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Transcript/ScriptUkraine War and Sport – Moskalkov
HEAD: Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine Forces Athletes to Pick a Side
PUBLISHED AT: 03/27/2022 at 2:36 pm
BYLINE: Maxim Moskalkov
CONTRIBUTOR:
DATELINE: Washington
VIDEOGRAPHER: Andrey Degtyarev
VIDEO SOURCE (S): VOA, Zoom, agency
PLATFORMS: TV only
SCRIPT EDITORS: KE(1st);
TRT: 3:03
VID APPROVED BY: Jepsen
TYPE: TVPKG
UPDATE: Zoom interviews done on a personal PC and cleared for use))
((INTRO:))
[[For many professional athletes, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has prompted them to speak out in support of Ukraine. But for many, just speaking out isn’t enough. Maxim Moskalkov has the story.]]
((NARRATION))
From the king of soccer Pelé and Formula-1 champion Lewis Hamilton to hockey players Wayne Gretzky and Dominik Hasek – many athletes are voicing their support for Ukraine and condemning Russia’s invasion.
At the 2022 Kontiolahti Biathlon World Cup, world teams positioned the Ukrainian flag at the shooting zones – so that it ended up in every TV shot. Many athletes have donned the blue and yellow colors of Ukraine. Even sports fans have joined in.
Experts say such political displays are becoming more common in the sports world.
((Timothy Baghurst, Florida State University Professor))
“Here, we are seeing a situation where politics is affecting sports not just in a small area, not just with one country, but with many countries and many organizations, which is unusual.
((NARRATION))
At the recent Indian Wells tennis championship, two players wore Ukrainian colors – Australia's Daria Saville, who represented Russia until 2015 and Poland’s Iga Świątek, the number two player in the world.
But former Ukrainian figure skater and Olympic champion 1994 Oksana Baiul says gestures and words are not enough to stop Russia’s invasion in Ukraine.
((Oksana Baiul, Ukrainian Figure Skater)) ((IN RUSSIAN))
“I’ve always said that culture and sports should be beyond politics. And when the war started, when bombs started to hit buildings, when mothers and children started dying – at the hands of Putin, this truly is beyond politics… Well, other athletes – and this is solely my opinion – when they say ‘No to War’, well, what does it mean – No to War?”
((NARRATION))
Some Ukrainian athletes have opted to join the army to help defend their country.
Ukrainian Biаthlete Anastasiya Merkushyna who competed at the Beijing Olympics in February, joined the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine. And some male Olympic athletes including Oleksandr Abramenko, and Bogdan Tsymbal are still in Ukraine.
But for the most part, Russian athletes have been quiet about the Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
((Craig Greenham, University of Windsor))
“One of the things that North Americans sometimes forget is we have that expectation for athletes to be political. And it’s a relatively safe environment for them to do it. But we fail to realize that in many parts of the world that safety isn’t ensured.”
((NARRATION))
A few Russian athletes have also spoken against the attack on Ukraine – tennis player and number two in the world Daniil Medvedev, tennis player Andrey Rublev and soccer player Fyodor Smolov among them.
Russian hockey player Aleksander Ovechkin – captain of the Washington Capitals of the National Hockey League – in his comment just said he wanted peace, avoiding any direct criticism of Vladimir Putin.
((Maxim Moskalkov, for VOA News, Washington)
NewsML Media TopicsArts, Culture, Entertainment and Media
NetworkVOA
Location (dateline)Washington D. C.
Embargo DateMarch 27, 2022 16:48 EDT
Byline((Maxim Moskalkov, for VOA News, Washington))
Brand / Language ServiceVoice of America - English
