Maksym was 19 years old when Russia's war against Ukraine began. He volunteered to fight for his country, but in 2023 a Russian drone attack took both of his legs. Now, with prosthetics that allow him to walk again, he sets out to find a new purpose in life.
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00:00For the first time in his life, Maxim has left his home country Ukraine to travel abroad.
00:06He is on his way to fulfill his dream of seeing the Cologne Cathedral, a Gothic monument in
00:12Western Germany.
00:13But for Maxim, it is not just a trip.
00:16At 21, he is learning how to walk again.
00:20Today, we follow him as he takes on a new challenge – climbing the more than 500 steps
00:28to the top of the cathedral.
00:31I first saw the Cologne Cathedral online when I was just 16 years old.
00:38I was really impressed by its Gothic architecture.
00:43Even now I am still amazed at how enormous it is.
00:46I have no words, because all my life I have only seen post-Soviet buildings, and this
00:53is the first time I visited such a big building abroad.
01:01Being here at the cathedral, it is hard for Maxim to believe that not long ago he was
01:07on the front line.
01:08When the war in Ukraine broke out at the age of 19, Maxim volunteered to fight.
01:13He was injured during a Russian drone attack in 2023 and lost both of his legs.
01:20For six months, until I could stand on my own, I felt like my life was over.
01:26I thought I was disabled, that no one needed me, that no one would ever love me.
01:32My mental state was really bad.
01:35I didn't want to talk to anyone, didn't want to hear people say that life goes on,
01:40and that they'd help me get back on my feet.
01:42I didn't listen.
01:44I kept saying I'm disabled and I have no legs, I'm only 20, that's it.
01:50After a long rehabilitation, Maxim realized that his life could change not just because
01:56of the prosthesis, but through setting new goals.
02:00What really motivates me is learning to walk like everyone else and showing others that
02:05you can live a full life with prosthetics.
02:13His mission today is to climb to the top of the Cologne Cathedral, with each step reminding
02:22himself that he can conquer any peak.
02:27Maxim knows it doesn't matter if you have iron legs, what truly matters is having an
02:33iron will.
02:35And this moment on the top he will never forget.
02:39All I can say is, this is f***ing awesome.