United24: “Military uniform is the second jersey for the Russian Olympic team”

In a tweet, Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba shared a video by the presidential United24 initiative that explains why Russian athletes should not be allowed to participate in Paris 2024 Olympics even under a neutral flag.

“Sports, state propaganda and the army are indivisible in Russia. And now Putin has already introduced not only politics but also war crimes into sports. There is no way for Russian or Belarusian athletes to compete in the Paris Olympics or any other major sporting event,” the tweet reads.

The video shows Russian Olympic champions marching on a military parade, rallying at a pro-war event and cheering up the Russian troops on Syria’s incursion.

According to the video, 61 out of 71 Russian Tokyo Games medals were won by athletes affiliated with the Russian army.

“Over the last two decades, Moscow has trained an army of elite soldiers that advertise and whitewash its policies,” while “military uniform is literally the second jersey for the Russian Olympic team,” says United24. “Many of these athlete soldiers plan to compete at the Paris Games under a neutral flag, while their fellow officers keep killing people and destroying cities in Ukraine.”

Photo: Russia’s defense minister Sergey Shoigu and fencing champion Sofya Velikaya, an army captain (screenshot)

Sports, state propaganda, and the army are indivisible in Russia. And now Putin has already introduced not only politics, but also war crimes into sports. There is no way for Russian or Belarusian athletes to compete in the Paris Olympics or any other major sporting event. pic.twitter.com/awrLgi3ieW

— Dmytro Kuleba (@DmytroKuleba) March 25, 2023