk (, ; ) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city in Tatarstan, Russia, located to the south of the Kama River between the cities of Naberezhnye Chelny and Chistopol. Population: History As its population increased, spurre ...

as a twin child just a few minutes after her twin brother's birth. At the age of 14, she was found to have a

Malignant tumour Cancer is a group of diseases involving Cell growth#Disorders, abnormal cell growth with the potential to Invasion (cancer), invade or Metastasis, spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Po ...

in her hip which eventually caused amputation to her legs. She was advised by the fellow Russian Paralympic cross-country skier, Irina Polyakova to take the sport of Paralympic cross-country skiing who later went onto become an official coach to Marta Zaynullina.

Honours

Zaynullina has received several awards for her performance in the winter Paralympic games. She was given the

Order for Merit to the Fatherland Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to: * A socio-political or established or existing order, e.g. World order, Ancien Regime, Pax Britannica * Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood * H ...

class II in 2014 in recognition of her achievements at the 2014 Paralympics. In 2018, she received two further honours for her performance in the 2018 Winter Paralympics: the Order "For Merit to the Fatherland" class I and award from the

Republic of Tatarstan Tatarstan, officially the Republic of Tatarstan, sometimes also called Tataria, is a Republics of Russia, republic of Russia located in Eastern Europe. It is a part of the Volga Federal District; and its capital city, capital and largest city i ...

References

External links

* 1990 births Living people Russian female cross-country skiers Russian female biathletes Paralympic cross-country skiers for Russia Paralympic biathletes for Russia Cross-country skiers at the 2014 Winter Paralympics Cross-country skiers at the 2018 Winter Paralympics Biathletes at the 2014 Winter Paralympics Biathletes at the 2018 Winter Paralympics Medalists at the 2014 Winter Paralympics Medalists at the 2018 Winter Paralympics Paralympic bronze medalists for Russia Sportspeople from Nizhnekamsk Skiers from Tatarstan Paralympic medalists in cross-country skiing Paralympic medalists in biathlon 21st-century Russian sportswomen {{Russia-wintersport-bio-stub