Let's hit it so Europe forgets. Olympic champion reacted to the exclusion of Russians from the Olympics.

According to inkorr.com: Oleksandr Tikhonov, a four-time Olympic champion in biathlon from Russia, expressed his opinion on the exclusion of Russian biathletes from the 2026 Olympics. This was reported by Glavcom.

Exclusion of Russians from the 2026 Olympics

Today, August 28, the International Biathlon Union (IBU) announced that neutral athletes cannot participate in the Olympic qualifiers. This means that Russian biathletes will not be able to participate in the Olympics under a neutral status.

“Right now, I can say that we are not acting: there are no contacts left, we lie to ourselves, and we conduct the wrong policy. One situation is unclear to me: why is the world ruled from across the ocean? We are the winners. Today we are nowhere, and we constantly complain. They wait until we complete our SVO, until we hit it so hard that Europe forgets forever? To remind about 1945, there is no need to be ashamed. How long can we be mocked: politically, economically, this is abnormal. We say that Russia is the richest country; we should be in control. Apparently, we manage poorly; we have no representation in IBU. Don't look for reasons; nobody is to blame except ourselves,” Tikhonov stated.

New data on Russian athletes supporting the war

The Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine published new information about Russian athletes supporting the war on the War&Sanctions portal.

Eight more individuals who support the war have been added to the list based on materials from Glavcom.

• Russian wrestlers Zaur Uguev, Abulrashid Sadulaev, and Zaurbek Sidakov, who supported Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022 and participated in a propaganda rally in Moscow, continued to take part in international competitions in European countries in 2023-2025;
• Angelina Melnikova – a Russian gymnast, who won the primaries from the 'United Russia' party for elections to the Voronezh City Duma in April 2025, participates in events for families of 'participants of SVO' and received neutral athlete status from the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) to return to international competitions;
• Pavel Rozhkov – president of the Paralympic Committee of the Russian Federation, who constantly organizes propaganda tournaments and implements projects to involve injured Russian military personnel in the Paralympic movement.

Inal Tasoev, Dinara Kudaeva, and Emin Sefershaev also made it to the list.

Oleksandr Tikhonov expressed his surprise regarding the lack of opportunity for Russian athletes to participate in international competitions on equal terms due to political restrictions, emphasizing the importance of the country's representation in sports organizations.

This case demonstrates the complexity of the current situation in sports, where geopolitical factors affect athletes' opportunities. The exclusion of Russian biathletes from the 2026 Olympics is an example of how political decisions impact sports careers. At the same time, new data on athletes supporting the war highlight the importance of being cautious about proclaimed values that can be used for manipulation.