The Invictus Games this week in Düsseldorf had just begun when a touching scene in the small athletics stadium immediately made it clear what this sports festival for physically and mentally injured soldiers is all about. The Romanian Afghanistan veteran Valentin Popa needed 22:13 minutes in a wheelchair for a 1500-meter race, for which other participants needed five to seven minutes. On the last two agonizing laps, team members from Romania, Germany and the Netherlands ran alongside him. They spoke well to him, applauded him and also encouraged the audience to support him. The schedule fell behind schedule, but at some point Popa reached the finish line, smiling and exhausted. And that was all it was about!
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