Emotional moment Judge Robert Rinder tracks down Strictly partner’s family in Ukraine as he’s praised as ‘remarkable’
ROBERT Rinder shared an emotional moment after tracking down the family of his Strictly Come Dancing partner after they fled war-torn Ukraine. The criminal barrister, 43, travelled to Poland’s border with Ukraine to help find Ukrainian dancer Oksana Platero’s family. Robert’s been reporting on the refugee situation from border and with the help of fixers found […]
ROBERT Rinder shared an emotional moment after tracking down the family of his Strictly Come Dancing partner after they fled war-torn Ukraine.
The criminal barrister, 43, travelled to Poland’s border with Ukraine to help find Ukrainian dancer Oksana Platero’s family.
Robert’s been reporting on the refugee situation from border and with the help of fixers found Oksana’s grandparents.
He kept fans updated on his search and then shared their emotional meeting.
“Oksana’s family: Auntie Lidya and Grandma Zoya,” he captioned the photos of them embracing him.
‘We managed to reach them this morning with a wheelchair & some medical supplies.
“Despite having nearly nothing.. they are ‘grateful for everything’.”
Oksana rushed to thank Robert for finding her family.
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“I can’t say thank you enough to my wonderful SCD partner @robrinder and his team for being there for my family and so many others,” she wrote on Instagram.
“You are a truly remarkable man and my love for you is limitless. The world needs more people like you.”
In an interview with TalkRadio, Robert opened up on the stark reality for many fleeing the conflict.
“It really drives into sharp focus what happens when you need to leave your home suddenly, you’re left without a wheelchair, without the basic needs, you know the basic things that are required for people’s human dignity – going to the loo and so and so forth – and things you need if you are disabled,” he said.
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“All of that had to be left, as they journey for seven days, sometimes without water, fleeing shelling to arrive here.”
Oksana and the TV judge reached the semi-finals of the BBC dancing competition in 2016.
He had kept fans updated on his search for Oksana’s family in Poland.
He wrote on Twitter: “Oksana Platero my Ukrainian dance partner on @bbcstrictly gifted me so much. Right now her grandparents are a week into their struggle to find sanctuary in a safe country.
“I’ll be trying to meet them on the border next week. They’re just a few of the millions who need us.”
Subsequent tweets saw him add: “Depends on where they make it to but I’ll be at the polish border from Monday.”
The posts were met with an outpouring of support from UK citizens offering to house Ukrainian refugees.
So far nearly US$13,000 (£9,900) has been raised for Oksana and her cousin Kateryna’s families via a GoFundMe page.
Oksana explained how her mum, young brother, and Kateryna’s sister all found safety earlier this month after a brutal journey into a neighbouring country.
But they still have relatives at risk from indiscriminate Russian attacks.
She wrote: “We are forever grateful to still have them as there are so many who can’t say the same.
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“The rest of our family which include our 3 grandparents, 2 who are not able to walk, and Kateryna’s mom and dad, are still in danger as they are currently still trying to escape.
“We are praying that they will make it out of Ukraine and into safety soon.What’s next is for them is unclear, unpredictable, and terrifying.”
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