How Oksana Masters Gets Ready for the Paralympics Is a Solitary, But Empowering Ritual

Thirty-two weeks before the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Paralympic Games, U.S. Para Nordic skier Oksana Masters recovered from her 28th surgery—a procedure that helped to fix her right hand—in one of her favorite ways: with a proper styling and beauty session. Documented in an Instagram post, Masters’ mom braids her hair while she raises a casted hand for the camera.

And yet, Masters refuses to let the setback stop her from maintaining her status as the most decorated U.S. Winter Sport Paralympian of all-time, proof of her unwavering tenacity.

Whether she’s dealing with health setbacks, dominating the slopes on skis, or aiming to perfect a bold red lip, determination is her ultimate driver.

Masters’ Childhood and the Aftermath of the Chernobyl Disaster

Masters was born in Ukraine with defects in her hands, legs, and some organs. At age seven, she was adopted and moved to the United States. Doctors identified her disabilities as a product of in-utero radiation damage from the Chernobyl nuclear power plant disaster of 1986, three years before she was born. After her adoption, Masters had both legs amputated. For mobility and performance, she relies on prosthetics, her arms, and hands.

“My sport is very much about hand dexterity,” she tells Outside. “When I ski, I have to actually physically tape my poles to my ski grips, to my gloves, and to my hands because I can’t hold onto my poles.”

Despite her recent injury, Masters ultimately qualified to compete on Team USA’s 2026 Para Nordic Skiing team. Para Nordic skiing comprises both the biathlon and cross-country skiing events.

Now that she’s done the hard work of accomplishing that goal, she can revel in her other beloved preparation ritual: to slowly and intentionally perfect her image for the global stage. This routine is a foundation and powder-puffed process that injects a cushiony boost of confidence into her performance.

Masters’ Pre-Race Ritual Involves Makeup, Self-Hype, and a Surprising Hair Product—That She Doesn’t Use on Her Wavy Tresses

“For me, beauty is a sense of freedom,” Masters says. You might assume that on Paralympic event days, she and her fellow athletes line up to be glammed up by professionals. The reality is no outsiders are allowed in the Paralympic Village. That means she passes her mom’s braiding duties onto whichever of her roommates is the most capable. Then she’s off to the bathroom, where she blissfully remains locked away for at least an hour of solo skincare and makeup application.

“I get up obscenely way too early, for two reasons: for my coffee routine and for my beauty routine and skincare routine,” she says. “Because I do believe: If you look good, you feel good, and then you’re going to race really, really good.”

Masters’ fiancé jokingly calls her makeup “war paint.” But she puts it into a more meditative category. “In my mind, I have this Rocky montage song going on,” she says.

First: it’s serums, moisturizer, and sunscreen, then she moves onto a full face of foundation, contouring, and eye makeup—all while visualizing the perfect race. “It’s kind of the same approach as the way I do my training,” she says of getting ready. “Every stroke, every day has to count. And it’s the same thing for me when I do my eyebrows.”

Most importantly, Masters takes her time and enjoys the calm before the competitive storm. ”Makeup has always made me happy, and it’s been a form of self-expression,” she says. For intricate steps like a vibrant lip, she minimizes hand fatigue and saves dexterity for her sport with the help of an innovative application tool from Lancôme, a brand she’s partnered with, called HAPTA, which stabilizes the lipstick tube in a grip-like holder.

Last, but not least, she seals the deal with what she deems an “embarrassing” but critical step. “My last step is not healthy,” she admits. “I finalize it with hairspray, just all over my face, just to kind of let it sit and lock it in.” According to Masters, the old-school beauty trick ensures that her hard work goes unscathed, even in the windiest of conditions, which is important because when she’s perched proudly on that podium post-race, she wants to be a vision for younger athletes like her.

“I trained my body to be as strong as it could. And I want to also, in that moment, feel confident and beautiful,” she says. “There’s a Coco Chanel quote that is in my high school yearbook, and it’s: ‘To be irreplaceable, one must always be different.’ And that changed my whole perspective as a 17-year-old girl who just had her second leg amputated.”

Now, Masters has plenty of ways to stand out, and she leans into them all.

The 2026 Paralympic Games will mark Oksana Masters’ eighth year competing. Para Nordic skiing events begin Saturday, March 7, and run through Sunday, March 15th. 

Are you planning to tune into the 2026 Paralympic Games? If so, tell us which event you’re most looking forward to in the comments below.