Wednesday marked another victory lap for a Ukrainian-born Louisville para-athlete —Oksana Masters, who defended her title in women’s para cycling.
Masters told NBC News, despite running 25 seconds behind at one point, she took advantage of the course’s most punishing section to shore up her momentum.
"When it hurt the most, that's when the race starts and that's when to push through," she said. "Because if I'm hurting there, everyone is hurting there and I wanted to capitalize on that moment."
Masters was born with birth defects caused by radiation from Chernobyl and lost both legs. Now an 8-time gold medalist, the Louisville cyclist also had the honor of carrying the torch during this year’s opening ceremony.
Hear more in the full audio story above.
