Gymnast Ivan Kuliak sparked outrage by wearing the Russian military insignia ‘Z’ on his vest during the Gymnastics World Cup medal ceremony in Doha on Saturday. While sharing a podium with Ukrainian gymnast Illia Kovtun, the athlete showed his open support for Russian aggression.
According to reports, in Russia, it is a sign of ‘victory’. The emblem can also be found on Russian military vehicles. Ironically, he came in third place behind Kovtun, who won gold at the World Cup event.
Many Russian sportsmen have gone to great lengths to oppose the conflict, such as tennis player Andrey Rublev, who actually scrawled ‘No war please’ on a broadcast camera, and footballer Fedor Smolov, who issued a Twitter appeal for peace.
Kuliak, on the other hand, isn’t the only one who has publicly expressed support for the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Svetlana Khorkina, an Olympic gold winner, made her jingoist stance public on Saturday by sharing a photograph of the ‘Z’ sign with the caption: ‘A campaign for those who are not ashamed to be Russian. Let’s spread it’.
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Many pro-Putin activists, government officials, and online personalities have been seen wearing ‘Z’ apparel, which includes anything from t-shirts to badges.
Meanwhile, the International Gymnastics Federation has cancelled all future competitions in Russia and Belarus, as well as an indefinite ban on gymnasts from both nations, which will take effect from Monday. Russia has suffered a slew of bans since its invasion of Ukraine, including bans from Australia, France, New Zealand, Switzerland, the United States, the United Kingdom, and the European Union.
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