Alexander Vlasovone of two Russian cyclists in the WorldTour peloton took a position this Thursday against the war in Ukrainelike his compatriot Pavel Sivakov had done it before.
“Like many Russians, I just want peace. I’m not a political person, and normal people like me weren’t asked if we wanted a war.” stated Vlasov (25 years old) on his Instagram account.
“It was a blow to the whole world and i hope this stops as soon as possible”, added the Russian rider of the German team Bora-hansgrohe.
“I think that the role of sport should be to unite people across political borders, more than divide,” Vlasov said.
“I feel sorry for all the people who are suffering and I hope there will be peace soon,” he said. winner in February of the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana.
On the other hand, the Russian Pavel Sivakov, of the British squad Ineos Grenadiers, cyclist with Italian and French training, spoke out last Friday against the invasion, pointing out that the war did not have the support of the Russian people.
“It’s been a tough few days seeing what’s going on right now. I mean I’m totally against war and I can’t stop watching what is happening in Ukraine, all my thoughts are with the Ukrainian people,” he posted.
Sivakov made it clear that “people must understand that most russians just want peace and they never asked for all this to happen.”
In consecuense, Sivakov asks that “Russians are not now the target of hatred just because of our origin”.
Last Tuesday, the International Cycling Union (UCI) followed the line of the International Olympic Committee in sanction Russia and Belarus following the invasion of Ukraine.
the russian team Gazprom-RusVelo, from the ProTeam division, second category of world cycling, notably lost its UCI status, which deprives it of any international competition.
But contrary, the UCI authorized the licenses to runners from both countries to participate in the calendar tests, on a neutral basis, and “under the condition that they are registered in a UCI team”, which is neither Russian nor Belarusian. (D)
Source: Eluniverso
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