Congratulations to Oleg Ponomarev, bronze medallist in the 1km cross-country skiing sprint at the Winter Paralympics 2014-03-12 18:20:00 Vladimir Putin sent a congratulatory message to Oleg Ponomarev, bronze medallist in the 1km cross-country skiing sprint at the XI Paralympic Winter Games in Sochi. The message reads, in part: “This medal is a well-deserved prize for your years of training, mastery and the willpower you demonstrated in this competition against experienced athletes. I am confident that with this truly competitive attitude, you will continue to achieve success, in sports and in life.”