“262 Ukrainian athletes have died in the Russian invasion” – Sport Minister

According to Vadym Huttsait, Ukraine’s minister of sports, 262 Ukrainian athletes have died and 363 sports facilities have been destroyed since Russia invaded and launched the country’s war.

This was disclosed by Huttsait during a Saturday discussion with Morinari Watanabe, the visiting president of the International Federation of Gymnastics.

Huttsait, who bemoaned the harm caused by Vladimir Putin’s Russia, reportedly stated that no athletes from that country should be permitted to compete in the Olympics or other sporting events.

“They all support this war and attend events held in support of this war,” Huttsait said, according to a transcript on President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s website.

Russian and Belarusian athletes should progressively return to international competition as neutrals, according to the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

Although it has not yet made a decision regarding their participation in the 2024 Paris Olympics, Ukraine has stated that its athletes will not be released to compete in 2024 Games qualifying events if they must compete against Russians.

While no international or continental organization has confirmed the number of Ukrainian athletes who have died, according to Reuters, the IOC criticized the war-torn nation’s decision to forbid its athletes from competing in games against Russians.

Following Russia’s complete invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, a number of Ukrainian national-level athletes have voluntarily enlisted in the military to protect their nation.

Dmytro Sharpar, a figure skater, who died in battle near Bakhmut, and Volodymyr Androshchuk, a 22-year-old decathlon champion and prospective Olympian, were among those murdered this year alone.