The Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine and the Ministry of Youth and Sports, in the “Champions of Terror” section of the War&Sanctions portal, have published data on 8 Russian athletes and sports officials who supported the war, participated in propaganda events, visited occupied territories of Ukraine, and despite this, remain part of the global sports community and compete in international tournaments and competitions.
Russia uses international sports as “soft power” abroad to spread its narratives, justify the war and war crimes, and legitimize the occupation. Today, Main Intelligence Directorate and the Ministry of Youth and Sports are revealing data on eight more Russian influence agents, including:
- Russian wrestlers Zaur Uguev, Abdulrashid Sadulaev, and Zaurbek Sidakov, who in 2022 supported Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine and participated in a propaganda rally at Moscow’s Luzhniki Stadium, yet continued to compete in international tournaments in European countries from 2023 to 2025;
- Angelina Melnikova, a Russian gymnast who in April 2025 won the primaries of the “United Russia” party to participate in the elections to the Voronezh City Duma, attends events for families of “participants in special operations,” and has been granted neutral athlete status by the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) to return to international competitions;
- Pavel Rozhkov, President of the Russian Paralympic Committee, who systematically organizes propaganda tournaments with the participation of Russian forces and implements projects aimed at involving wounded Russian military personnel in the Paralympic movement.
"Such Russian athletes and officials must be excluded from the global sports community and barred from participating in international competitions, even under a neutral status," wrote Intelligence Agency.
The Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine and the Ministry of Youth and Sports continue systematic work to block Russian influence abroad.
