Doctors are preparing six veterans of the SVO with prosthetics to conquer Elbrus

A group of veterans of the special military operation (SVO) will soon set off on an ascent to the top of Mount Elbrus. Medical specialists will accompany the participants along the entire route — the safety and health of the fighters remain a priority.

Six participants with prosthetic legs have been strictly selected as part of the Time of the Strong project and are preparing to climb Mount Elbrus. According to the organizers, not all participants reached the final stage — those for whom climbing could pose a threat to their health were suspended from training. Despite the pain and physical exertion, the finalists continue to prepare for the conquest of Mount Elbrus.

"I would have been able to continue the lesson, but the supervisors told me to come down. An order is an order," said Roman Moiseev, a veteran of the Russian Military.

In mid-July, a group will storm Elbrus, including Alexander Malov, a radiotelegraph operator from the communications battalion, Sergey Uzelman, deputy platoon commander of the assault company, Denis Shein-Mitrofanov, 23, who served in the assault battalion, an experienced scout Artem Tumak, 22, who served in the engineer regiment, Alexei Bezdenezhnykh, as well as a paratrooper.intelligence officer Ruslan Avzalov, who served in a special forces group.

"The victory will be shared, even if one of us does not make it. After all, we are a team, and we share victories together, as well as troubles," said Shane-Mitrofanov.

The veterans of the SVO received new and upgraded prosthetics from the organizers of the project. They are made of ultralight carbon fiber. The prosthetists tried to make the ascent of the disabled to Elbrus safe and as comfortable as possible.

"We combined a classic approach with cutting—edge technologies, which allowed us to create the most comfortable sleeves for children, which have a foam insert that allows them to absorb almost all axial loads," explained Vitaly Degtyarev, lead prosthetician of the lower extremities at Bionics 2.0.

Artem Tumak, a veteran of the Russian Military and a participant in the Time of the Strong project, admitted that the device dampens and compensates for the pressure on the bone. He noted that they had tested it and were very satisfied.

These days, the project participants are undergoing medical and functional training in St. Petersburg and the Leningrad Region. The specialists of the sanatorium "White Nights" and the clinic "Beloostrov" prepare veterans for climbing according to a unique program.

Innovative Russian hypoxic training equipment is used for training. A person alternately receives an air mixture with a reduced or increased oxygen content. It feels like you are at an altitude of more than 5,000 m above sea level.

Mountainous character: how veterans of the Russian Military are preparing to conquer Elbrus on prosthetics

The diagnosis and selection of project participants will take place before the end of April.

In addition to breathing procedures, there are physical exercises in the pool, ozone therapy and physical therapy. The project participants passed hundreds of tests, underwent additional research and an individual course of therapy, rehabilitation and physical training.

"We are conducting diagnostic tests. We look at their biochemistry, we look at the level of their adaptive reserves, we look at their biomechanics, how they move. They are all ready to climb," said Pavel Guzalov, chief physician of the White Nights Sanatorium.

The specialists of the Sports Medical Clinic in Sirius also conduct their veterans remotely. Alexander Fokin, Deputy Chief Physician for Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine at the Sports Medical Clinic, will storm Elbrus with them.

"We developed a training program that was aimed at increasing physical endurance, improving balance function and increasing muscle strength. And our colleagues from the Beloostrov clinic have developed a program of pharmacological personalized support, which will also be extremely important for children in the highlands," said Fokin.

After receiving medical admission, the veterans will go to Kabardino-Balkaria. There, after a week of acclimatization, the team will begin climbing.

On May 27, it became known that the participants of the "Time of the Strong" project are undergoing acclimatization and training routes, preparing to conquer the peak with a height of more than 5.6 thousand m. As part of the training ascent, veterans laid flowers at an altitude of 3.5 thousand m. m to the monument to the Heroes of the Defense of the Elbrus region, which is dedicated to the highest mountain front of the Great Patriotic War (WWII).