Russia uses major international sporting events as part of its disinformation campaigns aimed at demonstrating that it is not isolated, President Volodymyr Zelensky said in an interview released Wednesday, March 11.
Speaking to Irish interviewer Caolan Robertson, Zelensky said the Kremlin views global competitions as an opportunity to expand its influence.
“Participation in major sporting events is a way to amplify its influence, because the audience it can reach is very large,” Zelensky said.
“That is why Russia needs to have its flag there, as well as victories, to show that it is not isolated. This is one of their disinformation campaigns.”
Zelensky said Ukraine continues to push its allies to oppose decisions allowing Russian athletes to compete in international events.
“We are trying to rally our allies against the decisions of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the International Paralympic Committee that allow Russians to participate,” he said.
The president also highlighted the role of Ukrainian athletes, including veterans competing at the Paralympic Games.
“The victories they achieve and the medals they bring home are important not only for them but for Ukraine as a state. They are doing great work, because this is also a blow to the Russians. I hope we will win.”
Zelensky also accused Russia of using culture as a propaganda tool to indoctrinate its society from an early age.
“We know how it ended for Hitler, and we understand how it will end for Putin,” he said.
“Russia fills even children’s animation festivals with propaganda to indoctrinate society from a young age. But it won’t help. Their nation is heading toward a tragic end.”
Russia and Belarus were banned from the 2022 Paralympics following the invasion of Ukraine. However, in December 2023 the IOC allowed athletes from the two countries to compete at the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics as neutral competitors, provided they were not affiliated with the military or security services.
The 2026 Winter Olympic Games, which took place in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, from Feb. 6-22, allowed Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete only as neutral competitors, without national flags, anthems or official national representation.
The 2026 Winter Paralympic Games, which follow in the same host cities from March 6-15, allowed Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete under their national flags, a decision criticized by Ukraine and several European countries. Russia secured its first gold medal at the Games shortly after the competitions began.
On Monday Russia won its first Winter Paralympic gold medal under its own flag since 2014 as skier Varvara Voronchikhina was crowned women’s super-G standing champion in Cortina.