After decades, war breaks out again in Europe between Ukraine and Russia, in which the latter is invading the former that causes thousands of lives to be lost and the rest in grave danger. The ongoing crisis and violence has caught the attention of the world with many showing their support with Ukraine.
While the world continues their condemnation to the Russian invasion, several teams and athletes across the different sports stand united with Ukraine.
Olympics
As a response to the ongoing invasion, the International Olympic Committee announced that it will ban athletes from Russia and Belarus from participating in Olympic events such as the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.
The sporting body went even further by calling other international sports organizations to ban the participation of Russia and Belarus to any international sporting event, this will also affect the odds in Solarbet.
Motorsport
On February 25, motorsport event Formula 1 announced that it will cancel the upcoming Russian Grand Prix on September 25 following the war. The Automobile Federation of Ukraine has pleaded with the FIA to ban any Russian and Belarusian drivers from competing in any motosport race.
Association Football
The UEFA moved the venue of the finals of the UEFA Champions League from Gazprom Arena in St. Petersburg to the Stade de France Stadium in Paris. Several European clubs expressed their support to Ukraine and its players like Manchester United, Barcelona FC, SSC Napoli, Bayern Munich, Eintracht Frankfurt, and many more.
In international football, Ukraine national team players Oleksandr Zinchenko and Vitaliy Mykolenko hugged and prayed for their country before the match between their clubs and received applause from the crowd. In a decisive announcement, FIFA removed the Russian team from the 2022 World Cup qualifiers.
On February 24, the national teams of Poland, Czech Republic and Sweden released a joint statement, refusing to play against the Russian team and requested UEFA to move their qualifying matches next month away from the country.
Basketball
Toronto Raptors player Svi Mykhailiuk and Sacramento Kings player Alex Len, both Ukrainian athletes in the NBA released a joint statement, urging everyone to pray for their country. On February 24, the Sacramento Kings and Denver Nuggets made a symbolic arms link and set a moment of silence for the people of Ukraine.
Tennis
Ukrainian player Elina Svitolina wrote a letter to her country to stand with her nation. Russian players Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and Daniil Medvedev condemned the ongoing war, while Andrey Rublev signed a camera, writing “No war please.”
Boxing
Ukrainian former boxing professionals and brothers Vitali Klitschko and Wladimir Klitschko urged Putin to stop the war. Ukrainian boxer Vasiliy Lomachenko joined the territorial defense battalion to help fight for his country against Russian forces.
Like Lomachenko, boxer Oleksandr Usyk also joined the territorial defense in Kyiv to fight for his country against the Russian invaders. Usyk also posted a video on Instagram and appealed to the Russian president to stop the war against his nation.
Hockey
The National Hockey League posted an official statement, condemning the Russian invasion. The hockey league also severed ties with their Russian partners and will discontinue any plans on considering Russian locations for future games.
Chess
In professional chess, the International Chess Federation announced several decisions regarding their response to the crisis, including suspension of chess tournaments in Russia and the taking down of Belarusian and Russian flags.
Esports
Game developer EA Sports announced that it removed the Russian teams from its products such as FIFA 22, FIFA Online and FIFA Mobile, which is a popular franchise in Macau888.
Conclusion
The sporting world is definitely awakened by the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine. The situation inside the country has caused the world to unite with a common cause, and that is to stand for Ukraine and call Russia to stop the war.
