The Russian war on Ukraine revealed the positions of many elite athletes in Russia. Many of them opposed the plans of President Vladimir Putin, but this did not affect the various sports bodies that decided to exclude Russia from its competitions.
The message for athletes in disciplines such as tennis, hockey and cycling was clear: "No to war."
Fyodor Smolov is one of the first athletes to criticize Russia's invasion of Ukraine. He expressed his opposition to the war, expressing this with an Instagram post that included a black background image and a broken heart, while banning comments to avoid any insult from Russian fans.
And Andrei Rublev - ranked seventh in the world in the ATP list - signed on the camera screen after the victory, with the words: "No to war, please."
Tennis player Karan Khachanov, the silver medalist at the last Olympics, also showed his rejection of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Even Daniel Medvedev, the world number one in tennis, rejected Putin's military attack on the neighboring country.
The newspaper "Elespanol" reported that the multiplicity of anti-war messages in many fields, and circulated by high-ranking athletes, is evidence that President Putin no longer enjoys the absolute support of the Russian people.
She pointed out that the cyclist Pavel Sivakov - in a statement - rejected what happened, and showed his support for the Ukrainian people, even taking it upon himself to stress that "most Russians only want peace."
The newspaper considered that the position of hockey player Alexander Ovechkin, who rejected the war, was the most severe for Putin, as this player did not hide his support for the Russian president, and this emerged especially in the case of the annexation of Crimea, but today he opposes what is happening in Ukraine.
Earlier, Ovechkin said - in a statement published by the Guardian newspaper (The Guardian) - "I am sure that many of us support Vladimir Putin. So let's be challenged and show everyone that Russia is united and strong."
But his words have now changed dramatically, leaving Putin without the banner of sporting support.
Clubs resist with Putin
The position of Russian players from various disciplines contrasts with the position taken by the clubs, as sports entities maintain their direct or indirect support for Putin, while some criticize Russia's exclusion from competitions, and others downplay the importance of the war on Ukraine, but they do not follow the same path as the champions of individual sports. .
Many players of different nationalities decided to leave Russia, in protest against the measures taken against Ukraine.
Russian athletes will have to give up their flag and anthem in tournaments such as tennis, if they want to take part in any competition.
The isolation imposed on Russian athletes is a widespread punishment strategy in the sports sector.